Decide where the work belongs
Identify meaning or identity changed
Compare controlled source and stored strings with their intended use. Record failed matches, altered formatting, and display-only differences separately. Determine whether the missing or extra whitespace is meaningful for the affected field rather than assuming a visually cleaner value is more correct or that every padded string must remain untouched.
Group by field and producer
Identify which exports introduce the relevant leading, trailing, or internal spacing and which mapped fields receive it. Compare unaffected field types as controls. Estimate reach from those combinations, keeping ordinary prose, structured values, and exact identifiers separate when their normalization contracts or downstream comparisons legitimately differ.
Assess detection and reconciliation
Check whether preview reveals the transformation and whether users can understand its effect before importing. Determine whether original text remains available for correction. Include the effort of reconciling values that look identical on screen, especially when an invisible difference or an irreversible trim prevents users from identifying the affected records reliably.
What to carry forward
Record priority with the changed meaning, affected field-producer combinations, visibility limits, and recovery effort. Assign a trigger for broken identity or lost meaningful formatting. Keep the decision tied to explicit normalization rules rather than treating a broad cleanup pass as automatically beneficial across every imported text field.
Technical background: PostgreSQL documentation.
Keep the decision with the work.
Use a Work Item in Aglet to record the problem, the evidence you have, and the next decision. Add an owner and priority, then keep updates in the discussion so the next person can follow the reasoning.
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