Microsoft Access - Not for Mac?

[Tissue Paper]

Hello,

If I understood correctly there's no Microsoft Access compatible to Mac. I wanted to know what options do I have to run this problem on a Macbook? In other words, is there a way to perhaps run it that I'm not aware of? I know some might suggest Windows Parallel- does that normally take up a lot of space? (I don't have that much space). Also, is there a similar app for the Mac that I could use perhaps? I need it for a Database course.

 

[GGJstudios]

Hello,

If I understood correctly there's no Microsoft Access compatible to Mac. I wanted to know what options do I have to run this problem on a Macbook? In other words, is there a way to perhaps run it that I'm not aware of? I know some might suggest Windows Parallel- does that normally take up a lot of space? (I don't have that much space). Also, is there a similar app for the Mac that I could use perhaps? I need it for a Database course.

To run Windows apps on your Mac, you need to install Windows via Boot Camp or use Parallels or VMware Fusion.

If you don't have a Windows license, you can use CrossOver to run some applications. Not all Windows apps are compatible with CrossOver. Check their site for compatible apps.

For more information about running Windows on your Mac, check out the Windows, Linux & other on the Mac forum.

 

[ECUpirate44]

You could run paralles, fusion or bootcamp. Not sure what your situation is, but its not too much space. I believe filemaker is the mac alternative, however if your class requires access, filemaker will not be an adequate substitute.

 

[Tissue Paper]

Thank you, ok here's my next question (I'm not that tech savvy!).

Which is the lightest method to use? What I didn't like about Windows Parallel was that it took a long time to load and it was bothersome, not to mention I felt it was a bit heavy to use. I'm on a 10.6 OS so my comp is a little old. From your opinion which would be the best option to try?

 

[soapsudz]

There's always Virtualbox (http://www.virtualbox.org) which is free. It's a virtual machine program you can use to load pretty much any x86 operating system out there - Windows XP to Win 8, various Linuxes, Solaris x86, even Haiku

I've been using it to run Windows programs including various Access versions for years, from Tiger to Snow Leopard without any problems. You first need a valid Windows license to install a clean Windows virtual disk to, then you can install MS Office and Access. You can share folders between OS X and the virtual machine to exchange files.

I wouldn't recommend running Access on a virtual machine with less than 2GB RAM on your computer. 4GB total is good so you can assign 1 or 2GB to the VM.

 

[Tissue Paper]

I see. Thank you, I'll check it out.


Someone told me about something called LibreOffice. I'm gonna try that one too, but I dunno what do they mean by "open source" or how is that gonna affect my usage.

 

[osage1a]

Parallels, Windows 7, coherence and Microsoft Access

I am using an iMac with OSX 10.6.8 with Parallels and Windows 7. (BTW, Windows 7 is apparently quite a lot more stable than Windows 8 from what I have gathered.) Parallels has a feature called "coherence" that is accessible once Parallels is installed. Coherence allows me to seamlessly move between Windows use and Apple use.

I want to install Microsoft Access for business purposes and want to ask the community if anyone has had experience with or knows positively that there should not be any problems with installing or using Microsoft Access with Windows 7 and Parallels.

Also, I would like to upgrade to Microsoft Office 2013, but paying $100 a year for a subscription does not excite me. Is there an alternative to a subscription either monthly or annually from Microsoft? Perhaps Office 2011 or 2010 is available as a standalone product?

 

[VI™]

If your course calls for Access, I don't think there are other programs that will substitute for it. It uses a backend that allows VBA programming so not just any database program will operate the same.