RE: Converting names & street names

[jmmckee@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx]

Quoting Jeff Crosby <jlcrosby@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>:

> > The only way to get this right is not to lose the mixed-case
> > form in the first place.  If it's not feasible just to store
> > the name in mixed-case and upper-case it for comparisons
>
> To me, the only reason this data is stored in the database in uppercase is
> inertia.  Years and years ago printers could only print uppercase.
>
> For all of you that are smarter than me:
>
> Suppose I decide I'm going to just store the data in the database in
> mixed-case form.  What are the ramifications?  Will sorts and OPNQRYF and
> SQL still _sequence_ them in true alphabetical order?  I understand that
> comparisons for include/equal/etc need to be altered as "Joe" and "JOE" will
> not compare equal.  What other kinds of thing are there?
>
> As long as Midrange-L has been here and as often as other topics have
> repeated themselves ad nauseum, I'm rather amazed we haven't hashed this out
> before.  'Course I lose brain cells on a monthly basis . . .
>
> --
> Jeff Crosby
> Dilgard Frozen Foods, Inc.
> P.O. Box 13369
> Ft. Wayne, IN 46868-3369
> 260-422-7531

One interesting aspect of AS/400 is that it uses EBCDIC.  Sorts are consistent
with that character set.  I worked on another computer, years ago, that was
ASCII.  A file of names was sorted and printed on an upper case only 
printer. Nobody was happy with the results.  Nobody knew to look at the 
data to see that
it had been entered as both all upper case as well as mixed case.  A small
program change worked around that sort issue.

John McKee