Mac database app ?

[Sceneshifter]

Hey guys,

It's a little bit urgent as I'm writing this, I would really appreciate your replies.

As I switched to a Mac I thought I had covered everything, except I forgot all about freaking databases. Work is here again, and we're sending out loads of sample work to possible clients, and I usually keep their data (contact info etc..) stored in a database, and include a way to 'track' them, so very simply put, if they received it, should have received it, have called back, haven't, want to meet up, don't want to meet up etc...

I know you can do this in apps like Numbers I suppose, but it loks so hideous to work in those little cells. I used to have a very easy Database app from a coworker, however it's super old and no longer made even for windows

So it's nothing fancy, and it's not so much a database as it is an organizer, if you will. It doesn't need to store millions of client data, but only a hundreds.

Thank you!!

 

[Cromulent]

Filemaker sounds like a good option for you.

 

[Dazzler]

Have you thought of Bento, the new "mini-database" brought out by Filemaker? I'm using it to catalogue my DVD collection, and it's been incredibly easy to set up the myriad of options I want to use.

And it's cheap. It was only AU$79.00, so it'll be even cheaper in the US. And you can download a trial version for nothing.

At the very least, if you download the trial and don't like it, at least you're not out of pocket.

 

[neonblue2]

NeoOffice has a port of the OpenOffice Base app.

 

[Sceneshifter]

Thank you very much, I'l be getting the trials of bento & filemaker and decide quickly then, thanks a lot for the quick replies nd excellent suggestions!

 

[sigamy]

Bento is custom made for your problem...but also do check out the open source stuff.

Another option is to continue to run your old Windows database via VMWare or Parallels. The ability to run old or custom Windows software is a nice side benefit of the Mac platform.

 

[~Shard~]

Another option is to continue to run your old Windows database via VMWare or Parallels. The ability to run old or custom Windows software is a nice side benefit of the Mac platform.

And don't forget running Wodinws natively via Boot Camp either.

But yes, I'd recommend taking a look at Filemaker or Bento for your needs. Open source is always good to investigate as well!

 

[scr1968]

Hey guys,

As I switched to a Mac I thought I had covered everything, except I forgot all about freaking databases. Work is here again, and we're sending out loads of sample work to possible clients, and I usually keep their data (contact info etc..) stored in a database, and include a way to 'track' them, so very simply put, if they received it, should have received it, have called back, haven't, want to meet up, don't want to meet up etc...

I agree, Bento would be a solid choice.

If you keep your contacts on the Address Book on the Mac it will integrate seemlessly with Bento. And you could keep track of your schedule in iCal and have that come over too. You could drag some iCal events over to your Contact form and keep track of all the times you have contacted "Joe Smith"

...but you can't go wrong with FileMaker Pro either. It will just take you longer to hit the ground running.

SCR

 

[kuwisdelu]

As already mentioned, I know NeoOffice (the native Mac port of OpenOffice.org's free office suite) can make databases. I've never had a need to make a database, but there's a "New Database" option there.

 

[Mac In School]

FileMaker may be "too easy" (if that's possible) for a longtime Access user to figure out. It was for me. I gave up on it. LOL.

 

[scr1968]

FileMaker may be "too easy" (if that's possible) for a longtime Access user to figure out. It was for me. I gave up on it. LOL.

I have the exact opposite feeling.

Knowing both well, I set off to do something in Access, get frustrated that it takes "X' amount of time to do something, and end up switching to FileMaker Pro where it takes a fraction of the time.

Not to mention that who programming aspect of Access that you are sheltered from when using FileMaker Pro. And the cross-platform piece of FileMaker Pro is super cool too.

SCR

 

[Mac In School]

It's been a while since I last gave it a shot, so I don't remember exactly what my frustrations were.

I just remember looking for a regular old "design view", like you'd find in Access, MS SQL, Navicat/MySQL, etc, and not being able to find one.

I also seem to remember not being able to figure out how to re-order my fields (not the display, but the real order).

Maybe I'll take it for another spin.

 

[lordhamster]

Can Bento open MS Access files? Can it make connections to other DBs with ODBC? Can FileMaker Pro do those things?