Maybe you can do something with this function: [quote from the postgres docs] 9.12.2. COALESCE COALESCE(value [, ...]) The COALESCE function returns the first of its arguments that is not null. Null is returned only if all arguments are null. This is often useful to substitute a default value for null values when data is retrieved for display, for example: SELECT COALESCE(description, short_description, '(none)') ... Like a CASE expression, COALESCE will not evaluate arguments that are not needed to determine the result; that is, arguments to the right of the first non-null argument are not evaluated. [end quote] Isn't it possible to pass "NULL" to the query in stead of ''? eg. update table set datefield=NULL Regards, Stijn Vanroye > Is it possible to to the following > > I have tables which are updated via webpage (perl) with fields of type > int and date (all nullable). If the values are blank the entire insert > fails, with a wrong type error. > > Is there any way to stop this behaviour so that the valid > information is > allowed,but the blank values get ignored. > > ---------------------------(end of > broadcast)--------------------------- > TIP 5: Have you checked our extensive FAQ? > > http://www.postgresql.org/docs/faqs/FAQ.html > ---------------------------(end of broadcast)--------------------------- TIP 6: Have you searched our list archives? http://archives.postgresql.org