Access 2003 for Starters: The Missing Manual

Maybe you got Access as part of Microsoft Office and wonder what it can do for you and your household; maybe you're a small business manager and don't have a techie on staff to train the office in Microsoft Access. Regardless, you want to quickly get your feet wet—but not get in over your head—and Access 2003 for Starters: The Missing Manual is the book to make it happen.

Far more than a skimpy introduction but much less daunting than a weighty tech book, Access 2003 for Starters: The Missing Manual demystifies databases and explains how to design and create them with ease. It delivers everything you need—and nothing you don't—to use Access right away. It's your expert guide to the Access features that are most vital and most useful, and it's your trusted advisor on the more in-depth features that are best saved for developers and programmers.

Access is sophisticated and powerful enough for professional developers but easy and practical enough for everyday users like you. This Missing Manual explains all the major features of Access 2003, including designing and creating databases, organizing and filtering information, and generating effective forms and reports.

Bestselling authors, database designers, and programmers Scott Palmer, Ph.D., and Kate Chase are your guides for putting the world's most popular desktop data management program to work. Their clear explanations, step-by-step instructions, plenty of illustrations, and timesaving advice help you get up to speed quickly and painlessly.

Whether you're just starting out or you know you've been avoiding aspects of the program and missing out on much of what it can do, this friendly, witty book will gently immerse you in Microsoft Access. Keep it handy, as you'll undoubtedly refer to it again and again.

Far more than a skimpy introduction but much less daunting than a weighty tech book, this resource demystifies databases and explains how to design and create them with ease.

Far more than a skimpy introduction but much less daunting than a weighty tech book, this resource demystifies databases and explains how to design and create them with ease.

Kate J. Chase is an author, journalist, and Web services professional who has worked throughout cyberspace for major players in the online industry. She has also authored, co-authored, contributed to, or edited more than 20 books in the last 8 years. Before she began to specialize in online and technical issues, Kate was a general interest and medical writer whose work has appeared in The New York Times, The Hartford Courant, the Los Angeles View, BBW Magazine, and others.

Scott and Bethany Palmer are partners in life, work and ministry. Together they successfully manage Christian Retirement Coalition—an international benefits ministry that serves ministries and ministry professionals with retirement plans and group benefits. They skillfully manage their professional and home lives, splitting their time between professional endeavors and caring for their two young boys, Cole and Cade, at home in Colorado.