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Thinking about switching from Access.

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    Thinking about switching from Access.

    I tried creating a test database and saw that there were at least 10 files created with various file types. Do all these have to be put on the client computers that just have the runtime? Or can I just copy the 'adb' file over?

    Also can someone who's moved from Access tell me how large the resulting database would be in Alpha 5 compared to a similar database in an Access that has been turned into an MDE and compacted.

    The reason I'm asking is we have a few Access databases that are about 200Mb and usually drop down to about 50Mb after MDE conversion & compacting. So whenever we want to send out a new version we would copy the new MDE file over to the server. Will this work the same in Alpha 5? Thanks!

    #2
    Re: Thinking about switching from Access.

    Ron,

    Welcome to the Alpha world. You will need all of the file types that were generated when the database/tables were created. Access just has one container file, MDB, but Alpha takes a more granular approach.

    On the Tools menu there is a Zip Database option that will include all the database files you need to move to a client computer. (You will see options for data vs. dictionary files, but that will be the next step.)

    I can't really comment on the size, but if you are using MDE with both Access and Alpha, the MDE size should be the same.

    Bill.

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      #3
      Re: Thinking about switching from Access.

      I've not converted anything from Access to Alpha5 but have done extensive building in both. I moved from Access because MS was just not addressing issues quickly enough and the last straw was releasing a runtime many months after development.

      Alpha5 releases patches all the time (a bit too quickly sometimes) but so responsive to the developer community.

      The adb is alwasy pretty small. If you don't go shoving a bunch of images into your database you should be fine with the overall size... same with Access. Alpha5 does not suffer from bloat. It's a very different world because of all the files but not too bad to get used to.

      You're in the right spot here to get help... the people here are exceptional and always provide lots of solutions.

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        #4
        Re: Thinking about switching from Access.

        Thanks for the quick responses, guys. I guess we'll play with the demo further & see if it suits us.

        Comment


          #5
          Re: Thinking about switching from Access.

          Data dictionaries tend to get bloated when you do a lot of editing of forms and reports, etc. To shrink them down again: from the controlpanel/file/compact database will deflate the air out of them.
          Peter
          AlphaBase Solutions, LLC

          [email protected]
          https://www.alphabasesolutions.com


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