Rating: 
Summary: Do not buy this book unless you like to suffer.
Review: I am a programmer with over 20 years experience. This is by far the worst computer book I've ever read. It is totally disorganized, useless as a reference, covers important concepts(such as the 'Me' keyword) hundreds of pages after they are first used, and writes in a style that is at best opaque and and at worst leaves your head spinning. Dreadful, horrible book and I am going to try to do something I've never done before -- ask for a refund from the publisher, and possibly damages for the pain and suffering this book has inflicted on me.
Rating: 
Summary: Going to the next level
Review: I am a programming consultant in the Dallas area and have programmed in MS Access since 1995 when it was a Windows 3.1 product at version 2.0. I have purchased 3 MS Access books since that time and all claimed that they were for the beginner all the way up to the advanced in skill level. The first two were helpful if you were brand new to Access, but sometimes you want to accomplish certain tasks for which there is no wizard. Looking on MSDN is, at times, a shot in the dark. I found Alison's book - "Mastering Access 2002 Desktop Development" to be a perfect training guide for all and an excellent reference manual as well. I sometimes carry it to a client's office instead of my MSDN CDs. If you want to learn how to make your Access DB more professional-looking, then you should get your hands on this book.
Rating:
Summary: Most Excellant
Review: I am reading this book 1 page at a time to lean as much as possible from the insight of this author. I pretty proficient in creatting all of the basics in access and his ook was the next logial step to gett into programming and VBA. It is an outstanding book too bad I am only on page 323. Thank you Alison for writing this book
Rating:
Summary: Most Excellant
Review: I am reading this book 1 page at a time to lean as much as possible from the insight of this author. I pretty proficient in creatting all of the basics in access and his ook was the next logial step to gett into programming and VBA. It is an outstanding book too bad I am only on page 323. Thank you Alison for writing this book
Rating:
Summary: not too shabby
Review: I figured out the basic structure of Access (basic Tables, Queries, Forms, Macros) from the online Help files (not including the VBA and ActiveX and linking to outside data sources and stuff). Then I went to Amazon and looked for another text and bought Getz, Litwin and Gilbert. When I first got it, I didn't understand it. So I went to a local store and browsed through the books on the shelf and decided on this one. It seemed to be at about my level -- 1/3 to 1/2 of it I already knew. And having now worked with it for a few weeks, I find it to be quite good. Two other people in the office started by borrowing my Getz, and then borrowed Balter instead for the same reason. Things are pretty easy to look up in it if you're not the type to read these things cover to cover. She covers everything clearly once (not 47 times), and you can find where that place is. She doesn't assume you know what ActiveX and ADO vs. DAO are. And there are a fair number of solutions to common needs which don't have obvious solutions...I recommend it. BTW, for you others who are new to VBA through Access, one things she doesn't say loud and clear is to avoid Access specific stuff where possible, and revert to good ole SQL. Go to the underlying table and do an update query with DoCmd.RunSQL query_name.
Rating:
Summary: Great Access Developemnt Book
Review: I have read Alison Balter's Access 1997/2000 and have recommended them to many developers. It has been very interesting reading about the new Access 2002 features. The book is written like a friend is describing the concepts to you. The book begins with Access basics and then continues with well thought out chapters with topics of increasing complexity. My coworkers and I have used Alison Balter's previous development books as reference material. In particular we use the "Optimizing Your Application' chapter as a check off list for performance concepts.
Rating:
Summary: A treasure.
Review: I have read lots of Access books and this is the book I recommend to all my friends and colleagues who want to learn or master Access. Alison combines lucid writing, technical expertise and real-world experience in this engaging book. Buy it and you'll treasure it.
Eagerly awaiting the Enterprise Edition...
Rating:
Summary: A great book for those who want to learn!
Review: I want to thank Alison Balter for publishing the book Mastering Access 2002 Desktop Development. As a network manager/teacher, I am using concepts that I glean from this book to help instruct students and other teachers to become more knowledgeable and proficient in good database design. Mastering Access 2002 Desktop Development is a substantial book (over 1300 pages). Yet readers who want to understand WHY something should be done in Access will appreciate the numerous explanations contained within its pages. This book does a great job of covering the fundamentals of Access, as well as provide ample explanations and examples dealing with advanced topics, such as ADO, VBA, and database security. As a "network person," I especially like the chapters on "Developing Multiuser and Enterprise Applications." This is a superior book for those who truly plan to develop quality applications using Access 2002.
Rating:
Summary: Great book to get you over that hurdle
Review: I'm not a computer professional, but fairly competent if given good directions. I knew the basics of database design, but this book has helped me drastically improve. It outlines the very basics of database theory, basic design, and basic fundamentals in Access. When you're done with that, it leads you into the real power - transactions, security, multi-user configuration, powerful user interfaces, and VBA. It is now my single-most used desktop reference.
Rating:
Summary: Buy this book first
Review: I'm teaching myself Access programming and bought three books before this one--all of them came up short. I could have saved myself a lot of time and money if I'd found Balter's book first. Her writing style is clear and somehow she manages to cover everything from the basics to very advanced programming techniques in one book; it answered all my questions. This is the most impressive software "how to" book I've ever come across--well worth the money.
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