Is Access the right program for you or your business to use? Well I guess it depends, right? It depends on what you want. Here are some scenarios I've run into on the forum:


  • A startup operation is looking for a data management system.

  • Excel is apparently not doing the data management job correctly.

  • The poster heard that Access is a great database system to use.

  • Access is suppose to have a customizable interface, where Excel does not.

  • Someone heard that Access interacts well with the internet.



  • A previous person in charge purchased an Access application from a third party so the poster is stuck using it.

  • Access is a Microsoft product so it's "much easier to use than data programs from other manufacturers".

  • The poster needs to use Access to manage data because there are multiple people that have to use the application.

  • The poster seems to assume that database applications are the only programs that handle large amounts of data accurately.


So here is some factual information about the above scenarios:

EXCEL
Excel is great program, in my opinion. The big difference between Excel and Access is the fact that you can heavily customize Access and keep users away from the sources of raw data. In Excel, you basically have to work within the worksheets even if you are making use of things like forms, controls and graphs. But generally speaking, Excel can do everything that Access can except maintain relationships between tables/sheets of data.

ACCESS and the INTERNET
Yes, it works fine with the internet and can serve well as a front end to web-based databases. But if you're not using SQL Server as a back end, natural compatibility between two pieces of software that are manufactured by the same company will not be there. And in that scenario, errors resulting from compatibility issues will inevitably occur.

MULTIPLE USERS
This is not specific to Access. As a matter of fact, multiple users can use Excel at the same time just as easy (if not easier) as they can use Access.

DATABASES for DATA MANAGEMENT
Access is one out of a million programs you can use to manage data. In my opinion, small operations rarely need to use Access for data management. Why? Because many times there just isn't enough differentiated data to justify using it. Access is meant to be used with groups of data sets. The size of a data file or the number of records in a data file rarely justifies the use of Access.

Furthermore, I believe one of the reasons that there is such a saturated market out there for Access development is because the majority of businesses in the world are small businesses. And obviously those businesses do not need systems like Oracle or SAP to manage data. Regardless of whether they need Access or not either, the fact remains that Access is thought by many people to be "high profile" and "better than Excel". Yes it is, but that doesn't mean that its going to be effective when it comes to dealing with management responsibilities.

MICROSOFT PRODUCTS
Microsoft is a money making machine. What else is there to know? Corporation have the "money making" thing down to a science, and they have had it nailed down for a while now. Then you throw in the fact that Access is one of most complex programs in one of Microsoft's highest revenue-generating software packages. And what do you get? Nothing but a bunch of uncertainty, especially when program upgrades are released. By definition, it's riskier to use a Microsoft product than it is to use many others. So you can simply counter that by following the rule that says you should never completely trust what a corporation says (e.g. - release notes about a product, what people say on forums, etc...). The best learning to be done is what you can experiment with on your own. There is nothing more valuable than that.

DEALING WITH MANAGERS
Ever had someone come up to you that was in a position of authority and give you instructions for acquiring an Access application? Or request to have something done in Access that you knew could be done easier in Excel? Yeah...In this scenario, I would always suggest following orders unless there is not risk associated with stepping out of your authoritative territory. Whenever this happens to me, I always remember that the world doesn't run on common sense. So why would managers be expected to have common sense? Most of the world's leaders are treated like Gods by their people, but they probably couldn't even talk to you or me in plain English if their lives depended on it.

So now you know a little more about the ups and downs of using Access!