SQL Query: Searching Ints vs Chars

[m7_b5]

In the current project I am developing I a form a user saves with a status set to it "Active, Completed, etc." When I first wrote that code I used an integer value "code" to identify the status. 0 = Active, 1 = Complete, etc. Then the HTML output form has PHP to parse the value from the DB to turn that back into text (If 1 Echo "Active" etc.) My thought at the time was that querying on the integer value would be faster and using an Int would take up less space in the database.

Now that I have been building this sysem for a while I am beginning to wonder if trying to use those kinds of speed and space techniques is really necessary. Does anyone know if there is any real speed advantage to querying a int field with 1 digit as opposed to querying a char field with a full word?

Thanks,

M7_B5

[TTT]

there is not relly time different with int vs. chars. i suggest to use int values in db and output result using swich() {case:;}