![]() ![]() One important additional tool is the ability to create an index of the flat-file database. Sorting allows a user to arrange the data in an ascending or descending alphanumeric order based on the contents of one column search will find specific strings of text or numerals throughout the flat-file database. Some applications, such as spreadsheets that allow creation of flat-file databases, may provide additional, more sophisticated data manipulation tools. There are two basic tools for manipulating the information in a flat-file database: column sorting and search. If a database application is used to create the flat-file database, that application may apply limits to the number of rows, column lengths and overall file size. The size of a flat-file database may be limited by the host computer's operating system ( OS) or its file management system. Each row is delineated by a carriage return (Alt + 13).Ī flat-file database has no predetermined limit for the number of rows it might contain. Each row contains the same type of information as the other rows in the flat file that information is defined by the columns which describe the type of data and sets a limit on the number of characters allowed to represent the field information.Īs noted, columns are separated by a single ASCII control character such as a tab (keyboard sequence is Alt + 09) or a comma (Alt + 44). The data is arranged in rows - or records - across columns or fields. What are the key characteristics of a flat-file database?Ī flat-file database is a simple two-dimensional repository of like data. In its broadest sense, "flat file" may refer to any text file that has minimal or no formatting besides the use of the ASCII character set. The resulting file contains records - lines of text of a certain uniform length - but no formatting information, for example, about title or subtitle sizes and positions or information that a program could use to create a table of contents for the text file. In any event, many call a Microsoft Word document that has been saved as text only a flat file. There is some ambiguity about whether control characters such as line breaks can be included in a flat file. While the term "flat file" is most often used to describe a flat-file database, it can also refer to other types of files that don't resemble databases at all. A flat file database comprises a single table. Columns and rows are typically delimited by tabs or commas, such as in CSV files. A CSV file is one in which table data is gathered in lines of American Standard Code for Information Interchange ( ASCII) text with the value from each table cell separated by a comma and each row represented by a new line. One of the most prominent flat file examples is a comma-separated values (CSV) file. The structure of a flat file is based on a uniform format as defined by the type and character lengths described by the columns. The information stored in a flat file is generally alphanumeric with little or no additional formatting. The columns of the table represent one dimension of the database, while each row is a separate record. A flat file is a collection of data stored in a two-dimensional database in which similar yet discrete strings of information are stored as records in a table.
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