[MPMoriarty]

I have been trying to find a replacement to MS Access to use on my Mac.

I did a search here on Macnn and heard some good things about Filemaker, but then again, I have also heard that it is kinda limited.

What are some of these limitations?

I am not looking to hold massive amounts of information, but I want something that can hold a good amount of data and allow me to get to the information I want easily.

I also heard about a database application called 4D...any opinions on this app in relation to FileMaker?

Thanks again for all your help,

Mike

[chadbert]

FileMaker is an excellent application. It does have it's idiosyncracies, but there's nothing better for quickly and easily building a database with an attractive UI.

It won't hold "massive" amounts of data, but will hold plenty for most people. It's limited to one data table per file, but you can create relationships between the files to produce a relational system. The scripting environment is very easy to learn, but does not have good debugging tools.

You can get a demo from FileMaker's website that'll hold something like up to 50 records to see what it's like.

[spiney]

I'll second the recommendation for filemaker. I have used it for everything from an executable application, to management of field biology data, to a massive online web application. It has proven to be a very powerful platform, yet still easy to use. I have also been able to hold millions of records in a filemaker DB, so it is pretty scalable.

[Maflynn]

The only thing that has held me back was a query tool, both sql server and access have there respective query tools that I can run to create adhoc reports, extracts or new tables, i.e., select into statements. If filemaker added this I'll be all over this in no time.

Mike

[siluni]

I used to program Access databases and I highly recommend Filemaker because you can create what you need, whether basic and then get a bit more sophisticated as you learn more. I found it much shorter learning curve than Access, and frankly just more fun to work with. I've used for everything from basic password databases to large non-profit corp. contact/donations databases to multi-artist art gallery inventory/contact/sales tracking. It's so darn flexible and there's lots of scripting resources out there. Hope you go for it.

[Love Calm Quiet]

I use Filemaker INTENSIVELY. I am however, disappointed that its relational abilities are so weak compared to FoxBase (no longer avail on Mac) or Fourth Dimension. The stability is GREAT. For those wanting to get into involved development or scripting there are a lot of online forums to assist you beyond the books available.

Be aware, however, that a new version (7) is widely anticipated (and overdue) in Jan or Feb 2004 - and you may not want to roll the dice and hope that you're buying it close enough to the upgrade date that yours will be a free upgrade. Their upgrades have typically cost $100 if I recall right.

[MPMoriarty]

Well if they are planning to release a new version soon, I might just hold off until then.

Thanks everybody for your help. I really appreciate it.

Mike