You can't do that

[Nancy Palmquist]

Jeff Harrison wrote:

I have been on vacation and just got back into the list.  I thought I 
might add to this thread.


> I'm not sure why you see this as a limitation.  The
> original programmer would put these rules in place not
> filepro.  It is just that filepro would attempt to
> enforce these rules.
> 
> Yes, in a perfect world, programmer #1 would and
> should be responsible for not violating his own data
> integrity.  However, what is to stop programmer #2 (or
> programmer #22 for that matter) from making a mess of
> things?  There is no way for programmer #1 to  forsee
> the way that programmer #2 will mess things up.
> 
> No, its not filepro's fault that some programmers do
> not write good code.  Its also not my fault that a
> second programmer came in and messed up my
> application.

What is to keep programer #2 from changing the rules created by 
Programer #1 and still making a mess of it?

Any attempt to change code written by another programmer should be 
approached with extreme caution - with an understanding of the other 
things that might be affected by the change.

For Example, Changing a field length or edit could affect - 1) screen 
layouts, 2) report layouts, 3) indexing, 4) report selections or sorts, 
5) processing logic, 6) archive files when a different mapped file is 
used instead of a qualifier, 7) other files that reference this file 
with lookups and reports, 8) and other things that don't occur to me 
right now but I am sure there are some.

A clear understanding of the application is necessary before changes are 
attempted.  I have done this on many occasions and I always tread 
lightly.  Costs for changes to code I did not write are always higher 
due to this kind of research, and even then the customer does not always 
provide or report everything you need to know and things might go wrong.

I try to respect the logic started by the previous programmer and fit my 
code into it if at all possible.  Sometimes, it just makes no sense to 
me and needs a rewrite.

Nancy
> 
> What is the down side of being able to make such
> rules? 
> 
> Jeff Harrison
> jeffaharrison at yahoo.com
> 
> Author of JHExport and JHImport.  The easiest and
> fastest ways to generate code for filePro exports and imports.
> 
> 
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-- 
Nancy Palmquist 		MOS & filePro Training Available
Virtual Software Systems	Web Based Training and Consulting	
PHONE: (412) 835-9417		   Web site:  http://www.vss3.com