[Babase] how to get in the missing Mdates
Niki Learn
nlearn at princeton.edu
Thu May 21 11:47:20 EDT 2009
Karl O. Pinc wrote:
>
> On 05/20/2009 01:13:13 PM, kfenn wrote:
>
>> The documentation also suggests that we can make our own CYCPOINTS
>> row with an mdate and a source code of 'A' to make the database think
>> that it assigned an automatic Mdate. Is this a better way to solve
>> the problem? I'm finding conflicting suggestions in the
>> documentation. The AUTO MDATES docs makes it sound like it's OK, but
>> the CYCPOINTS page specificially says this may is a bad idea.
>
> The key part is this:
> <snip>
> Automatic Mdate Generation
>
> Babase cannot
> distinguish manually entered Mdates with a Source
> of A from automatically generated Mdates. Therefore it is not just
> automatically generated Mdates that will be removed.
> <snip>
>
> If it's ok for your manually entered automatic Mdate to be taken
> away by the system then it's ok to enter them. My expectation
> is that it's a bad idea to enter them.
>
Tabby wrote:
OK, but if we HAVE to have an mdate in order to enter a sexskin size
(per the validation rules), then we have to make up an auto mdate,
right? I don't have a real mdate to enter. We know why the original
mdate wasn't generated (because we thought this was a conceptive
cycle). This is going to be a recurring problem as we try to upload
sexskins because we always make a few guesses about pregnancies at the
end of every update.
Tabby
Niki writes:
So, I figure there are two choices. One: Karl, if he can by temporarily
removing the other controls, automatically generates new automatic mdates
for all baboons (thus, hopefully, taking care of similar cases already
existing that we would otherwise encounter later when entering other sexskin
data for 2008 and years prior to 1999). Two: We go ahead and enter mdates
with a source of A for these two baboons. It seems to me that it doesn't
matter if babase can delete them to replace them if new automatic mdates are
ever generated because the baboons now meet all conditions to have an mdate
generated on the same date that we will be entering anyway (i.e., it
wouldn't really be removed, just replaced with identical data) and, even if
that is not the case, babase probably wouldn't care if the mdate were
removed after the sexskins were entered anyway. Right?
So do you want to try option one and see what happens or shall I proceed
with option two (which actually sound safer to me, albeit potentially more
work over the long haul)? Either way, I now know that this is an issue and
can keep track of future cases and can use option two to update mdates for
individuals when I remove their fake pregs, etc. That will speed up
sexskins uploads later.
Thanks,
Niki
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