Access Cookbook [With CDROM]

The Access Developer's Handbook Set (search ISBN: 0782140114) and in particular, Volume 1: Desktop Edition (search ISBN: 0782123708) is my definitive resource to approximately 4 years of Access development. I've got more stickies and highlights in this set than all other Access books combined. So when I came across the Access cookbook and realized that the same two indispensible authors (Getz & Litwin) put together a resource of Access developer solutions, I had to have it. This book has not let me down. It is certainly geared towards the intermediate to advanced Access professional developers who already understand the basics of Access and more importantly, who also understand the shortcomings of Access and the benefits of getting around those shortcomings. There are about 170 solutions in this book that are segmented into 18 chapters of high-level topics such as Queries, Forms, XML, UI, VBA, Windows APIs, even Smart Tags. I would be really surprised to find someone who picked up this text, thumbed through the solutions, and found that there was nothing they could get out of this book. I would say that if you are developing a professional Access front-end and/or database, you owe it to yourself to buy this book and review each solution before you release or ship your product. I did, and found either new answers and existing improvements to many of the things I was struggling with during my development cycles.

Although I am an Access Developer (6 years), I have purchased no fewer than 15 - 20 books on Access 97, 2000, 2002.Access Cookbook I purchased in late 2002 primarily for the first word at the top of the cover page - "Solutions".True to the meaning, this book provides "how to " programming solutions that I have struggled with and needed over the past last 6 years.Explanations are concise, and clear. And you get a CD with the examples which is worth many times the book costs.I have other books by the authors; Developers Handbook for Acces 97 and 2000, and VBA for Developers. These books (1500 pages) primarly benefit the intermediate to advanced users.The Access Cookbook should be a extremely helpful even to the beginning users (which we all were at some point).Enjoy.

This is the book that the Access programming community has needed for years! It uses a Problem - Solution - Discussion format instead of the usual academic "let's disect Access's capabilities, throw them at you in little bits, and let you figure out the WHY later" format. Even the table of contents is much more readable and understandable. You know the reason for reading the chapter right from the start, not at the end.Don't get me wrong. I'm not bashing the multitudes of other Access reference type books, it's just that we finally have a book that fills a BIG gap. Once you read this book, you'll have more use for the others. This book and the others complement each other nicely.The format of this book is not exactly new, however. Rob Krumm's programming for dummies books have used this format for years (albeit not as explicitly), which is why I enjoyed them so much and always hoped he would go beyond the beginner level Access programming books. Access Cookbook does exactly that, and in a very refreshing way.Two things about this book were a big surprise to me. 1. Ken Getz wrote it and 2. O'Reilly published it. I couldn't think of 2 better choices! Ken Getz takes his high level expertise and writing style and transforms it into a new book that opens up his experience to a much wider audience. THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! And then there's good ole O'Reilly publishing who have always had a talent for presenting a very academic subject to a less academic audience without loss of rigor."Cookbook" is an ok word for the title I guess, but I think "Storybook" may be more fitting, because I find that when I start a section of a chapter, I just can't put down the book until I see how the section ends. Likewise, when I start reading a Discussion section, I have to read it all before I put the book down and hit the keyboard. I even use this book for bedtime reading!Enjoy!

Access CookbookPublished by: O'ReillyFirst Edition, February, 2002The Access Cookbook really surprised me by how it covers topics regarding Microsoft Access that none of the other reference books talk about. I have an extensive Access reference collection, and the Access Cookbook far outshines them in practical solutions to real development problems, and also covers innovative ways to do things that you might not otherwise think of doing.Each topic is presented in a Problem, Solution, Discussion format. There are also plenty of illustrations, and a CD that has the code for each of the topics. You can choose to enter the code for the examples yourself, or simply to download it from the CD and follow along with the lesson.I've been developing in Access for more than a year, and the Access Cookbook has shown me things that I never dreamed could be done inside of an "application" versus a full-blown Visual Basic development environment.The Access Cookbook is an excellent addition to any Microsoft Access developer's library. It is written for Access versions 97, 2000, and 2002.

This book rates at the very top of my lenghty list, as the finest Microsoft Access book on the market!The information is well written and easy to understand yet not over-simplified to the point of losing usefulness.I am a year and a half into developing an ACCESS Multi-user Database for Flight Simulations and Management. Access Cookbook was put to use the first day. I implemented the "Mail Program" from chapter 10 and everyone loves it. I also found some solutions that had been very elusive. I can now monitor who is currently logged into my database and then use the "Mail Program" to send them messages in real time.I can NOT say enough good things about this book - if you use Access, you NEED this book! My hats off to the authors!Sincerely,William A. Dobisky