Our company develops functionally rich and technically sophisticated LAN-based Microsoft Access database applications for large corporate clients.
We are now looking to see if there are any alternatives to Access that deliver the benefits that are essential to us - e.g.:
1. very rapid application development time (weeks instead of months) and flexibility in changing the application (e.g. new functionality can often be added in hours or days);
2. easy delivery - e.g. we build a database product on our own PC and then deliver it to a client anywhere in the world via email or on a chip; updates can be delivered every day by the same means;
3. installation in minutes - the database is simply copied into the users data directory on the LAN, without the need to involve the IT department, and all users with access to that directory on the LAN can then use the product; daily product updates are just as easy;
4. a functionally rich, easy-to-use GUI front end for our users (e.g. datasheet forms that allow users to sort and filter thousands of records in a few seconds, colour-coded conditional formatting to give users an instant visual identification of problem records, tabs for easy navigation, etc),
5. the capacity to handle large volumes of data in a tight relational structure (e.g. 100+ related tables with 1,000+ fields in total, several hundred queries, several hundred forms, etc),
6. relative ease in protecting the code and database from tampering (e.g. via user level security, compiled mde files, etc),
7. fairly easy coding (e.g. very demanding functionality can be built using VBA code & SQL queries),
8. the ability for users to create their own queries and reports, which makes the application effectively maintenance free after installation, and
9. ease of integration with other online and LAN-based datasets (e.g. easy import/export of XML or Access-based data from online forms).
SQL Server appears not to be an option, for two main reasons. First, we understand that an SQL Server database product needs to be "built into" the server, and cannot simply be built on the developer's PC and then emailed to the client to copy onto his or her data directory. Second, many of our clients are Oracle-oriented, and do not have SQL Server. These are deal-killers, as our business is based upon us being able to install in minutes, direct from the user's PC .
We are wondering whether there are ANY database technologies other than Access that would meet our needs? We are open to all suggestions, including open-source technologies. Clearly we need both a robust back-end database as well tools to allow rapid development of user-friendly GUI front-end forms, etc.
