>You don't know how many times I've run into the programming to the "exceptions" mindset. It isn't that things never get done. It's that they take a lot longer and are more difficult to maintain.
>
>I agree whole heartedly. Then, of course, there is also the situation of data that is valid but wrong < s >. It is a real picnic trying to explain why this has no software solution < vbg >.

But we can always present the end user with an option to report perfect totals of imperfect data :).

I'm fighting this every day... writing patches for an Access/SQL app (no source at hand, just juggling the database) which consistently allows negative quantities in the inventory ;). These seem to be perfectly valid within the app's set of rules. Except that it doesn't make sense.