Database compression of blank fields.

Hello, i was wondering if anyone knows what INFORMIX does with blank columns. Anyway so if the table is 1000 bytes wide, is that what is stored in every case.? Any info appreciated.... M

Each different type of column attribute requires a different number of bytes to store data. Informix explains this in depth in the manuals. The size is relative to the minimum number of bytes for a data type. Attribute types containing some type of precision are a little more complex, i.e. Date, DATETIME, Money, Float and Decimal. The closest you can get is a VARCHAR(nnn,1) which will store 1 byte if the column is null. Don't forget about pointers to next/prev physical record as well as the space taken up by indices, constraints etc. Check Chapter 3 of the Informix Guide to SQL (Reference) for a complete description. Terry Hillick CSCSi Mark Norris wrote: > Hello, i was wondering if anyone knows what INFORMIX does with blank > columns. Anyway so if the table is 1000 bytes wide, is that what is stored > in every case.? > > Any info appreciated.... > M