Re: Migrating away from MS-Access

<snip>
Well, you're assuming certain things:

1. that, in fact, the amount of information being sent *is* smaller.

2. the time rendering in the client and using substandard widgets is
going to be less than the amount of time taken sending the image.


I think you are right again...I feel like such a noob :)

<snip>
- The user interface is nicer, easier to control, with access I
find that there are lots of things you *can* do, but probably
shouldnt...I know this is weak :)

Again, this is about the programmer's skill level, not about what
the platform can or can't do. I can't think of anything essential
to a database application that an Access app can't do. Care to
cite an example?

I will say that it certainly is true that you often must avoid
the default approaches suggested by the Access sample files (such
as binding a form to a table).

Why not bind a form to a table?

Because it's pulling too much information and serves no purpose for
the end user. A form that displays one record at a time doesn't need
any data except the data for that one record. Why pull over the data
necessary to display the whole table?


I discussed this with the old guy today amongst other things...he dismissed it...I have done a little reading on this since the last post, and I see how it would solve alot of our problems, but it is a significant rewrite....lol every path is a signicant rewrite tho....but I can't say im entirly sold on them being any less work than say developing a vb.net form.

<snip>
It looks to me as though *all* the problems would be solved by
keeping the Access front end and migrating the back end to SQL
Server. None of the problems would be solved by keeping the MDB
back end and migrating the front end to anything at all.

So, that would make it pretty clear what the best plan of attack
would be, no?

yeah, I think so....essentially it all boils down to the access
backend is a mess, the access front end is a mess, the old
programmer decided vb.net was the way to solve it, started along
that path....

And made a new mess.


lol yeah :( I will grant he has done a somewhat better job at the vb.net, but that doesnt help a great deal cause of the backend...

But you are right, there are no *good* reasons to go to
vb.net....so its a matter of choosing whatever existing front end
is better to go with....in terms of whats gonna be easier to fix
and move on with...which kinda does look like access...

My guess is that it would be cheaper to chuck the VB.NET app
entirely, convert the back end to SQL Server and fix the Access
front end than it would be to finish the VB.NET app. will be
faster.


I must admit Im still slightly inclined to go the vb.net route, (dispite me agreeing with everything everyone has said so far, maybe im crazy), I think once we start having to do things like unbound forms and massive rewrites, while it would still be quicker to go access, I dont consider vb.net to be hugly more expensive.

I do think that it is definitly the case the front end needs a 70-80% rewrite to work with sqlserver There must be reasons why people develop in VB.net. This is how I think of it;

Access Advantages
Developing a data access layer is where all the work is for VB.Net. Access has already done this, so there is no work.


VB.NET
The user interface is much quicker to develop robustly in VB.Net utilising inheritance and user controls.
Data validation is easier
Im just reading a post by Albert D Kallal, lol and David W Fenton, and all the guru's, lol, I think is a good thread that has alot of merit. http://groups.google.com/group/comp.databases.ms-access/browse_thread/thread/8053a3b03a7162c6/879440056ce94e1b?hl=en&lnk=st&q=vb.net+vs+access#879440056ce94e1b

right now thats taking a long time to read :) I think it may boil down to a decision as to weather the project is big enough to warrent developing the data access layer....but clearly I need to do more research....as those 3 things were the only I could think of off the top of my head....


It's all giving me a headache at the moment ,so I havent processed
this email as well as I would of liked...I will revisit it later
and have a good think...

I think your superiors are the ones who need a good think, but they
clearly don't have correct information. Perhaps direct them to this
discussion (assuming you haven't said anything embarassing!).


Yeah, I am working on a report to hand to them and I have verbally informed them that I think a change in tact is in order, and I must admit they were pretty cool about it, and I think Im getting another developer in the pipe line, and they do trust what I say and are going along with whatever I say...I would dearly love to hand them this, and I may do so, I am a bit weary of how I've bagged out the old developer as he is still around in the woodworks for a while and I still need him. Also I really wanna verify that I am correct to be bagging him out....while thats my gut feeling, ya cant go around doing that unless you are really sure and can confidently back it up....and while all the arguements presented here are sound, it all hinges on how correct my analysis of the existing state of the code is. In honesty if I was asked now, I couldnt say 100% confidently say for sure that it is REALLY bad, I can say its messy, much dodgier than Ive ever done, my gut feeling is its really bad, but Im still in the process of analysing all the tables and scoping out the real requirements.....

John


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