Question should I learn access 2013 or lightswitch

[AccessProgrammerLeon]

Expert Access programmer here (at least till 2007 version) and seen lightswtich html version. You can make fully html applications using IIS and SQL Server, and not need sharepoint like you do for Access 2013.
Any opinions here on which I should learn, I think the client server model is dead ?

 

[Kowalski]

Hi
I've used Access extensively and also LightSwitch on a previous app. My feeling is that LightSwitch is not the answer. I had to redo the app on asp anyway at a later stage.
If you are an experienced Access programmer, as you say, I think LightSwitch will only frustrate you with its limited capabilities. It's okay for quick apps, and non programmers, but as soon as you move towards a richer interface it have it's limitations.
Yes, client server is probably more dead than I would wish, but I'd rather spend the time learning asp.net.
And yes, you can publish Access apps through Sharepoint, but only if you use Macros and no coding. What's the point of that.
So, if I were you - and I'm actually in the same boat, rather learn Access 2013 for what you can still get out of it, and starting learning dot net.

 

[AccessProgrammerLeon]

Thank you for your reply. Is it C# you are going for because it is similar to Javascript ? That way you can learn two languages in one. C# seems to have more respect as a programmer as well. As an VBA programmer Visual Basic maybe closer to VBA and hence quicker to learn, but I think C# is the one to learn. If you are going the dot net way.

 

[Kowalski]

Yes, I went the C# way because it will increase any future job opportunities. Learning a new language syntax was quite easy as the web have lots of samples and translations available. But I'm still using Access for what I can, but it's getting less and less.

 

[AccessProgrammerLeon]

Understand using Access less and less and where you can. The problem is no one will pay you on the job to learn c# so you have learn on your own time, you "need experience" to get a job.

 

[Pat Hartman]

Dispite what MS would have us believe, the companies that rely on Access apps the most are not moving to the web. They have no need for it. They have web pages to advertise their business but their internal applications are not outward facing. They do not need to make data accessable to strangers. They do not have the technical support to run a Sharepoint installation. They do not want their data in the cloud. They are quite happy with Access front ends to Jet/ACE or SQL Server/Oracle/Pervasive, etc. BE's.

The only reason that large companies started to move away from client/server is because of the difficulty with distributing them. If client/server apps were easier to distribute, big companies wouldn't move either.

 

[AccessProgrammerLeon]

Yep good point. When you say distribute are you talking about replicating data across big companies (which maybe in different countries) or installing access ?
A wild thought : Maybe you could share SQL server backend somehow and use accesss 10 as the front end ? Such as SQL Azure replicating to a local copy of sql server.

 

[Lightwave]

I can't see me totally moving away from desktop for quite a few years yet.

Yes sure mobility and web is a requirement for social and outward facing sales marketing based things but even relatively simple administration tasks quite often require really quite complicated applications and there just doesn't seem to be an easy platform out there that will enable this for the web.

I suspect the closest thing you'll get to Access on the web is Alpha 5. It has a free time limited download which I've tried and I was impressed with.

Alpha 5 website

It has a data centric web focus but suspect it will still require quite a bit of learning.

By the way a lot of companies haven't maximized the potentilal use of desktop databases and applications so I'm at a total loss to see how they think that moving to the web is going to improve the situation. A lot of people could get badly burnt

 

[Pat Hartman]

By distribution, I am talking about the FE and subsequent updates. The BE is not distributed. It sits on a server somewhere and everyone links to it.

I have created Access FE's that link to SQL Server or Azure databases in the cloud so essentially, they are client/server apps with web accessibility because they can be run from any computer with access to the web. This is a great solution if you have remote users for an essentially in-house application. I also recommend Citrix and Terminal Services (Remote Desktop) which are also excellent solutions. But even with tools like Tony Toews FE installer, it is still a PITA to distribute and install Access applications because of library reference issues.