250 GTE Register

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El Wayne
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250 GTE Register

Post by El Wayne »

I thought the register was located at www.250gte.com but I am unable to access it at that URL. Does anyone know if it is now defucnt or if it has moved? Thanks.
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lukek
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re: registrty

Post by lukek »

registry is no more on the web. It is now at:

250GTE register, courtesy of Bill Preston, quarterly newsletter and all..
_________________________________

Home: 928-771-8256
E-Mail: billp46279@aol.com

Address:
3119 Rainbow Ridge
Prescott, AZ 86303
USA
Enzo250GTO
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Post by Enzo250GTO »

Hello everyone,
My first post to this website. I'm glad to find it as my knowledge of vintage Ferraris is lacking. I'm currently working on a project of building a comprehensive models section. I'm also a database geek and like to make all sorts of databases in MySQL or Oracle. This post got my attention for this reason.

I'm tossing around the idea of trying to extend it to a register for all models as well. A few questions I have. One a register contains as much information as possible about a specific car and ties that to its S/N? If I left anything out please let me know.

Second, is this information usually open to the public or should I keep it private for the owners only?

Third, what is the usual method of obtaining this information? I could allow users to submit their info on their car themselves via a private form. Is this common?

Thanks for all your help. I look forward to learning more about vintage Ferraris in hopes of completing a work in progress.
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330GT
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330 GT Registry

Post by 330GT »

You should look at the 330 GT Registry for the information I keep and display about 330 GT and America cars:
http://www.parrotbyte.com/330GTRegistry

I'll warn you that you are taking on a very large project that can consume a lot of time and money (for the source materials).

I obtain the information from a variety of sources, the major one being the Ferrari Market Letter advertisements. There is more information on the main page in the registry on my sources and technical information on how I handle the data.

Of course I have a form that allows owners to enter data on their cars, keeping certain items (address, etc.) private if they desire.

If you want to discuss this more, you can contact me using a private message in this forum or the contact page in the registry.
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tyang
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Post by tyang »

For my own benifit, I would love to see a see complete searcheable database available on the Internet for free. I use Kerry's (330GT) database on 330GT 2+2s all the time to learn about specific cars. What he does is of great benifit to the Ferrari community. Some people feel this is kind of information is worth a price, but charging for this information excludes many people who are just starting out.

Let me know if you need any help from me on your database. At the very least, I can post a link.

Tom
El Wayne
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Post by El Wayne »

Andrew, Tom,

Hi there. Myself and others already have a similar project in the works. It will be a nearly impossible task if you do not already have an enormous database built up, something I've been working on for years.

Andrew, I will contact you directly with more details.

L. Wayne Ausbrooks
Enzo250GTO
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Post by Enzo250GTO »

Thanks for the replies. If I tackle this endevor I will of course make it free. I'm a strong believer that the internet and information on it should be free (like a library card). The only thing I was concerned about is the information.

I'm not sure how sensitive it is which is why I asked if it should be reserved for only those that own a Ferrari. Since my last post I've done alot of research. For example the 308 register ask for the current owners name, address, etc. Of course I think that most owners would want this to be kept private as I know I would. At the same time this seems to be critical information for a register as it tracks the owners over the years of a specific model S/N. I think this is the primarly the only part that needs to be kept private.

If I continue this pursuit with success you will be some of the first to know and of course a link is always helpful. Thanks for the replies, it seems that there is some genuine interest in this so I will most likely attempt to create the first all inclusive register. Thanks again for the help.
simonc
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Post by simonc »

I also want to start a 400-series database for the 365GT4 2+2, 400, 400i, 412i cars. I started a year ago but pressure of work at the office means I have gone nowhere. Ideally we need a global database for ALL models, both US and others. Designing the database schema is paramount.

Hosting the database is not a problem - I can do it in London in MS SQL but I am sure others can do this also.

First establish the data we need to collect, after that we could allow everyone to to submit data for checking and uploading to the database. We do not need to show ALL the data to everyone, i.e. my www.400register.com users (assuming they had been authorised) may be allowed to see full 400-series data but only limited data on other cars (model, year, colour and so on).

Anyone else interested in jointly working on this?

Simon
Enzo250GTO
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Post by Enzo250GTO »

Simon,

Yes I'm very interested and can do a large amount of work in a quick time. I perfer MySQL or Oracle over MS SQL as my medium for servers is Linux/Unix.

You are absolutely right about the schema being the heart of it. I'm thinking one database. A table for every model (so a little over a 100) and perhaps one or two additional tables to help for joining tables, if needed and I'm not sure it is.

I currently have a website running three databases with MySQL so that is not a problem either. The more there is talk of this the more excited I get.
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Bryan P
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Post by Bryan P »

Kerry is right about the time/energy/resources involved. I contemplated and actually started compiling the data for a 365GT2+2 register several years ago. While it is important to document these cars - it is also a massive undertaking. I actually created the list of all 801 cars (from Raab's 'odd-numbered serial' book) and probably could have gotten a data dump from Mr. Roush to create the core of the register. The prospect of culling info from all the other sources (barchetta.com, telaio, etc.) was daunting, not to mention keeping the info current. Maybe when I retire . . . I agree with Wayne that the way to go is to collaborate w/ someone who has already compiled a massive databank and 'break-off' a segment for a certain make.

Bryan
Enzo250GTO
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Post by Enzo250GTO »

OK here is a basic structure for a database that I have been formulating. Please help me out with any ideas you may have and gaps that maybe missing.

