[thelist] CF: List Manipulations

[Frank]

I've created a little utility to import a tab/return/comma delimited 
text file into a database. I've got two questions.

1) I want to make it a little more robust, so that if the list is 
somehow inconsistent that it returns an error. Can someone suggest 
how I may go about verifying the consistency of a list?

2) I've been trying to figure out how to get my app to identify what 
delimits a list. Imagine I have a list of emails, delimited by 
commas. From a machine point of view '@', '.' or ',' might be the 
delimiters. Now if one of the emails happens to be missing with '@' 
or the '.', once can see how quickly a problem could arise.

I currently get the user to tell the app what the delimiter is, but I 
want to dummy proof as well as error proof. Can someone suggest how I 
could determine the delimiter of a list?

Thanks.
-- 

Our best destiny, as planetary cohabitants, is the development
of what has been called "species consciousness" - something over
and above nationalisms, blocs, religions, ethnicities.


Frank Marion                      Framar Studios
frank at framarstudios.com           http://www.framarstudios.com