Ron and Mark, Thank You. This is the feedback I was looking for.
-John "NULL programs are both self-documenting for clarity and self-concealing for security." -----Original Message----- From: Mark A. Kruger - CFG [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] Sent: Thursday, January 31, 2002 12:52 PM To: CF-Talk Subject: RE: NULL or 0 If you are using CF, remember that NULL is returned as a zero length stri ng ( ' ') which is not the same as NULL. If you have code that evaluates or calculates in CF using that column, you either must default to a numeric value or validate the numericity (is that a word) in the application code. For this reason I usually default to 0 rather than NULL. When you do thi s, you have the added benifit in CF of being able to use the value as if it were a boolean, as in: <Cfif myquery.myIntergerColumn> If the column is NOT 0, this executes <cfelseif NOT myquery.myIntegerColumn> If the column IS 0, this executes </cfif> I find that useful in certain situations. Mark -----Original Message----- From: Rice, John J [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]] Sent: Thursday, January 31, 2002 7:34 AM To: CF-Talk Subject: NULL or 0 For an Integer or Number field, does it make more sense to default values to NULL or 0? When used for calculations, a column with NULL could cause a problem (eg. NULL * 2). Columns with NULL will be ignored in and SQL count, but columns with a 0 will be counted. Is this right? Are there other reasons to favor one use or the other? "NULL programmers are easy to find and once found can be fired since they are not needed." ______________________________________________________________________ Dedicated Windows 2000 Server PIII 800 / 256 MB RAM / 40 GB HD / 20 GB MO/XFER Instant Activation � $99/Month � Free Setup http://www.pennyhost.com/redirect.cfm?adcode=coldfusiona FAQ: http://www.thenetprofits.co.uk/coldfusion/faq Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/index.cfm?sidebar=lists
