Office 2016 For Dummies

Chapter 16

Using a Database

IN THIS CHAPTER

Understanding how databases work

Designing a database

Editing a database

Typing information into a database

Closing a database

Adatabase is a program that stores information such as names, addresses, and phone numbers, or inventory part numbers, shipping dates, customer codes, and any other type of information that you think is worth saving.

To help you store information in a database, Office 2016 comes with the Access database program. Access provides two huge advantages over storing information on paper. First, Access can store literally billions of chunks of information (try doing that with a filing cabinet). Second, Access makes it easy to search and sort through your information in the blink of an eye.

The three main advantages of a computer database over a paper database are

• Massive storage: The largest computer database can fit on a hard drive, but a paper database may take a roomful of file cabinets.
• Fast retrieval: Searching for a single name in a computer database is fast and easy. Doing the same thing in a paper database is difficult, error prone, and nearly impossible with a large database.
• Reporting: A report can help you make sense out of your data, such as showing a list of customers who earn a certain amount of money and live in a specific area. Trying to find this information in a paper database is time-consuming and ...