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Determination of the Fields You Need

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To determine the fields in a table, decide what you need to know about the people, things, or events recorded in the table. You can think of fields as attributes of the table. Each record (or row) in the table contains the same set of fields or attributes. For example, an address field in a customer table contains customers' addresses. Each record in the table contains data about one customer, and the address field contains the address for that customer.

In This Section

  • Identifying Fields
    Provides tips for determining the fields you might need in your database.
  • Using Primary Key Fields
    Explains how each table in your database should include a field or set of fields that uniquely identifies each individual record stored in the table, for Visual FoxPro to work most efficiently.
  • Designing Databases
    Take advantage of relational database technology in Visual FoxPro with well-planned databases.
  • Database Design Process
    Provides an introduction on how to create a well-designed database and lists the important steps in the design process.
  • Analysis of Data Requirements
    Focuses on the first step in designing a Microsoft® Visual FoxPro® database, which involves finding out the reason for the database and how it will be used.
  • Organization of Requirements into Tables
    Describes how to select the tables in your database, which can be the most difficult step in the database design process.
  • Determination of the Fields You Need
    Explains the importance of determining what you must know about the people, things, or events recorded in the table.
  • Identification of Relationships
    Contains information and examples on how the Microsoft® Visual FoxPro® relational database management system can be used to link information in meaningful ways.
  • Refinement of the Design
    Details the important step of reviewing your database design to locate remaining flaws after the tables, fields, and relationships have been established.
  • Sample Database Diagrams
    Offers database diagrams as a way to spark ideas for creating your own database.