Customer Reviews

Access 2007 Bible

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(8)

 

 

This is an excellent reference that really accelerated rated my learning of Access 2007. The authors do a very good job explaining general database management techniques and explaining every nook and cranny of the new version of Access. I found lots of useful tips and tricks that I was able to implement immediately.

Beginners will probably find the terminology a bit overwhelming, so for true novices who haven't had any exposure to Access, I'd recommend an entry level book like Access 2007 for Dummies before trying to tackle this book.

Those with some Access experience will get the most benefit out of this book, as it covers the essential topics: Advance queries, UserForms, VBA, ADO, working with SQL servers, and integrating with other office applications.

I have used books such as this to teach myself how to use much more complicated software (such as Visual C++ 6) with great success to the point of selling my own software developed with Visual C++. I have dabbled in earlier versions of Access and bought this book to upgrade my skills and get productive quickly with Access 2007. Not a hope! The book is poorly proof read and has many errors. Old versions of text rewritten, presumably to improve clarity, are left in place, thus adding to confusion. The book is just poorly and carelessly written making learning very difficult for someone struggling to understand new concepts. The examples on the CD don't always match the text, don't always work and often add to the difficulty of understanding.

This one goes into the recycling!

The authors clearly understand Access but I suspect they rushed the book to print, given the number of typos, outdated facts, and instances where information is repeated in a disorganized way. Probably fine as a reference for experienced users but not recommended for someone trying to learn.

This book is not for the novice user. I know a little about programming and am barely able to stumble through the programming sections. An example is the scope of variables. I'm familiar with most variable types but not "static". All others are defined (public, private, dim, etc) but not static. There is mention of static but little real information.

This was written when the product was in beta test and it shows. The examples seem to be of screen shots and the type size is about 4 point. Better have a magnifing glass to read. There are many typos and the explanation of a sub may not always follow the example.

Both the experienced user and the novice would be better served by another book.

The CD has one example distributed over many chapters. However, there are other examples the book claims to be on the CD that just aren't there. The book needs a web site with up-to-date examples.

This is the summary review of four Access 2007 books:
"Special Edition: Using Access 2007" (Special)
"Access 2007 Bible" (Bible)
"The missing Manual of Access 2007" (Manual)
"Access 2007 for dummies" (Dummies)

In sum, the special edition is the best. Buy the special edition. Even you are a fresh beginner on Access.

(My story? Well, I read the dummies first. Then looked at Manual, doesn't like it. So I got the bible. Still unsatisfied. Finally, I got the special edition.)I know some basics on Access 2003 and only use Access when Excel is not enough to handle my data. I started with "Access 2007 for dummies" and finished it in a couple of hours. Then I turned to "Access 2007 Bible" and "The missing Manual", the manual is the worst one and the bible just provides basics, well, maybe a bit more than, that the dummies book already covers.

The special edition provides more examples and detailed explanation on: Query, Forms, Reports, Pivot table.Not sure about the VBA part.

I also like very much the reader-friendly layout and enjoy its "what is in real world" sections at the end of several chapters.

This book also provides a good summary of basic database concepts like normalized, the importance of index, joints. The summary is very helpful especially you are a beginner.

The cover of the special edition claims that the special edition is the only Access book you need. Well, maybe not the only one, but if you have the special edition, you definitely don't need the Access 2007 Bible, The missing manual and the dummies book.

I am an experienced Access user; however, the new Office 2007 took a little time to learn. If you are a beginner trying to learn the 2007 version, I suggest you purchase a more step-by-step book. With my experience, I found it beneficial after I learned the new 2007 ribbon.

I have used Access for several years in previous positions, so I am an experienced user. I've never tried creating a database myself, until now. I thought I could buy this book to help me stumble my way through the process. Think again. This book does little to clear the fog. The examples are poor and the book terminology/screen shots don't even match what Access 2007 actually looks like. I was frustrated and purchased Microsoft Access 2007 Step by Step about a week later. This is a much better book with good examples. It doesn't go nearly as far as it needs to, but is a much better book than this one.

Authors know their stuff, but you'll have a hard time learning it since it looks like it was written without an editor. Typos, missing exampes, and passages repeated word for word within a few paragraphs are more than off-putting. They really hinder comprehension for someone trying to learn this material. Knowledgeable readers can probably figure out what the authors meant to say from the context of the discussion, but beginners will be completely lost. As one of the latter, I found it a complete waste of money.

I bought this large book with some enthusiasm, but after getting to Chapter 9, I have decided to drop the book as I do not trust it to guide me to more complicated topics. Number one, no one seems to have edited the book for sentences that do not read correctly. Number two, I have seen in more than one instance the same screenshot being labelled as two different things. There were six authors here. Couldn't they have edited each others chapters???