[RESOLVED] Database setup question

[chris.cavage]

I am working well (as far as I know) on using foreign keys to create a relational database for products to be sold. A catalog, basically.

My question is related to cars.

My final cars table has a make_id, model_id, list_price, ...

However, I would also like to sell from accessories like spare batteries, cleaning solutions, etc.

Should I make a separate table for accessories?! Or should I somehow incorporate every item that I potentially sell into one table?

It confuses me here a bit, because obviously a battery wouldn't have a make_id, for instance.

Thanks for the tips.

I use mysql.

[brucevde]

What do the terms "Make" and "Model" really mean?
They are simply common names used to indicate a car's manufacturer and brand/type. A battery has a Manufacturer (Duracell) and Type(Lithium). A VIN is really just a Serial No. Its all about the terminology.

[chris.cavage]

Nice point. So I can infer that it is best to keep one table for my items?

I suppose it is ok to use null if a field does not have information too.

[techgnome]

That's what NULL is for... it means Unknown Value... don't be afraid to use nulls. Also, if you dump everything into one items table... make sure that you have an Item_Type field.... wouldn't do much good to go searching for a Door and come back with a list of Batteries.

-tg

[chris.cavage]

:-) Thanks. I do have a cat_id for category id. The foreign key.

Thanks again for the posts.