From the March 2015 Issue of Prestwood eMag

DBA & Data: Database Fields Developer Reference By Mike Prestwood

Posted 22 years ago on 8/21/2002 Take Away: List of common field names, along with suggested field type and length. These are only suggestions and shouldn't be taken as gospel. Use as a starting point.  Tags: database fields columns reference names size KB100002

Overview

How many times have you been creating a database and not had any idea of how long a field should be, what type of fields to include in a table, or what the relationship between two tables might be? This is an invaluable starting point and reference. When you're deciding what fields to put in a database, it's nice to have this starting point of common field names, along with suggested field type and length. These are only suggestions and shouldn't be taken as gospel. Use this table as a starting point.

Field Name (Type)

• Accommodations (A15)
• Account No (A20)
• ActionFieldView (A32)
• ActionInDesignWindow (A31)
• ActionInForm (A21)
• ActionInQuery (A21)
• ActionInTable (A21)
• ActionInTableWindow (A31)
• ActionNonFieldView (A32)
• Address (full) (A50)
• Address 1 (A25)
• Address 2 (A25)
• Affiliation (A25)
• Age (S)
• Album Title (A40)
• AMENITIES (A32)
• Amount ($)
• Anniversary (D)
• Appeal type (A12)
• Application Description (A1)
• Application ID (A8)
• Application Name (A80)
• Approval No (A20)
• Approved by (A25)
• Area Code (A3)
• Attribute (A64)
• Auto lib (A80)
• Avery Label No (A6)
• Balance ($)
• Band (A20)
• Basement (A3)
• Baths (N)
• Beam (ft) (N)
• Beam (m) (N)
• Bedrooms (N)
• Bet ($)
• Birthday (D)
• Body of Water (A20)
• Business (A30)
• Campaign (A35)
• Capacity (A20)
• Capacity (N)
• Carrier (A15)
• Cash Flow ($)
• Category (A15)
• Cause (A15)
• Certification (A15)
• Check No (A12)
• City (A15)
• City/St/Zip (A28)
• Classification (A40)
• ClassName (A32)
• Clerical skills (A15)
• College Education (A20)
• Comments (A255)
• Comments (F10)
• Comments (A10)
• Company Name (A30)
• Condition (A12)
• ConstantName (A48)
• Constellation (A4)
• Contact (A30)
• Context ID (N)
• Cost ($)
• Count (N)
• Country (abbreviation) (A3)
• Country (full) (A24)
• Create (A4)
• Credit ($)
• Credit Card Date (MMYY) (A4)
• Credit Card No (no spaces) (A16)
• Credit Card No (with spaces) (A19)
• Credit rating (A20)
• Customer No (N)
• Customer No (integers) (S)
• Customer No (letters and numbers) (A10)
• Date (D)
• D (D)
• DateTime (Two Fields: D & T)
• DateTime (@)
• DateTime (N)
• Day of Week (abbreviation) (A3)
• Day of Week (full name) (A9)
• DBName (A32)
• DBPath (A82)
• DBType (A32)
• Debit ($)
• Declination (N)
• Default (A4)
• Default Menu Style (A10)
• Default Percentage (N)
• Delivery (A15)
• Den (A3)
• Department (A25)
• Dependents (A11)
• Depth (ft) (N)
• Depth (m) (N)
• Description (A255)
• Description (F10)
• Description (fancy) (F10)
• Description (long) (A50)
• Description (short) (A25)
• Description of Vehicle (A51)
• Detail Steps (F10)
• Died (D)
• Dimensions (A15)
• Directory (A79)
• Distance (km) (N)
• Distance (m) (N)
• Division (A25)
• Down Payment (N)
• Drive Designation (A1)
• Drive type (A6)
• DRIVER (A1)
• Driver's License (A10)
• Driver Type (A32)
• Entry date (D)
• Equipment Class (A30)
• Estimated current value ($)
• Face Name (A64)
• Fall Temp (C) (N)
• Fall Temp (F) (S)
• FAX (A15)
• Fax Number (A15)
• Field Name (A35)
• Field Type (A32)
• File Name (computer) (A12)
• Film Name (A30)
• First Name (A15)
• FOB (A20)
• fantasize (A8)
• Form Name (A8)
• Format (A4)
• Format (A32)
• FORUM (A10)
• Front Porch (A3)
• Graphic (G0)
• Graphic (filename) (A12)
• Heat (A8)
• Hobbies (F240)
• Hobby (A20)
• Home AC (A3)
• HS Education (A20)
• Instrument (s) (A20)
• Internal only (A15)
• Key Combination (A13)
• Keepers (A12)
• Last Name (A20)
• Last Paid (D)
• Length (N)
• Length (cm) (N)
