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Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: Texas
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Originally Posted by dina
Hey there everyone!
I'm just about to start a database assignment for uni but don't know whether to use MS Access or MySQL. I am an adequate use of both but does anyone know the advantages and disadvantages of them???
Thanks
I usually do my initial layout, design and refine my database with MS Access, I can carry it with me on my laptop and pocket pc.
I have a few programs that use access as a backend for over 200 users ( not concurrent ) and as a backend db for a few small sites I host.
Depending on the number of records, the number of concurrent users, the length this will be in use, and the OS it will run on, would be your determining factors.
access will be ok with about 20 concurrent users
access will only manage a db of about 2gb
access would be great for small short term projects
access will only work in a windows environment
anything parameters greater than those should be considered reason enough to switch to Mysql
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Join Date: Aug 2005
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MS Access is not such a bad application. The only draw back to using MS Access is its lack of scalability. With MYSQL you have more control. However Scalability might not always be a good thing. It really depends on your project. Recently I had work on a project which records the number of time employees logout to go on a meal break. The existing phone system had collected all the data of each employees log in and out time. However the data collected was to complex for a call center manager or supervisor to analysis. We had to create an application which would draw the data from the phone system and analysis it into graphs and charts for the call center management team. We had a choice or using either a MS ACCESS back end or MYSQL. We choose MS ACCESS because or the following reason
1. The rich odbc liberary
2. Easy Reports and Forms creation
We tested the project on both databases and found that MS ACCESS was by far the easier tool to deploy and use.
However without being bias MYSQL does have its advantage as well. At the end of the day it comes down to your projects objectives and complexity.
1. The rich odbc liberary
2. Easy Reports and Forms creation
We tested the project on both databases and found that MS ACCESS was by far the easier tool to deploy and use.
However without being bias MYSQL does have its advantage as well. At the end of the day it comes down to your projects objectives and complexity.
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Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Charlotte,NC
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Originally Posted by dina
Hey there everyone!
I'm just about to start a database assignment for uni but don't know whether to use MS Access or MySQL. I am an adequate use of both but does anyone know the advantages and disadvantages of them???
Thanks
dBase4 is FLAT only
edb (Exchange db) is FLAT only.
For a corporation or university being the case-
I would recommend MS ACCESS 2003. There is a huge knowlege and support base behind the product. MySQL in my opinion is for folks that don't want to spend money to do what it takes. Most of the Access developers I know went to classes for training, and MySQL developers were usually self taught.
Some of the problems arise when the programmer has gone on, to another position and code was not annotated well. The university can find hundreds of candidates for MS ACCESS, but is that the same for MySQL?
Now when the project gets huge and gets out of hand, migration to MS SQL server is seamless. Smooth transition path. Seen it, Done it. Plus MS ACCESS has VBA behind it to create complete VBA applications, without having to buy additional tools. However you can get VB6 if more strength is needed. Where the application client can be distributed over a network.
Another consideration is the server it will reside on. Is it a NT/SQL/Windows 2000 server? Or is it Apache/Unix?
Again, there are a lot of considerations that need to be taken before choosing either.
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Originally Posted by Paladine
True....sort of. Depends on what you classify a Database to be? Is not a DB a collection of relational data?
Hence SQL, MySQL, SQL Anywhere, etc are just flavors of the SQL DB Type, while Access is just a flavor of the OleDB Type? Kind of like Excel is not a Database per say, but it can store data. ... And what about Oracle? Hmmm..
It is really just a view point. Haha. But then I know the IT Experts would argue based on DB theory. So liliafan would be right is what was said.
:-)
one reason, the data don't have to be relational.
Excel can hold data , but it is not a database, The Data is.
You can keep a database in a word table, but performing queries to access the data is another topic.
To use Excel as a database is like using a butterknife for a screwdriver. Sure it works but ...
SQL is a language: Structured Query Language. This means that most of the commands that you use in Access SQL, or SQL 7, SQL 2000, mySQL, or Oracle to retrieve data from a DATABASE will generally adhere to ANSI standards from one platform to another.
UPDATE is UPDATE
SELECT is SELECT
DELETE is DELETE
Kegtapper
Preferences should not be confused with best. Nor Skills be a limitation.
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Join Date: Apr 2004
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Originally Posted by Kegtapper
Some of the problems arise when the programmer has gone on, to another position and code was not annotated well. The university can find hundreds of candidates for MS ACCESS, but is that the same for MySQL?
Of course it is, there is always people available to fix any problem with any system, especially now that MySQL has become such a major competitor in the database market.
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Originally Posted by Kegtapper
Now when the project gets huge and gets out of hand, migration to MS SQL server is seamless. Smooth transition path. Seen it, Done it. Plus MS ACCESS has VBA behind it to create complete VBA applications, without having to buy additional tools. However you can get VB6 if more strength is needed. Where the application client can be distributed over a network.
