[lug] Something like MS Access for Linux?

[Jed S. Baer]

On Sun, 5 Jan 2020 18:05:27 -0700
Steve Sullivan wrote:

> Not sure I understand your question ... is using MariaDB
> a requirement or a possible option?

Sort of a requirement ... see below.

> If you're looking for a simple RDMBS, have you tried sqlite3?
> I think it has all the features you requested, and is
> very straightforward.

SQLite is a database engine. And not one I like. Quote:
'SQLite is "typeless". This means that you can store any kind of data you
want in any column of any table, regardless of the declared datatype of
that column. (See the one exception to this rule in section 2.0 below.)
This behavior is a feature, not a bug. A database is supposed to store
and retrieve data and it should not matter to the database what format
that data is in.'

As an (now, I guess) "old school" Oracle developer, I'm squarely on the
opposite side of that argument. Old dog, new tricks? Well, I really just
want to work with the data, using the skills I have. Maybe this new
development paradigm is great for some people. I already know, in my
head, the queries I want to use, involving numeric operations, and if I
define a column in a table as decimal(4.3) I want the database to allow
only that sort of data. Moving it into the application layer isn't
something I want to do.

MariaDB, since it's a fork of MySQL, is a known quantity for me. And it's
less effort than installing, e.g. Personal Oracle (is that even a thing
now?).

> Or are you looking for a GUI on top of an RDBMS?
> If so, a google search will show some guis for sqlite3,
> which don't require a browser.

Yes, I'm looking for an integrated environment, similar to MS Access,
with some built-in tools, such as import/export. SQLite, by itself,
doesn't provide that. sqlitebrowser does import/export, but it's tied to
SQLite.

I've already spent an afternoon doing web searches. I'm hoping to avoid
the time spent (as in the Kexi disaster) downloading, installing, and
trying out many different things, by asking for recommendations from (I
hope) people who've already worked with some package, and know what it
does, so I can avoid wasted effort.