"If you can't search using the data, it doesn't belong in a database." - This is a stupid statement: there are fields in a database used for search and fields to hold data. Let's consider for example a phone book in the way it was designed as a book: you may search using the name and find the address and phone number. While a database implementation can search also using the phone number, the address may create problems: punctuation, extra blanks etc. This does not mean that the address place is not in the database!
On the other hand, since you already do a search in a table to find the file path, why won't you want to stop there and get the data right away? Looking in a folder for a file just initiates another search - yes, it is a search conducted by the OS! It does not meatier how fast it is (and it is slow!) but it just add to the original search. If you think that putting the data in the database row will slow the search - you are wrong: the index file (if you provide one) for the searchable fields is a separate entity, and is not changing its behavior according with the size of the record. It is true that small database like Paradox, dBase or even Access may not accommodate well this requirement, but the only decision to make is what database to use. If there is no money up upgrade and Access does not support this model, then (and only then) step down to the database/file-system model. I cannot tell you if Access will fit (MS-SQL does!) Maybe other readers will respond to this issue. Horia _____ From: [email protected] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Glenn B. Lawler Sent: Friday, April 22, 2005 1:09 PM To: '[email protected]' Subject: RE: [delphi-en] Saving images - bit off topic > > Is it a good idea to store images in an access db. > > Or should I rather just store the file path to the > > image? > I have an Access db that has 751 jpeg's stored as > Image. The db is over 50Mb. > > I am not sure at what point access to the data will > suffer. For my app, the db can grow without > restriction. If it begins to suffer, I'll have to > re-engineer it to store the images externally. We try to avoid storing data in a database which cannot be included in a WHERE clause in a query. In other words, if you can't search using the data, it doesn't belong in a database. When you are using something like MS Access, this is especially true since the maximum MDB file size is 1GB (or 2GB depending on the version). If you store the image files in the file system and store the file name and path in the database, it will dramatically increase the maximum size your database can grow before you hit the wall. Glenn Lawler ----------------------------------------------------- Home page: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/delphi-en/ To unsubscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] _____ Yahoo! Groups Links * To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/delphi-en/ * To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> * Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! <http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/> Terms of Service. [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ----------------------------------------------------- Home page: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/delphi-en/ To unsubscribe: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/delphi-en/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
