[AccessD] The Future of Access

Yeah, Bill has a good point here. When I was in corporate contract land you are given a set of tools and have to make it work.  Sometimes you would get lucky and could get access to a SQL Server setup via a friendly DBA, but more often than not much of the work (for better or worse) was Front Ended in Excel.

A lot of IT departments are leary of letting folks use MS Access and lot of places don't even have it installed.

If you are building solutions as a developer for a client, then I can see a use for Alpha Anywhere, but if the client employs you to work on their systems, it would be a harder sell.

I did look at the product, and I think shows a lot of potential and opportunity - especially for those folks who need to access data on mobile devices etc.  

But for the highly dynamic / flexible work I currently do, which is all in house and very open, MS Access still stomps the competition for sheer speed, flexibility and ease of use.

However, I have suggested AA as a solution to a couple of folks when asked about Database options.  Horses for courses I guess.

Cheers
Darryl.

-----Original Message-----
From: accessd-bounces at databaseadvisors.com [mailto:accessd-bounces at databaseadvisors.com] On Behalf Of William Benson
Sent: Wednesday, 23 October 2013 2:54 AM
To: Access Developers discussion and problem solving
Subject: Re: [AccessD] The Future of Access

Art no offense, and only some taken... I think that to say the future of Access is dead and drive a herd of frightened sheep towards a "new" product which you yourself are very comfortable with is kinda losing sight of some reality markers.

First, if we are developers, we are going to develop what clients want to buy/use/support. So unless I saw a demand from my client, I could not spare the time to invest checking out the Alpha Anywhere alternative- whether or not I wanted to become part of a group of 10 users or not.

I think that the first thing I would like to see is how many on this list, besides you, are interested in and have time to taking a serious look at the product and estimate the lc as well as how it works in the hands of the average vba developer.

Why don't you offer to keep a list, OFFLIST of people on this list or elsewhere of interested parties, their experience levels with this product, with Access, and sql server... and come up with what community support there is for it.

IT depts already say "no" to Access, often enough. I, as a contractor with zero input into the tools of choice used at Capital One,  can't see anyone here giving me anything other than a blank stare if I said "ok, so you won't let us use access and you network sweepers go out across all our machines looking for .mdbs and .accdbs to see who offenders are, so how about Alpha Anywhere?" And I dont know if behind those blank stares would be thoughts of admiration for my initiative, or their wonder how I slipped in through the candidate selection process.

:)

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On Oct 22, 2013 5:31 AM, "Arthur Fuller" <fuller.artful at gmail.com> wrote:

> NOT! MS has pretty much declared that Access has no future, at least 
> among the developer community. So then. where is one to go? Visual 
> Studio? A very steep climb. Alpha Anywhere is for my bet a much more 
> profitable path, both intellectually and economically.
>
> I have emotional/intellectual bonds with Alpha, and the folks behind 
> it have offered me a chance to bundle a bunch of you into a 
> quantity-purchase of said product. First of all, let me declare that I 
> have no shares or any other fiscal interest in Alpha, I simply love 
> the software. Next, the Alpha people have offered me the opportunity 
> to aggregate a group of developers into a group-purchase of the licensing.
>
> Before you bite the bullet, you can taste its treats by visiting 
> www.alphasotware.com and follow the links. You can obtain a free trial 
> there, and also view some vids describing the software.
>
> I am doing this as a service to the Access Developers community. I 
> stand to gain zero dollars for these efforts. I am not in any way 
> aligned in any economic sense with the folks behind Alpha, although I 
> have become net-friends with the principals.
>
> And this is why they have offered an opportunity to all of you, via me.
> Here's the nut:
>
> Alpha Anywhere beats Access and Visual Studio and RoR, no contest.
> You can grab a 20-day trial from AlphaSoftware.com. The demos are 
> astounding. Way way way beyond Northwind.
>
> So here's the deal. Visit Alpha's web site, download a trial version, 
> inspect the demos, and decide whether this is a path worth investment. 
> If you decide Yes, and a minimum of ten of you do decide Yes, then I 
> can arrange a bulk-purchase. You don't have to say Yes at once. 
> Download the trial and see the future of your development projects.
>
> I've already stated it but I'll say it again: I have no fiscal 
> interest in this project or the privately-held company. I do work with 
> the team and have embarked on writing some articles about the 
> transition from Access to Alpha Anywhere, ultimately to be posted on 
> their web site. I am receiving no remuneration for these efforts. I am as objective as can be.
>
> Back to the subject,the future of Access. In a word, None.
>
> Download the trial edition. Walk through the tuts. See what can be 
> done with this remarkable software. And if you like what you see, I 
> can arrange a bulk purchase of Alpha Anywhere, for a significant 
> discount from the individual price.
>
> Why, you might ask, am I doing this? First of all, I stand absolutely 
> no fiscal gain. I'm doing this because a) I love the software', and b) 
> as an Access developer and (I like to think) a significant contributor 
> to our community, and c) as a consequence of my active participation 
> in the Access developers community, I recognize that MS has failed us 
> dramatically, and we need a new place to go.
>
> So here's the deal. 1) Download the trial from www.alphasoftware.com. 
> 2) Take the demos for a spin. 3) If you like what you see, contact me 
> privately and join the bulk-purchase thing that II have arranged with 
> Alpha. It won't cost you a cent up front, and there will be no deal 
> until I get at least 10 people willing to participate.
>
> Let me re-state this: I have absolutely no fiscal interest in doing 
> this. I am doing this because a) I love the Alpha software; b) like 
> many Access developers, I have hit the wall that MS built; and c) I 
> have built many cyber-friendships with Access developers all around 
> the world, and have learned much from them, and feel the need to pay back.
>
> So... here's what to do. First, download the trial Alpha Anywhere. 
> Second, play with the samples. Third, decide whether you want into 
> this new platform. Fourth, email me privately that you want into the 
> bulk purchase that I am trying to build.
>
> It won't cost you a penny until we achieve the threshold of 10 particpants.
> And at the risk of repitition, I stand to gain absolutely no 
> remuneration from this effort. I have talked with the people at Alpha, 
> and in fact this was their idea not mine. But this is the bottom line: 
> MS has abandoned us Access developers, and Alpha offers an elegant way 
> out and a way into the future.
>
> If you're feeling trapped in Access or for that matter in Visual 
> Studio, please download the trial edition of Alpha, and if you like 
> what you see, get back to me and I'll put you on my list for a bulk-purchase.
>
> If I sound like an evangelist for Alpha, then I plead Guilty, but I 
> must re-state that I stand to gain absolutely nothing in the way of 
> payment or anything else. I asked them for a couple of gorgeous 
> hookers, for an evening, but they declined :) So I still have my integrity intact LOL.
>
> --
> Arthur
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>
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