Re: Relational Database Design Question - Category Tree

  • From: james.homme@xxxxxxxxxxxx
  • To: programmingblind@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
  • Date: Wed, 12 Sep 2007 07:03:49 -0400

Hi,
I think I should use four tables because there would be less duplicate
data. Here is the summary of this thread as it was on the old list.

Me:
I want to depict a tree in a relational database. Here is what is going
to happen. There will be a table that has items in it. The items can fall
into
categories. That means there will be a table of categories. An item can
be in more than one category. I think this means that I need a third table.
The third table will hold the number of an item from the items table and
a number of a category  from the categories table.
I think I need another table that has
a category number and a parent number. This would let me depict the
categories inside other categories.

Rodney:
I would say you only need 3 tables:
1. Item
2. Category
3. ItemCategory
I don't think you need another table because you can simply put the
ParentCategoryID into the category table.  You would join the category
table to itself to get the parent category.

Humberto:
I think that you can handle the category and subcategory like eBay does.
There is a field category_id and another field subcategory_of in the
categories table.  When the subcategory_of field is the same as the
category_id field, you are at a top level category.

Jim
James D Homme,
Usability Engineering
Highmark Inc.
james.homme@xxxxxxxxxxxx
412-544-1810

"It's more important for me to start to do the right thing than it is to
wait until I think I
can do it just right."

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