But when a project gets huge with MySQL you can scale the project quite well, especially with the more recent versions which support distributed transaction. MS Access may have VBA behind it and you can pay extra for VB6 but that is a pretty weak arguement, MySQL is opensource it has libraries to be supported by just about every programming language there is, free and none free, you can use PHP, Perl, Python, Ruby, C/C++. Java, Lisp, the list goes on and on, plus most of these are cross platform, and just about every language I mentioned will out perform VB6 in everyway.
SELECT is SELECT indeed but lets face it MS Access only supports a partial subset of SQL in the first place, trying throwing a few subselect and left joins in and notice the difference.
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Join Date: Mar 2008
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awesome thread.
question -
is Access easy to learn if you know MySQL?
Also.. is PHP used to call to an Access database? I know it is supposed to be for desktop databases or for small web apps only.. (that is what I got from this thread.. correct?) but, how do you call to the access database?
question -
is Access easy to learn if you know MySQL?
Also.. is PHP used to call to an Access database? I know it is supposed to be for desktop databases or for small web apps only.. (that is what I got from this thread.. correct?) but, how do you call to the access database?
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Typically PHP displays MySQL/DB2 formatted database not MDB. I don't use PHP but I suppose it could.
It's user base has grown so large and additions through open source has made it an option for those wanting to learn or use it on a budget. But being in the industry starting in the DB2 days and AS400 servers it is a similar argument as APPLE/PC and Windows/Linux. I feel the best tool for the job is:
the one that gets done
the one that can be changed or modified easily
within my budget or my clients
the one where support is readily available
the one that is tried and tested
Here is a statement from a program I wrote in VB6 using an Access DB backend
strSQL = "SELECT Label.Label, DiscographyIndex.LabelNo, DiscographyIndex.Artist, DiscographyIndex.Title, DiscographyIndex.SideB, DiscographyIndex.ReleaseDate " & _
"FROM Label INNER JOIN DiscographyIndex ON Label.LabelID = DiscographyIndex.LabelID " & _
"Where (((DiscographyIndex.Title) <> '***** Not Issued *****')) and ((Label.Label)<> 'Yesteryear') and ((DiscographyIndex.LP)=False)" & _
"ORDER BY DiscographyIndex.Title;"
It all boils down to an individuals understanding of what limitations are where, system cross platform usability and the end ability to PRODUCE desired results. I am one individual that do not put down one DB or OS (or religion, or language) simply because I cannot use it or understand it. And build up the ones that I can.
The above SQL arrived after several years and the project had grown to the point where previous development tools couldn't do the job. Paradox, SimplyDB, and others and controls. The end result was a commercial application, not a Net App.
Often a developer will get more tools, and never learn the core language. In the list below, I only see C++ outperforming VB6 for my needs. The others are only tools or webbased and I develop EXE programs not applications or web only. Though I still can port my MDB over to ASP, and make it a web app.
But thats what I use.
It's user base has grown so large and additions through open source has made it an option for those wanting to learn or use it on a budget. But being in the industry starting in the DB2 days and AS400 servers it is a similar argument as APPLE/PC and Windows/Linux. I feel the best tool for the job is:
the one that gets done
the one that can be changed or modified easily
within my budget or my clients
the one where support is readily available
the one that is tried and tested
Here is a statement from a program I wrote in VB6 using an Access DB backend
strSQL = "SELECT Label.Label, DiscographyIndex.LabelNo, DiscographyIndex.Artist, DiscographyIndex.Title, DiscographyIndex.SideB, DiscographyIndex.ReleaseDate " & _
"FROM Label INNER JOIN DiscographyIndex ON Label.LabelID = DiscographyIndex.LabelID " & _
"Where (((DiscographyIndex.Title) <> '***** Not Issued *****')) and ((Label.Label)<> 'Yesteryear') and ((DiscographyIndex.LP)=False)" & _
"ORDER BY DiscographyIndex.Title;"
It all boils down to an individuals understanding of what limitations are where, system cross platform usability and the end ability to PRODUCE desired results. I am one individual that do not put down one DB or OS (or religion, or language) simply because I cannot use it or understand it. And build up the ones that I can.
The above SQL arrived after several years and the project had grown to the point where previous development tools couldn't do the job. Paradox, SimplyDB, and others and controls. The end result was a commercial application, not a Net App.
Often a developer will get more tools, and never learn the core language. In the list below, I only see C++ outperforming VB6 for my needs. The others are only tools or webbased and I develop EXE programs not applications or web only. Though I still can port my MDB over to ASP, and make it a web app.
But thats what I use.
Last edited by Kegtapper : Mar 30th, 2008 at 12:02 pm.
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