What is add_index for?
Someone told me it was to add indexes to the database, but I still dont know what indexes are… first I thought they where other columns of the table, but apparently not.
Thank you for the help,
Rodrigo
Indexes are a feature of the relational database. One way they work is to organize common query features (sort by date added, for example) in the database's structure so that they can happen much more quickly than a simple brute-force approach could do. Other types of indexes can enforce uniqueness (only one copy of this e-mail address may be added ever) at a fundamental level.
Adding an index to a column can return dramatic speed improvements on reads, at the expense of slightly longer write times. Like anything, it's a trade-off.
Like anything to do with the raw database design, you'll have to read up on the specifics of your particular RDBMS to figure out which sort of index structure makes the most sense for your application. If you have access to someone who is a DBA, they can tell you lots of useful tricks that you might use.
But always, add an index (for speed) when you are tuning, not before. An index for uniqueness you can add if it makes sense in your design.
Walter
When you want to look up a specific word in a 500-page paper tome, where do you look? That’s the same idea as database indexes =)