I have a table for every model and within these tables are the following bit of information.
S/N
RHD, LHD
Manufacture Date (date it is finished at the factory) [if needed]
interior color
exterior color
engine number
other important variables (ie steel frame vs fiber glass)

Then I have a second table with the following
S/N
previous owners
price of car when sold
history of car (could possibly be a third table)

Please help me make this more complete.

Now to address the issue of keeping the database upto date. This is the cool part. Once I have a concrete structure in place using XML I can allow databases to update each other. In english, the central database visits a web address that is not made public and matches its records to the records of the database it is checking and updates itself accordingly. In order for this to work every database has to have the same layout (not totally but it makes life easier if they do).

So if there is interest I'm willing to take the time to begin compiling all this into one massive database. I can do it under my current website or open a new one (ferrariregister.org, which I have now). To do this I need an agreed upon layout that everyone thinks is best. Then when I have the database schema built and working I can share it out and it can be sort of split to have magnet databases that it uses to update itself. Of course I will add information to it at the source as well.
Mike Theo
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Fields for registry records

Post by Mike Theo »

Enzo250GTO,

This is great.

I would also include fields for which Series a car is (i.e. 330 GT 2+2 Series I, 250 GT/E Series III, etc.), and also fields to account for occurrences of where a car may currently deviate from its original delivery status/condition. (i.e. Current Exterior Color, Current Interior Color, etc.)

Using S/N as the key for your tables is the best choice, but you may still run into problems for cars that may not have a S/N left, as in cases of them being stripped-out for GTO replicas and then pieced back. (A red GTE Series II was for sale not too long ago with no clue of an original S/N) Seems like you would just need to use one field for the original S/N and another for an DMV-Issued number).

My hat is off to you on this project. It is desperately needed, and it is most desperately needed on-line. How will you handle Owner Privacy issues? Also, good luck not getting sued in publishing the original GTE Registry's data, since you will be putting him out of business.

Let me know how the rest of us can help.

Regards,

Mike
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tyang
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Post by tyang »

Hi Andrew,

I wish you luck in your endeavor! The way to make it sucessful is to have everyone play in your yard! I will certainly link whatever site you choose for the home of this database.

Tom
Rob328gts
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Post by Rob328gts »

Funny we all got the same idea going about the same time. My current project is moving to a less expensive higher performing server, but one of my next projects is a registry. Looks like we all have the same idea. I don't know if we can start an alliance or partnership. 20+ Ferrari enthusiasts working together in harmony will achieve more than everyone doing their own thing. My idea for a schema (disclaimer I'm a PM and not a DBA and it's been a couple years since I coded hard) would be...

Model table
---
unique id
model designation
years
count
other fields common for the general model

Serial Number table
---
SN
year
original color
interior
engine
other fields unique to each SN

History table
---
SN key
date of entry
info
other fields unique to each history entry

History table many to one SN table many to one Model table.

That's just my quick analysis, I'm not sure if any more normalization is needed. I think one database and those 3 tables could support every Ferrari SN in the world. I think it would have to be a consortium with no one having a majority control. Heck, just in this thread we have 3 of the most popular Ferrari message boards in the world represented. Think if everyone came together to work together on a public non profit Ferrari registry. One person can't make it successful. As a group we can have model representatives that would be responsible for initial data entry and then keeping it updated. Some models may take several reps.

Just a thought, I'm doing a registry no matter what, I would rather do it right and have everyone come together. If not, I'll probably just concentrate on a few models that myself and those from my community can do a quality job at.

Imagine a world with a Ferrari registry including every SN. We have a dream. :) Enzo would be proud.
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330GT
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Post by 330GT »

Here's the schema for the database I use for the 330 GT Registry:

VIN table - contains VIN, ModelID, TransmissionID, Euro, AC, PS, RHD flags, Options field, Source (of data), Body No, Engine No, Internal Engine No, Transmission No, Differential No, PictureID, BuildSheetAvailable flag and Comments. Basically all of the information about the original car except for original colors (explained below).

Model table - contains the ModelID, Name, Series, Chassis Type, Engine Type, Description, Comment, First & Last VINs, First and Last year made and Number made.

Transmission table - contains the TransmissionID, Long and Short names.

Detail table - the guts of the database. Contains the VIN, ContactID, PictureID, Exterior & Interior colors, Detail type (purchase, concours, for sale, etc.), Detail date, Entry date, Source, Price, Publish Price flag, Mileage, Mile/KM flag, Comment, Wire/Alloy wheel flag, DontPublish flag, Registration plate number and Owner number. If the DontPublish flag is set, the record is ignored by the HTML builder. This allows storage of private data, data which is copyright, questionable data, etc. without having to keep it elsewhere.

Contact table - contains the ContactID, name, address, city, etc., phone & fax numbers, email, URL, Date of contact, entry date, source, and several privacy flags (keep name, address, etc. private).

Picture table - contains the PictureID and the file name of the jpg or gif file.

Notification table - contains the VIN, ContactID and date last notified. Used to email people of updates to their car.

Unknown table - like the detail table but the VIN column doesn't have to be in the VIN table. Used to hold records where the VIN isn't known or is known to be wrong.

The original colors are found by looking up the detail record for owner number 1 for a given car. All 330 GT VINs appear in the VIN table even if there are no detail records for the car. This might not be possible for certain models where all the cars aren't known.

For those in the database world, this is pretty well normalized so there is little duplication of information. There are advantages and disadvantages to this. An example is the contact table. Each person should appear only once. Good for updates as you only update one record when a person moves, etc. Then the latest contact information appears everywhere. Bad for history in that you lose track that the person once lived somewhere else. To help this a little, I have a OldPhones table that keeps track of all of the phone numbers a contact has ever had. That way one can look up a contact based simply on the phone number appearing in an ad.
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