Mark A Matte
markamatte at hotmail.com
Fri Dec 8 09:05:27 CST 2006
Hello All, My job yesterday pretty much 'ticked' me off ...so I went to dice.com,reactivated my account, and updated my resume(2 hits already). Anyway...today at the bottom of the sign in page they featured an article about access comparing it to Lego's. You have to have an account to see...so I'll paste the text below. It made sense to me and thought some of you may enjoy as well. Happy Friday, Mark A. Matte Microsoft Access Developer - Grown-up fun for the Lego Builder at Heart By Joseph Faillace When I was a young lad my parents got me my first box of Lego’s. From that time on and for many years afterward they would oftentimes find me on the floor of my bedroom quietly building some construct that I had imagined in my head. For them it was the cheapest babysitter they ever found. For me it was an opportunity to build something from beginning to end. Lego’s was an outlet for my creative juices - though what I was building was relatively small, all my big ideas could be found in the careful placement of every individual block. There was nothing else quite as satisfying as seeing my own little building, car or entire town come to life. When I began developing solutions in Microsoft Access I finally found a career that was an adult equivalent to my childhood passion. Developing Microsoft Access databases is all about building excellent stand alone small scale solutions. Unlike working on a larger Enterprise database where you are one of many developers doing your part to contribute to the maintenance or inception of a new tool, in Access development you are “the man” - the buck stops with you and it’s your way or the highway - as well as any number of other clichés. But seriously, the great thing about getting assigned to a Microsoft Access gig is that you get to think out a plan of attack, create a design spec, a table structure, the look and feel of the interface, a testing plan and then follow it through to implementation. For me, variety is the spice of life and I enjoy working on all different aspects of the development process. Now, if you are the type of person who prefers to get lost in the crowd, Access development is not for you. Whether you are creating a database for a Mom and Pop shop or a Fortune 500 company, the success of the project primarily falls on you. You need to carry the project through from beginning to end. People are counting on you, and often you alone, as their only path to process improvement. However, as is often the case, the more weight that you carry the greater level of satisfaction you get of seeing a project to completion. Some of the little things that make developing in Access nice are that, unlike a larger system, there are fewer users on Access and issues can be identified more quickly. Also since the Access database is not a company-wide program, the red tape factor is greatly decreased, meaning you can make changes more readily, push up or pull back schedules, and bend testing criteria to your will. You can push the limits of your ideas, try things out, go where no man has gone before, and see, taste, smell and touch the fruit of your labor. Microsoft Access development is also a great spring board to a number of other career options. Since Access contains all the portions of a larger Enterprise system you can hone your skills on common languages and knowledge like VBA, SQL, report design, and XML. Let’s not forget that Access has a bigger brother (SQL Server) which you can download for free off the Microsoft site (SQL Server Express). Your Access database’s backend can be converted to SQL Server. You can expand your knowledge of this Enterprise database making yourself more valuable to your clients or employer. If you are not in the IT industry but have interest in pursuing this type of work, you can work on Microsoft Access on your home PC and use it to solve problems in your current profession. Join a discussion group and take free tutorials. Microsoft Access is a great way to get your foot in the door to our booming industry. So, if you have big development ideas, but would prefer working in a smaller environment where you have more control and responsibility, then be the corporate world’s next Lego builder. Be an Access developer. Comments? Please contact us at feedback at dice.com. _________________________________________________________________ View Athlete’s Collections with Live Search http://sportmaps.live.com/index.html?source=hmemailtaglinenov06&FORM=MGAC01