• Length-ft (N)
• Length-in (N)
• Length-m (N)
• Length-minutes (N)
• Letter (A1)
• Level (A15)
• Line Note (A255)
• Line Total ($)
• List Price ($)
• Location (A20)
• Logical (A3)
• Logical (L)
• Logo (G0)
• Manual/Outdoor work (A25)
• Marital Status (A11)
• Market Segment (A25)
• Math Chip (A10)
• MaxRecSize (A6)
• Media (A12)
• Member (A1)
• MEMBER (A1)
• Membership (A1)
• Messier Number (A4)
• Meters (N)
• MethodArgs (A255)
• Method Name (A64)
• Method Type (A8)
• Middle Initial (A1)
• Middle Name (A15)
• Miles (N)
• Model (A20)
• Modulation (A20)
• Month (abbreviation) (A3)
• Month (full) (A9)
• Movie Rating (A5)
• Musician (A30)
• Musician Notes (A10)
• Name (full) (A35)
• Name (initials) (A3)
• Native Type (A6)
• NGC Number (A8)
• Notes (A255)
• Notes (F10)
• Notes (long) (A60)
• Notes (short) (A30)
• Object (A20)
• Object Code (A8)
• Object ID (A35)
• Object Memo (A10)
• Object Name (A32)
• Object Path (A100)
• Object Table (A40)
• Object Type (A8)
• ObjectClass (A32)
• ObjectName (A128)
• Occupants (N)
• On Meridian (D (1)
• Operator (A10)
• Origin (A10)
• Original cost ($)
• OS (A15)
• OS version (N)
• Pager (A21)
• Passengers/Crew (N)
• Payment Method (A11)
• Payment Method (short) (A2)
• Percent (N)
• Percentage (N)
• Percentage Rate (N)
• Peripheral Name (A25)
• Phone (A12)
• Phone (A15)
• Phone (local) (A8)
• Phone Ext (A5)
• Picture (graphic) (G0)
• Position title (A25)
• Price ($)
• Primary Key (A4)
• Processor (A10)
• Processor speed (A10)
• Qty (N)
• Query ID (S)
• RAM (N)
• Rate (N)
• Rating (A10)
• ReadWrite (A4)
• Reason (A15)
• ReturnType (A32)
• ROM BIOS (A15)
• Routing (A20)
• Salary ($)
• Schematic (A2)
• School (A11)
• School Degree (A15)
• Security (A4)
• Sex M/F (L)
• Sheet (G0)
• Shift (A8)
• Siding (A7)
• Signed (A15)
• Size (S)
• Skill Level (A12)
• Slogan (A40)
• Social Security Number (A11)
• Solicitations (S)
• Song Length (A10)
• Song Notes (A100)
• Song Title (A30)
• Sound (OLE) (OLE0)
• Source (A15)
• Special Donor (A14)
• Special Instructions (F240)
• Species Name (A40)
• Species No (N)
• Spouse (A13)
• Spring Temp (C) (N)
• Spring Temp (F) (S)
• SquareFeet (N)
• Startup Proc (A32)
• State (A3)
• State (full) (A21)
• State (US) (A2)
• State/Prov (A3)
• State/Prov (full) (A20)
• Status of Residence (A11)
• Street (A30)
• Subtotal ($)
• Summer Temp (C) (N)
• Summer Temp (F) (S)
• Supervisor (A25)
• Survivors (N)
• Symbol (A3)
• Table Name (A8)
• TableType (A32)
• Task (A30)
• TaxValue (N)
• Telephone (A13)
• Term of Contract Months (N)
• Terms (A15)
• THREAD (A30)
• Time (T)
• TIME (N)
• Time (HH:MM:SS AM/PM) (A11)
• Title (A30)
• Tonnage (N)
• Topic (A32)
• Total ($)
• Trade for your vehicle ($)
• Transaction Type (A16)
• Travel Cost ($)
• Trip Code (N)
• Type (A20)
• TYPE UNIT (A5)
• Unpaid Balance ($)
• User (A15)
• VacationCost ($)
• ValChecks (A4)
• Value (A64)
• Vendor No (N)
• Visibility (ft) (N)
• Visibility (m) (N)
• Width (N)
• WindowName (A32)
• Winter Temp (C) (N)
• Winter Temp (F) (S)
• Year (A4)
• Years at Residence (A6)
• Zip (A5)
• Zip (full) (A10)
• Zip Ext (A4)
• Zip/Postal Code (A10)
• _Default Value (A255)
• _Invariant Field ID (S)
• _Max Value (A255)
• _Min Value (A255)
• _Picture Value (A175)
• _Required Value (A1)
• _Table Lookup (A81)
• _Table Lookup Type (A1)

Comments

KB Post Contributed By Mike Prestwood:

Mike Prestwood is a drummer, an author, and creator of the PrestwoodBoards online community. He is the President & CEO of Prestwood IT Solutions. Prestwood IT provides Coding, Website, and Computer Tech services. Mike has authored 6 computer books and over 1,200 articles. As a drummer, he maintains play-drums.com and has authored 3 drum books. If you have a project you wish to discuss with Mike, you can send him a private message through his PrestwoodBoards home page or call him 9AM to 4PM PST at 916-726-5675 x205. Visit Profile