[GRLUG] Access or Base?

[Eric Beversluis]

On Mon, 2013-04-08 at 20:16 -0500, L. V. Lammert wrote:
> On Mon, 8 Apr 2013, Eric Beversluis wrote:
> 
> > I haven't seen it yet but my understanding is it's more of a financial
> > advisor/markets-analysis DB.
> >
> > Apparently he also extensively dumps data to Excel and has many macros
> > he uses there.
> >
> That could be problematic, it is very easy to create very complesx VBA
> code in Excel that can only be used in Excel. That is one of MS marketing
> tactics <b>!
> 
> > I guess I'd like to know that he'd still be able to count on Access 2007
> > in 10 years. I recently struggled with a project for a widow whose
> > husband had built an elaborate Access/VBA project but never upgraded
> > from Access 2000. While I was connected with the project we never were
> > able to get it properly upgraded to Access 2010, using an outside firm
> > who specialized in Access/VBA.
> >
> You will not have *vendor* support, but who needs it? There are tons of
> forum sites that specialize in Access - just google a problem and you
> swill see numerous answers.
> 
> In reality, Access has become more of a community product than some Open
> Source ones!
> 
> > The reason we "had" to upgrade was that the old system (Access 2000)
> > wouldn't run at all on Win7 64-bit.
> >
> Yes, that was a major step, the reason we went to '07 in 2010. It is fully
> backwards compatible however - I update A2K databases all the time (in A3K
> format) and send them back to XP machines with the A2K runtime (which is
> free, btw).
> 
> > -Are you saying to migrate to Access first and then to MySQL?
> > -Are you saying it's better to use Access with MySQL than with SQL
> > Server?
> >
> No, two different systems. MySQL is a dataqbase - Access is an IDE that
> happens to have a simple database built-in.
> 
> You can move your *data* to MySQL fairly simply by creating an ODBC data
> source from the FoxPro application.
> 
> Forms and reports will have to be recreated in whatever IDE or
> webframework that is choosenn.
> 
> > So there's no equivalent to the VBA/Access relation in LO Base?
> >
> Correct.
> 
> > When I read the Base section of LO Getting Started, there are several
> > references to a "Base User Guide." But I haven't been able to find that
> > document. Does anyone know if the reference in "Getting Started" is
> > merely a promissory note?
> >
> Far simpler to create your datasource, create a Base application, and see
> what you can create.
> 
> As soon as you run into a question, Google is the best resource.
> 
OK. THanks. I just listened to Jim Dettman, Access MVP, on Experts
Exchange podcast. Mostly talked about Access and web app and was not
optimistic about that--can't get much beyond cookie-cutter approach and
CRUD, he said--no VBA or anything. He didn't say much about the future
of Access for desktop front-ends.

Re need for 'vendor support' (see above, near top): I'm more concerned
that Windows 2020 won't run Access 2007 apps. But maybe that's a
contingency I can't control for--and the customer maybe needs to
continue to do incremental upgrades.