Access Denied

One of the most effective yet inefficient tools in the Microsoft stable is Access. Effective, because a well designed and constructed database can deliver a lot of business process improvements, but - and it's a big BUT, MS Access can lead to such waste of resources that many companies will deny use of the development features to non-technical users.

Let me make two typical observations to support this opinion. An in-house IT enthusiast starts to play with Access to solve a problem of record keeping, sales tracking or similar requirement. The database design, content and structure will evolve over time – and it is time that becomes the first issue. If you were to add up the total level of effort in working with the code and the frustration felt by users in waiting for functions to be added or corrected, you will have spent many times more than buying a boxed solution or employing a programmer to design and develop the solution.

The second issue is documentation.

What documentation? Also certainly, it will not exist. So what happens when that developer moves position or leaves the organisation? The usual answer is the database gradually falls into disuse and you are back to the start, hopefully not making the same mistake again.

Solutions: (a) click the Software Oasis logo on the right of the screen to see thousands of packaged software solutions, or (b) if you have a database or spreadsheet that needs unscrambling then one of our coders can help. Click here to make contact.