Microsoft access help

pyuicd

I'm really struggling trying to get a database done for work, any help would be much appreciated. I am short on time for this as we've had a new guy start today and his job will be largely looking after this database, but currently we've had to start him on other odd jobs.

I have basic ms access knowledge, but next to no programming knowledge. I can do html, and I can pick up a few things quite easily.

The database is for a breakers yard, and we need a database of our stock of cars, with various information about them. When a car comes in it will be added to the database, and when the car is crushed it is removed from the database. It does not need to relate to any other databases so it is a stand alone thing.

But here's the parts that I really don't know where to start with:

1) Images. I want to be able to upload images to each record, which will be displayed on the database page. I could do with them displayed on the form when browsing through, rather than just having a link to a photo (which I think I already managed to do)

2) The stock of cars on this database needs to be displayed on the company website as a stock list. So the database information including photo needs to update the website regularly so that customers can see which cars are currently breaking.

3) The database needs to be accessed through 2 or 3 PCs on a network. I'm sure this is pretty straightforward but any pointers on how this is done would be appreciated.


Any advice is welcome, maybe general access tips on how to do this or maybe there's an easier way to do it than access? Thanks in advance.

chris-j

Probably easier to do with Excel for data, put images on html page and include hyperlink in Excel to this - as it is flat data no need for access.
Might also be simpler to download SQL Express and use this.

Mobeer

1) See a webpage like:
http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/access-help/store-images-in-a-database-HP005280225.aspx

Probably easiest to have folders and links from access (option 2 in that page)

2) I would keep the database slightly removed from the internet to prevent undesirable access. Maybe have a report in Access and export to html?

3) Install Access on each PC (assuming you have enough licences). Copy the Access database onto a folder on a server that users from each PC can see. Maybe separate the data into one Access database and have the forms etc in another database with linked tables connecting the 2 (from the forms database to the one with the tables).

InsideInsurance

If you are wanting to have all this information on the web then you are probably better off scrapping the idea of access (pun intended) and have a 100% web solution as it is easier to have one database driving both than trying to have to separate ones and trying to keep them synched.

Does the company have a website already? If it does then it wouldn't be overly complex to get it updated to have this functionality - subject to how sophisticated you'd want the search facility to be. You'd need to know who hosts the current site and which plan they have to know which databases and programming languages that the host supports