I want to put my two cents in on the discussion of Past Perfect versus
Access. There are two main differences between the two programs and I
think preferences for each come from the personality of the individual
choosing and then building the database. I fully admit I am a data hog
and control freak. The programs such as RE:Discovery and Past Perfect
to an extent frustrate me because I am not a programmer and therefore
don't understand how the modules interface. Whereas, in Access I build
the relationships. So Access fulfills my need to control and
understand.
I used a trial version of Past Perfect and found it to have all the
wonderful little things that you need to track a collection, but lacking
the ability to go further. Now, of course, that was some time ago and I
really didn't try very hard, so no poison darts if it does more things
now.
With Access I have created a database that links my collections'
inventory, the accession files, the reports associated with the
collections, and the state permits that triggered those investigations.
It is rather large file and contains many tables, queries, data entry
forms, a switchboard, etc. I also use it in conjunction with mail
merges in excel and word to produce invoices, box lists, accession
documents, etc. I am sure that I could have a similar system in another
program, but having the control to create what I want when I want it is
the flexibility I need. Oh, and how many collections, artifacts do I
track this way? Our accessions number just over 1200, and we probably
have on the order of several million archaeological artifacts which
doesn't always include counts of snail shell, mussel shell, burned rock,
nor account for the mass of storage space taken up by soil samples.
In summation, its an individual choice of what system to use. My only
caveat would be make sure whatever you choose you can migrate the data
into another system if necessary.
Cheers,
Marybeth
Marybeth S.F. Tomka, M.A.
Laboratory Director and Curator
Center for Archaeological Research
The University of Texas at San Antonio
(210) 458-7822
Fax (210) 458-4397
http://car.utsa.edu/
. . . herding cats in a forest of catnip . . .
-----Original Message-----
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Subject: MUSEUM-L Digest - 4 Apr 2006 to 5 Apr 2006 (#2006-96)
6. Past Perfect vs. Access... (7)
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End of MUSEUM-L Digest - 4 Apr 2006 to 5 Apr 2006 (#2006-96)
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