Re: Access 2010 article

Bob Alston" <bobalston9@xxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:DHhJm.6760$ET3.4529@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Albert D. Kallal wrote:

so you can create your access app as normal if you indeed to do a mixed
Access client / Sharepoint backend?

Yes.

Once you complete your app as normal you "publish" to Sharepoint?

Yes. You still have to distinguish between an client application, and that
of web based application however.

From then on you can use the local access app as usual, it will house the
data on sharepoint?

yes.

If another user wants to use (presumedly and is authorized at Sharepoint)
they can access Sharepoint and download or somehow get a copy of the
access front end?

Yes, this process is accomplished with a link on the SharePoint site. You
click on the link and then the access client launches and sucks the
application down. It also replicates the data down, and you're now able to
work with that same application.


Once they have the access front end, they also can use it as normal. All
their changes and your own (from the original copy of access) are
instantly updated on the sharepoint data master?

Well, ok yes, but it is more complex. The data is attempting to synchronize
itself at all times. You can even break your internet connection and keep
working. However, for things like forms and reports if you modify them, then
there's place where you see a notification that your changes have not been
set up to the server. That same notification box will also inform you that
there's pending changes that need to come down from the server. So, for
these types of changes you have to hit the sync button. Your also informed
of this changes being pending issue when you start access and an
application, and you also get information when your shutting down access.
And, you can see this info dialog in what we call backstage at all times to
inform you of this status.


The new version of access has a new kind of form called "web forms"?

These web forms can run on your local access app just like traditional
forms do?

Yes, in fact you can execute "openForm" from a VBA form and the client web
form will launch.

But these web forms can also run via a web browser alone?

correct


Using web forms via a browser, the user needs not have a copy of MS Access
or any special software or operating system?

Correct.


Are there similarly special kinds of web reports to run reports in the
web?


Reports are beyond cool (perhaps I think they're cool since I only been
looking at them last week for the first time).

I been so busy I haven't played with the web reports much. However, I was
actually doing a demo of my application to the Access VBAD group in Edmonton
last week. They cojoled me into building a report and trying it out. It was
absolutely stunning. When viewing the report on the bottom of the screen
there's a little popup icon thing you can click on and you can choose PDF,
or word (solves the local printing issues..don't it????). Anyway, I choose
the word option and went back to talking to the people. When I looked back
at the screen I stated that I don't think this option is working in beta.

Turns out that word had launched and had sucked down the report and then
rendered the report inside of a word document and it was displaying on the
screen in the SAME position (full screen) on the projector that the report
had been showing. It even had the same fonts and even the alternate line bar
shading and coloring was perfect inside of word. I hadn't realized the word
had launched! Someone in the audience had to point out to me that the report
on the screen was running/displaying in word! when I was saying it don't
work!

You can always make a printer friendly option for the report itself and
launch and print the report from a browser, but throw in this little
automatic download and local computer rendering ability to pdf or word
format, and we've have something really special on our hands here. (if
you're wondering how the system works, you don't think the axis team had the
budget to build this by themselves do you? it turns out that the whole
thing's based on SQL server web reporting services).


Someone mentioned (you) that if you use this approach to access a web only
app, that AJAX is used? If correct can you elaborate?

Ok, I have to be careful here, but yes. I'm not going go deep into this
area, because I'm still under NDA here, and I don't think I have permission
to speak about this.


Also I read that some data is locally cached at the user's desktop? If
correct can you provide more on this?

Well for web only stuff, of course nothing is on the client computer.
however for client based applications, yes, see my other response in this
thread..


Lastly, does the sharepoint referential integrity provide the equivalent
that we have been used to with Access itself?

Equivalent? No, it not as extensive, Cascade delete, and cascade delete
restrict are really the two big issues that we needed to be addressed and we
now have that. So, it certainly more limited than what we get with jet on
the desktop. on the other hand we do now have table triggers, and we even
have what's called validation triggers, so you could actually improve or add
your own integrity systems in this regards if you want..

There's another huge area and that's what's called the data business
connectivity services that SharePoint has. This service takes any data
source and makes it appear as a SharePoint list. So, we can consume sql
server data sources, or sap, or oracle or whatever by using this service...

Keep in mind I actually have more questions than you do at this point in
time!


--
Albert D. Kallal (Access MVP)
Edmonton, Alberta Canada
pleaseNOOSpamKallal@xxxxxxx


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