On Mon, Mar 25, 2013 at 6:58 PM, Kay Schenk <kay.sch...@gmail.com> wrote: > Well no doubt this may start a rather heated discussion. I started looking > into the history of the Base component, who is using it now (looked into > Forums, users discussion list), and finally came upon the following FAQ > (edited a LOT just recently): > > http://wiki.openoffice.org/wiki/FAQ_%28Base%29 > > which seems to indicate (hmmm)-- > > "Is Base a database? > > Not technically. Base serves several roles within the *Office suite > (AOO<http://www.openoffice.org/product/index.html>/ > LibO <http://www.libreoffice.org/>), but Base *itself* is strictly an > interface (or > front-end<http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa141493%28office.10%29.aspx>) > designed to connect to various types of databases, by means of > driver<http://wiki.openoffice.org/wiki/Documentation/DevGuide/Database/Driver_Specifics>files." > > > ...and then > > "Base offers to create an *all-in-one 'embedded database' file* similar to > MS Access. In this configuration, the front-end components (queries, forms, > reports and macros) are packaged together with the database files produced > by HSQLDB, all within a single Base (.odb) file. Unfortunately, this > single-file concept has proven unreliable with Base, leading to rampant > data > corruption<http://forum.openoffice.org/en/forum/viewtopic.php?p=162653#p162653>. > So it's best to avoid the 'Create new database' wizard in Base thereby > avoiding 'embedded database' files (perhaps with the exception of > developing prototypes or distributing > examples<http://forum.openoffice.org/en/forum/viewforum.php?f=100>). > Fortunately, Base offers an alternative wizard which produces a robust ' > split-database<http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa141493%28office.10%29.aspx>' > configuration in which the database (tables and user-data) is stored in a > separate file (or files). Steps for creating a new 'split-database' > utilizing the built-in HSQL database-engine with Base are outlined below." > > > I don't really know who the author is, but, I too, had been giving this a > great deal of thought. Does a user know what any of this really means, for > example. And, including an embedded DB like HSQL puts added responsibility > for that embedded DB on this project. What if Base were strictly a > front-end? > > So, does anyone have any further insights into how many users, if any, > directly use Base to create and use their own individual DBs as opposed to > using the "front-end" capabilities? >
Some other interesting facts, most of which we're already familiar with: 1) Microsoft doesn't include Access in their base Office packages. So on the one hand this means that most Office users don't use a database, or they do lightweight database work in their spreadsheet. On the other hand, the fact that OpenOffice has a database included is a distinguishing feature of OpenOffice. 2) Symphony did not include Base. So as we port Symphony improvements over to OpenOffice, we should not expect any Base improvements. So unless there is more dev effort in Base, it will fall behind in UI and accessibility as well. 3) As others have mentioned, Base is only as good as we have maintenance of it. Some of mentioned the dev side. We should also note that knowledge of Base is a limiting factor on the QA side as well. Since most users don't use Base, we have a shortage of testers who know Base. 4) Although they are not the majority, there are certainly some users who depend on Base and are passionate about it. No survey is going to resolve this for us. There are Base users. So the future is likely going to look like one of the following: 1) We encourage a critical mass of volunteers interested in maintaining, improving, testing, documenting, supporting, etc., Base. As we know achieving critical mass is made more difficult by the senseless forking of the project, which hurts LibreOffice Base users as well. 2) We continue as-is, with a gradual degradation in stability, until an incompatible OS change, or a security flaw comes along and administers the coup de grâce. 3) We drop Base before it gets to the point where it harms the reputation of the project. My ordered preference would be 1, 3, 2. -Rob > > > -- > ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- > MzK > > "Achieving happiness requires the right combination of Zen and Zin." --------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe, e-mail: dev-unsubscr...@openoffice.apache.org For additional commands, e-mail: dev-h...@openoffice.apache.org
