MS Access
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Microsoft Access is a Database Management System (DBMS) from Microsoft that combines
the relational Microsoft Jet Database Engine with a graphical user interface and software-
development tools. It is a member of the Microsoft Office suite of applications, included in
the professional and higher editions.
Microsoft Access is just one part of Microsoft’s overall data management product
strategy.
It stores data in its own format based on the Access Jet Database Engine.
Like relational databases, Microsoft Access also allows you to link related
information easily. For example, customer and order data. However, Access 2013
also complements other database products because it has several powerful
connectivity features.
It can also import or link directly to data stored in other applications and databases.
As its name implies, Access can work directly with data from other sources,
including many popular PC database programs, with many SQL (Structured Query
Language) databases on the desktop, on servers, on minicomputers, or on
mainframes, and with data stored on Internet or intranet web servers.
Access can also understand and use a wide variety of other data formats, including
many other database file structures.
You can export data to and import data from word processing files, spreadsheets,
or database files directly.
Access can work with most popular databases that support the Open Database
Connectivity (ODBC) standard, including SQL Server, Oracle, and DB2.
Software developers can use Microsoft Access to develop application software.
Microsoft Access stores information which is called a database. To use MS Access, you will
need to follow these four steps:
Database Creation - Create your Microsoft Access database and specify what kind
of data you will be storing.
Data Input - After your database is created, the data of every business day can
be entered into the Access database.
Query - This is a fancy term to basically describe the process of retrieving
information from the database.