Even though Microsoft Access is sold as a part of Microsoft's Office Suite of productivity applications, it is a fully functional development platform that can create complete data driven solutions comparable to or better than those built using more traditional development environments. Microsoft Access's strengths include:

• Scalability - A well designed single-user Microsoft Access database can easily upsized to a client server application using Microsoft SQL Server.



• Integration - Since Access is a member of the Microsoft Office Suite, it offers strong integration with other Office applications such as Word and Excel.



• Rapid Development - Though Wizards and Builder, Access development efforts are measured in hours, days or weeks rather than months or years.



• Compatibility - Access can communicate with dozens of different databases in their native format via ODBC and OLE DB.



• Extensibility - The functionality of Access can be extended through the use of DLL and OCX files and ActiveX components, just as with Visual Basic.



• Reports - Access includes a robust facility for designing and producing reports, including charts and graphs.



• Performance - Access can process complex data requests quickly, especially when connected to SQL Server.