WHAT IS MICROSOFT ACCESS?
Microsoft Access is an information management tool for storing information that can be used for reference, reports, or analysis. Microsoft Access makes it easier to analyze large amounts of information and manage data, making it a more efficient option than Microsoft Excel or other spreadsheet applications.
The question usually arises when asking whether Microsoft Access is a better option than Excel.
Microsoft Excel is easy to understand; you simply set column names, enter your data, and create formulas. As a spreadsheet, it's an excellent tool for maintaining and calculating small sets of information. You can sort, filter, and format data quickly and easily.
However, spreadsheets are not ideal for handling hundreds of records. It's very easy to introduce errors into a spreadsheet, making analysis, summation, and report generation very difficult.
Therefore, the value that any database can provide is storing related information in one place and then allowing you to connect various different things (called "entities" in database terminology). This allows you to store a version of the information that is available in a specific case, such as a customer or an order.
Using databases results in fewer errors and inconsistencies. A single version is maintained for tracking purposes, which can be presented in specific cases and minimizes the possibility of inconsistent values. Furthermore, allowing multiple people to work on the database simultaneously increases productivity, as a change to a single record will be reflected throughout the entire database.
In addition, databases offer greater security and control by providing a central location to store, protect, and manage your data. Microsoft Access includes the ability to encrypt and password-protect database files.
Perhaps one of the strongest points of this option is that, being a single source in a standardized format, it allows for a better perspective and better decisions when analyzing the database, adding historical trends and filtering the most important queries.
Microsoft Access works the same way as any database, storing related information together and allowing you to create connections (commonly called relationships) between different things. Relationships between two different things in Microsoft Access can be very simple (like a contact in a customer and the customer themselves) or complex.
Data is stored in Microsoft Access tables, which are like mini spreadsheets that store only one type of information. A table can have many fields, just like the columns in your spreadsheet. Each field in a table can be configured to allow or prevent users from entering certain information.
