[Year 12 IT Apps] Data type for postcode

Thu May 30 09:24:56 EST 2013

I always tell my students that in its simplest form to store a character is 2 bytes where as an integer is 4 bytes so unless there is a very good reason to store something as a number, such as it is used in a calculation, then you should store it as text as it is more efficient and flexible . Therefor if your postcode was used in a calculation such a range check, you would then need to store it as a number. But as mentioned previously there are better ways to validate postcodes that are not range checks. I think it is important understand the reason behind this choice more than giving them absolute rules.

Regards,

Rob Mercer
Director of School Organisation, IT Teacher l Salesian College l
Bosco Campus l Bosco St Chadstone VIC 3148 l
t (03) 9807 2644 l f (03) 9888 1289 l 
rmercer at salesian.vic.edu.au l www.salesian.vic.edu.au l

-----Original Message-----
From: itapps-bounces at edulists.com.au [mailto:itapps-bounces at edulists.com.au] On Behalf Of Christophersen, Paula P
Sent: Thursday, 30 May 2013 9:06 AM
To: Year 12 IT Applications Teachers' Mailing List
Subject: Re: [Year 12 IT Apps] Data type for postcode

Oh I'm reading with interest. This is of particular importance for examination purposes - will take appropriate action. 

Regards
paula

Paula Christophersen
Curriculum Manager, Digital Technologies Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority
2 Lonsdale Street
MELBOURNE 3000
(03) 9032 1724
0407 043 110

-----Original Message-----
From: itapps-bounces at edulists.com.au [mailto:itapps-bounces at edulists.com.au] On Behalf Of Mark Scott
Sent: Thursday, 30 May 2013 8:33 AM
To: 'Year 12 IT Applications Teachers' Mailing List'
Subject: Re: [Year 12 IT Apps] Data type for postcode

You reading this Paula?

Any comments?

Mark Scott
Luther College

Mark Scott
Daily Administrator

Plymouth Road
Croydon Hills Victoria 3136

Telephone (03) 9724 2000
Direct Line (03) 9724 2023
www.luther.vic.edu.au

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-----Original Message-----
From: itapps-bounces at edulists.com.au [mailto:itapps-bounces at edulists.com.au] On Behalf Of Anthony Sullivan
Sent: Thursday, 30 May 2013 8:24 AM
To: itapps at edulists.com.au
Subject: Re: [Year 12 IT Apps] Data type for postcode

Maybe they should

But, in both recent IT Apps & SD exams there have been questions based on postcodes that involved range checks - which indicates to me that for the purpose of VCE IT - postcodes should maybe treated as numbers...

Anthony Sullivan
Head of Information Technology
20 Wooralla Drive, Mt. Eliza, Vic, 3930
T: 03 9788 7796 | F: 03 9787 7646 | asullivan at tps.vic.edu.au | www.tps.vic.edu.au

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From: itapps-bounces at edulists.com.au [mailto:itapps-bounces at edulists.com.au] On Behalf Of itapps-request at edulists.com.au
Sent: Thursday, 30 May 2013 6:05 AM
To: itapps at edulists.com.au
Subject: itapps Digest, Vol 99, Issue 29

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Today's Topics:

   1. Re: Data type for postcode (Mark Scott)

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Message: 1
Date: Thu, 30 May 2013 06:03:39 +1000
From: Mark Scott <msc at luther.vic.edu.au>
Subject: Re: [Year 12 IT Apps] Data type for postcode
To: "Year 12 IT Applications Teachers' Mailing List"
        <itapps at edulists.com.au>
Message-ID:
        <8EB7758DBE426346943A36370038F9B90124009477FE at lcexch02.luther.local>
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And that should be the end of the argument.

Postcodes are entered as text not numbers.

Mark Scott
Luther College

Mark Scott
Daily Administrator
Luther
Plymouth Road
Croydon Hills Victoria 3136

Luther
Telephone (03) 9724 2000
Direct Line (03) 9724 2023
www.luther.vic.edu.au<http://www.luther.vic.edu.au/>
        [cid:luther_college_email8e06bb] <http://www.luther.vic.edu.au/>

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From: itapps-bounces at edulists.com.au [itapps-bounces at edulists.com.au] On Behalf Of Wayne Eglinton [wayne.eglinton at ntschools.net]
Sent: Wednesday, May 29, 2013 9:15 PM
To: Year 12 IT Applications Teachers' Mailing List
Subject: Re: [Year 12 IT Apps] Data type for postcode

FYI

living in the NT ... I'm fully aware of the 0 lead character in postcodes. Too bad web-developers don't consider using text for post/zipcodes fields ... often we can't subscribe etc... It can seriously be a pain - and we just go to another website... bad for their business!!!

Food for thought for you & your students.

Regards,

Wayne Eglinton

OLSH College
P.O. Box 2508
Traeger Ave.
Alice Springs NT 0871

P 08 8950 8555
M 0406 357 972

________________________________
From: itapps-bounces at edulists.com.au [itapps-bounces at edulists.com.au] On Behalf Of Stuart Walkerden (STUW) [stuw at huntingtower.vic.edu.au]
Sent: 28 May 2013 13:20
To: Year 12 IT Applications Teachers' Mailing List
Subject: Re: [Year 12 IT Apps] Data type for postcode

I reckon if it looks like a number, treat it as a number and use a number field type. Whether you perform calculations on it or not is irrelevant. I have always told my students to  use postcode as a number and phone as text to allow for leading 0. I wasn?t aware of NT postcodes. I may have to change my line.

Stuart Walkerden
Huntingtower

From: itapps-bounces at edulists.com.au [mailto:itapps-bounces at edulists.com.au] On Behalf Of Athena Spyratos
Sent: Tuesday, 28 May 2013 7:47 AM
To: Year 12 IT Applications Teachers' Mailing List
Subject: [Year 12 IT Apps] Data type for postcode

Fellow IT teachers.
Do we declare the data type for Postcode as number or text? In database, if we apply a validation rule for a Victorian postcode as being between 3000 and 3999, then we declare it as a number. However going over one of the past exam multiple choice questions, the answer they wanted for the data type for Postcode was text. Which answer are the examiners looking for?
Athena
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