Sim-473257 (4/15/2013)
Still a little confused on your current situation,but if I ignore your context, I can outline some options.
Again, I probably repeat, but the choice of front end for your managers, really does depend on (a) what you want to achieve in detail, but in your case I am assuming more emphasis on (b) the skill sets your team have. (MSAccess, VBa, ASP, .net... etc ..)
Assume that we are capable off aquiring the needed skills.
Which part exactly is too complex/powerful ?
Access has a large menu system and is not geared towards input, but is geared towards a lot of other functions.
Are you talking about the data you are storing in Access ?
No, definitely not, storing data in Access leads to copy, copy and more copies. Same problem as with spreadsheets.
Or is building the forms to complex ?
See below
Too complex for the developer ?
See below.
or to complex for the managers/users ?
Yes in general access is to complex for managers, most managers are comfortable using Excel, but are not comfortable using Access. (Although Excel is rather complex, but that does not bother the managers). Access show's a lot of possibilities I do not want to be visible for managers.
And here is the see below,
Building a specific solution is yes complex, but more important is time consuming.
It is not easy to access rows with constraints in Access, example table A has a M:N relationship with table C, table B is used to resolve this relationship. When inserting a new row in table B (a new link between A and C) it is difficult to enter the fields which have the relationship with A and C. You should be able to select them from table A and C by browsing/selecting/filtering/sorting. For tables with a few rows a picklist can be build although this still takes some effort.
The only complex side of an Access solution should be in developing it.
The developer should make forms in such a way that the users see only a simple and clear presentation of the select data they need to see.
Users themselves (your managers) should not see any buttons, data or other options other than those they need to see.
Everything else should be hidden by the developer..
Access is complex when developing an application.
Building an application takes a fair amount of time for each application.
It is not a very suitable application for inserting and modifying data.
I am looking for a general application or for an application which can be build quickly or generated.
Those applications can use the table definitions and constraints which are allready available in the database.
The presentation can be fairly general and does not have to be fancy or adjusted specific tables.
Building a distinct application for every situation would take to much effort.
A specific solution must be ready or build in a few hours.
Tables can be presented in any grid form. No specific requirements for that. Adding a row should be easy even if that row has constraints with other tables. Changing a row should be simple as wel, also if the 'linking' fields are changed.
Thanks for your time and solutions.
And I am welcoming suggestions and/or solutions,
Ben