Re: Denial of denial of service

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From: Jeffrey Czerniak
Subject: Re: Denial of denial of service
Date: 19:14 on 28 Jan 2007
On 1/28/07, Martin Ebourne <lists@xxxxxxx.xx.xx> wrote:
> I'd like to point out here and now that getting a null value result from
> a SQL query is NOT FUCKING EXCEPTIONAL. DON'T THROW AN EXCEPTION,
> WANKERS!

If only I could get an exception!   I once dealt with a vendor whose
modelling software took an "innovative" approach to dealing with null
values from an ODBC source.

Before this vendor, my feeble mind could only conceive of two possible options:
1)  Interpret the null value as a zero.   (I was expecting this
behavior, even though it's hateful in its own way.)
2)  Throw a null value exception.   (More hateful, but I could deal with it.)

No, this vendor tried number 3:

3)  Look back to find the last non-null value it received from that
column, and then substitute that old value for NULL.

The subsequent conversation with the vendor was even more
exasperating, as they tried to convince me it wasn't a bug.
There's stuff above here

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