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From: "Robert I. Eachus" <rieachus@comcast.net>
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Subject: Re: A nongeneric bounded string array type (was Re: Is the Writing
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Warren W. Gay VE3WWG wrote:

> Ah, but "arbitrary number of matches" could mean billions of
> rows! Do you really want to process columns that way? ;-)

Ah, it could mean that, but, depending on the database, you can either 
ask for the number of records that match, or return at most say 50, and 
a count of how many more records remain.  That is an implementation 
detail that the programmer needs to thing about and handle appropriately.

For example, a "white pages" database for New York City or Los Angeles 
will have to worry about how many "John Smiths" there are that can be 
returned for one query, but it won't be a problem for a database of 
people in West Podunk.
-- 
                                            Robert I. Eachus

"Quality is the Buddha. Quality is scientific reality. Quality is the 
goal of Art. It remains to work these concepts into a practical, 
down-to-earth context, and for this there is nothing more practical or 
down-to-earth than what I have been talking about all along...the repair 
of an old motorcycle."  -- from Zen and the Art of Motorcycle 
Maintenance by Robert Pirsig