>We're developing a new museum complex with four individual museum facilities >on a 300 acre campus. We're looking for a "package" of integrated software >for museums that would allow us to input and generate reports on finances, >collections, donors, volunteers and membership. Is there such a thing out >there and if so, what has been your experience. There isn't a specialized museum program out there that satisfies people in all the different disciplines just within a natural history museum that I'm aware of. The systematic collections people capture different data than do the ethnographic or historical or archeological materials. If there's an art component involved, they have different needs as well. I've been happy using Paradox for anthropological collections, with different data bases & different fields for different portions, including "orphan" collections (coins & stamps, ancient glass,etc.). Other sections in this museum use Paradox or Access and set them up to suit their own needs. My brother runs his law office using Paradox as well--finances, billing, client lists & addresses, etc. A less-specialized program that can be easily customized to your needs might work better for you than a package that doesn't quite fit, & can't be altered. Trying to shoehorn people into an established system into which they had no input makes them testy. Customizing takes longer, but works better in the long run. Deborah Harding Collection Manager Section of Anthropology Carnegie Museum of Natural History 412/665-2608 <[log in to unmask]> ========================================================= Important Subscriber Information: The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes). If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).