MS Access (was Re: knoppix)

[Richard Piper]

<rant mode>

Okay, I can't let this go on any longer. MS Access is NOT integrated into 
Office, except for the installation CD. That is why "people know about its 
integration with M$ Office". Here's integration: to import data from a MS 
Excel spreadsheet, you have to install an extra driver. From a different 
disk. And then it screws up the import by automatically assigning "Text" as 
the column type for most cells. Then has the gall to error out any 
numerical data as an "incorrect data type".

To say nothing about the fact that MS Access is NOT FREE. Yes there are 
some pre-loaded computers with MS Office Professional, but you have paid 
for it regardless.

The fact is that MS _advertises_ MS Office, and spends a lot of money to 
convince people that MS Office will solve all business communication 
problems. (Right...) No one is advertising OOo, few retail stores have it 
and when I have suggested it as a FREE alternative, my non-technical 
friends just ignore me, and pay for MS Office, and not the Pro version, either.

On the other hand, how many copies of MS Works are there out there? A 
Zillion? All with a (nearly useless) integrated database.

Phew!

</rant mode>
Richard Piper

At 12:00 PM 3/18/2004, Leo J Mauler wrote:
>Access is worse than shower mildew, but people know about its integration
>with M$ Office and they don't know what OOo can be integrated with for
>similar database functionality.