Good, cheap (or free) database?

[SoAlive]

I collect quotes. I've been keeping them in a Word document and occasionally organizing them by the reference's last name, but this isn't really effective for finding them, and the document is getting huge.

Can anyone recommend a simple, easy to use, and inexpensive database that I can use to store and organize these items? The only searchable fields that I need are the name of the reference, the quote itself, and a few topical keywords.

I could hunt around on the internet, but I really value recommendations. Any out there?

[SoAlive]

I collect quotes. I've been keeping them in a Word document and occasionally organizing them by the reference's last name, but this isn't really effective for finding them, and the document is getting huge.

Can anyone recommend a simple, easy to use, and inexpensive database that I can use to store and organize these items? The only searchable fields that I need are the name of the reference, the quote itself, and a few topical keywords.

I could hunt around on the internet, but I really value recommendations. Any out there?

[Sven]

DataOnTheRun is dead easy to use and only costs $15
http://www.biomobility.com/dotr4.htm

There are of course others, but I think for your application DotR may be the easiest.

[Ripper014]

There was a free one called... Granada Soft XS...

http://www.grandasoft.com/

I don't know if it is still free but have a look... it comes as two programs... Designer and Forms...

[SoAlive]

Thanks! I'll try both. I checked on the GrandaSoft programs and they are still free. Might be overkill for what I need, but I'll give it a shot.

[famousdavis]

An Excel spreadsheet might do the trick, too. Just a few columns and you're on your way.

[RD100]

Originally Posted by Ripper014

There was a free one called... Granada Soft XS...

http://www.grandasoft.com/

I don't know if it is still free but have a look... it comes as two programs... Designer and Forms...

I downloaded this today, and it is a pretty incredible utility !!! :mrgreen:

XS Designer runs on your desktop, and lets you design a database. You just drag and drop labels, text fields, etc onto a blank form. Then when you save the form, it immediatly is loaded to your PPC, and is displayed in XS Forms. XS Designer It is around 8meg

There is even an SQL query utility in XS Designer, which lets you build your own queries for searching the data. UNBELIEVABLE!!! But you might need a little SQL programming experience to understand it.

XS Forms runs on your PPC, and lets you view the database. It is around 1meg. It can run any SQL queries you've built into the form.

So it could take a little time understanding how to use it if you never worked with a previous database design utility, but once you know how it works, you will be amazed !!!

The desktop utility kind of resembles a Visual Basic design screen, if you've ever seen it. I just quickly designed a Book Collection Database Form in around 20 minutes, and it works great! :way to go:

This is one of the most advanced utilities I've ever used on my PPC! I can't believe it's free ??

[Brad Adrian]

Originally Posted by Ripper014

There was a free one called... Granada Soft XS...

Great idea, dude! My doctor wants me to start keeping better records about my migraines (foods just prior, weather conditions, etc.) and nothing else I've tried really has decent forms layouts on the PPC screen.

My doctor and my head thank you.

[rhmorrison]

Originally Posted by RD100

I just quickly designed a Book Collection Database Form in around 20 minutes, and it works great!

How about posting your FORM so others can try it out. I've been meaning to create a database of my books for a long time now! Maybe this would give me the start impulse that I need to really do it!

[RD100]

Originally Posted by rhmorrison

How about posting your FORM so others can try it out. I've been meaning to create a database of my books for a long time now! Maybe this would give me the start impulse that I need to really do it!

Copy the following file to your PC, by right-clicking on the filename, and use "Save Target As", and rename the .txt extension to .gsf


BookCollection.txt

Copy the BookCollection.gsf file to your \My Documents\PocketPC My Documents folder (the one used by ActiveSync).

Then start up XS Designer on your PC, and open the BookCollection.gsf form using the OPEN command in the File Menu at the top.

To test it on your PPC, first install the XS Forms application on your PPC, then in XS Designer, select File > Test on PPC, from the File menu. The form will automatically be copied to your PPC, and XS Forms will start up with the form displayed.

The XS Forms program also comes with Sample forms, but I haven't tried them.

My BookCollection form was done in only 20 minutes, so it isn't anything special, but it works !!!

You can search the BookCollection using several queries I created.
They use asterisk wildcards, so if you want to search for an Author, but don't know the correct spelling, you can type "S*" to pull up all Author's beginning with "S". Or you can type "*S*" to pull up all Authors with an "S" in their name. NOTE ... you must use a wildcard * for all searches, even if you enter the exact spelling, because of the way my SQL is currently coded. I use a SELECT ... WHERE ... LIKE, so it requires an *, otherwise you will get an error. So if you want "Smith", enter "Smith*".

Once the search results list is displayed, you can also double-tap on any entry to bring up the full information of the book into the main form.

Book information is automatically saved once you enter it, so there is no need to click a separate "Save Record" button.

XS Designer has very good help screens, so I recommend reading them. They give examples of SQL queries, so you will understand how to create them for your own forms.

[Ripper014]

Not only are there sample forms... but if you look in the site there was a place where people were posting forms they created...

Like I said I have not been there for a year... so it may or may not still be there... For those of you interested it would be worth investigating...