General Design Question

This question isn't specifically about MySQL, but about database design in general. Suppose, you had a table that was like this:
<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana,Arial,Helvetica">code:</font><HR><pre>
+----------+-------+------+---------------+
| part_# | color | cost | description |
+----------+-------+------+---------------+
[/code]
But suppose the description was very lengthy, 10000+ characters. Does it's presence in the table slow down queries against the other fields? Would a query such as SELECT color FROM table WHERE part_#=1 be faster if the descriptions were kept in a separate table?

I think if you do a SELECT *, then it would have adverse effects. As long as you're only selecting the large column when you're actually planning to use it, then it shouldn't matter.

My $0.02.

---John Holmes...

As long as you index the field(s) you will be matching your query on, then no, the large field will not have an adverse affect.