Creating an autonumber setup

[richiwatts]

Hi,

Could someone explain to me how this could be done? I have seen something similar using Access on a local machine and would like to know if it is possible to do it in PHP and Mysql
In a project management web based application using PHP and Mysql I would need to allow the user to create

Quote
Project
Customer
Supplier
Invoice

Each time one of the above will be created it needs to be assigned an autonumber. So If 3 quotes were created today each quote would receive an autonumber, maybe something like the following:
yy/MM/dd-01
yy/MM/dd-02
yy/MM/dd-03

Creating the autonumber isn't the problem if I want to have a set way of numbering, however, is it possible for me to allow the user to enter a setup page or something and define the way the autonumbers will look like and be created for quotes, projects, customers, suppliers or invoice.

let's say I have five Project Managers each working with a separate version of the app. The app currently sets each new project created with a default autonumber (let's say yy/MM/dd-01, -02, 03 and so on), however, each Project Manager wants their database to number new projects differently:

PM1 = yy/MM/dd-a
PM2 = dd/MM/yy-01
PM3= YY-2222 (Number being the amount of projects this year)
PM4 = PROJ-2222 (Number being the amount of projects ever)
PM5 = P-yyMMdd1

Instead of me creating a different application for each project manager can I allow them to setup their own number system in a set up page?

Many thanks for any ideas
Richi

[bastien]

why not store it in three separate fields (autonumber, date and PM number)...the three can be combined to create the primary key, if that is what you are after...

[richiwatts]

PM1 - PM5 just demonstrates project manager 1 to 5 and the text that follows is the way each of them writes a project number

They would all likely have different ways of writing number for:

Quote
Project
Customer
Supplier
Invoice

as well.

This is why i wanted them to set it up in a setup page

[bastien]

standards are the only way to write a db...else its too easy toget them messed...from a compliance point of view standards are extremely important...everybody working the same job should do things the same way

[richiwatts]

I agree with you, however, these project managers who want different ways of numbering are not sharing the database or application. they will have their own installation. i just want the application to have this function so that i don't have to keep doing it every time I install the application on the users web server