Okay To Flag Status of One Table In Another Table?

[abrogard]

If you've got a library database with three tables: books, clients, borrowings, would it be okay to have a field in 'books' that flags whether or not the book is currently on loan - or should that fact always be elicited from a search of the 'borrowings' table?

[June7]

You should check into the Lending Library template database.

http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/te...010206883.aspx

https://www.accessforums.net/access/...late-9221.html

Another to look at http://mylibrary.sharepoint.com/Pages/Downloads.aspx

Query is the optimum method to determine status of book. That is a basic concept of relational database - not to save data dependent on other data but calculate it when needed. Automatically maintaining the 'flag' status requires code and if it gets out of sync with the 'borrowings' table, you have bad data.

[abrogard]

Yes, just as I thought. I really only want to do it because I feel an urge all the time to minimise cpu cycles. Relic of a bygone day. Let the query search the 'loans' table.

Thanks for the links. I've already downloaded one library access prog from MS Access. Bit hassly that was, got me a bit lost during the procedure, downloaded it and there was no 'lending' only an assets table, downloaded again more carefully and still didn't work, stumbled around and somewhere within Access I think I got an option to 'make' the lending library thing there and then ... I clicked that and now I've got it...

Access 2007 Lending Library it is.

I will have a look at the others you've kindly provided links to. Thank for your help. It is appreciated.

regards,

ab