MySQL - Saving items

Question

Hello,

This is a follow up from my last question: http://stackoverflow.com/questions/2046610/mysql-best-method-to-saving-and-loading-items

Anyways, I've looked at some other examples and sources, and most of them have the same method of saving items. Firstly, they delete all the rows that's already inserted into the database containing the character's reference, then they insert the new rows accordingly to the current items that the character has.

I just wanted to ask if this is a good way, and if it would cause a performance hit if i were to save 500 items per each character or so. If you have a better solution, please tell me!

Thanks in advanced, AJ Ravindiran.

Answer 1

It would help if you talked about your game so we could get a better idea of your data requirements. I'd say it depends. :) Are the slot/bank updates happening constantly as the person plays, or just when the person savles their game and leaves. Also does the order of the slots really matter for the bank slots? Constantly deleting and inserting 500 records certainly can have a performance hit, but there may be a better way to do it, possibly you could just update the 500 records without deleting them. Possibly your first idea of 0=4151:54;1=995:5000;2=521:1; wasn't SO bad. If the database is only being used for storing that information, and the game itself is managing that information once its loaded. But if you might want to use it for other things like "What players have item X", or "What is the total value of items in Player Ys bank". Then storing it like that won't allow you to ask the database, it would have to be computed by the game.