Sarasota PC Monitor
Alpha Five
A Software Review
by Lynn Morey
Member of the Sarasota Personal Computer Users Group, Inc.The most significant Alpha release ever! The revolutionary way for anyone to build sophisticated data base applications rapidly! Alpha Software uses these two sentences to describe their recent software release. Those words are accurate. I have used Alpha database products starting in 1992 with their DOS database version 2. Previously, I used dBase II and Magbase for database applications. I purchased the upgrades every year as Alpha Software continually added features. However, version 5 required well over two years in development as the company embarked on making this release extremely powerful, yet improving the ease of use.
Alpha Five version 5 uses a fully menu driven approach. Create professional high quality reports, letters, labels in minutes. Version 5 includes dozens of helpful Wizards and an abundant supply of Genies. These tools make creating a database a snap. For example, you can easily organize and retrieve information such as name, address and phone numbers of contacts or members.
Installation is fast and easy. After installation, the opening screen provides several options. I suggest you take a moment to scan the "Show me what's new in V5" option. Here you'll find an incredible 123 pages describing the new features in version 5 to enhance and simplify any database project you desire to develop.
Alpha Software includes three dozen pre-built applications. For example, these ready to use applications include contact management (contacts, appointments), membership directory, inventory, music or recipe files, order entry, time and billing. The sample applications and templates make it easy to start organizing data without having to design a database from scratch.
The database templates provide an excellent learning tool. Professional database developers included many features in these examples. When you find a form or report that has a look or feature that interests you, simply go to design mode and learn exactly how to create that feature in your own application. It is easy to access the design mode by selecting the drafting triangle and pencil icon in the top left corner of the toolbar. This technique allows you to go "behind the scenes" which shortens the learning curve.
Perhaps one of the sample templates impresses you by the colors, background, beveled edges or shadows of a button on a form. Once you're in design mode, right click on the button to learn the properties of that button. You can easily copy those properties into your database application. Another template includes animated buttons that change as the mouse pointer "flies over" the button. If you like that effect, simply right click on the button in design mode of this template and examine the events for the button. Copy the procedure to create your own professional looking application without the need to learn how to write code.
The Alpha Software web site provides a link to over 115 third party applications that use Alpha Five. Here are just a few: accounting, invoicing, point of sale, church database, job costing, medical office management, order entry and inventory.
Included in each description is a link to e-mail the individual developer of the application for more information.
Here's a quick highlight of a few more new features. Alpha Five already had a powerful word processor built in to create letters and labels. Version 5 makes it simple to mail merge with Word or export data to Excel. It is also a snap to place JPEG or bitmap images right in the database as an image field. Place photographs of members, houses or products on a form or report. To save space in the database, version 5 provides a new feature to link to an image stored in a separate folder. If you would like to share a report with someone who doesn't have Alpha Five, now you create a pdf file of a report by simply pressing a button. Another button, creates a pdf file, opens your e-mail program and attaches the file to easily send reports via e-mail. Alpha provides step by step instructions, including screen shots, on how to import data from other database applications that use the ODBC data format (Access, Excel, Outlook and Foxpro). There are similar instructions for dbf data format applications (Alpha Four, ACT, Goldmine, and Approach).
Alpha Software follows the trend to not provide a printed manual. The help documentation is generally sufficient. The new search feature from the Help menu provides results that now highlight your key search words. Printed manuals are available. However, the most valuable help I've received is from the Alpha user community. Alpha Software provides a message board at <msgboard.alphasoftware.com/alphaphorum/>
The search feature on the message board provides matches to similar questions or problems other users have asked previously. If you don't find your question and solution here, simply post your "how do I" question or problem on the message board. You are certain to be amazed at the speed and accurate help fellow Alpha database users provide. While testing this software, I posted a question and received an answer within 20 minutes. It is common to see the president of Alpha Software providing solutions to questions frustrated users placed on the message board.
Not everything goes easy designing a database application. At times, one needs to be a bit of detective to figure how to do things. I have learned that if you can dream up what you want a database application to look like or accomplish, Alpha Five can do it. If you can't figure out the solution yourself, the prompt help you receive from the Alpha user community when you utilize the message board will astound you.
Currently, the only way to purchase Alpha Five version 5 is directly from the company. The price is $349. You can download the software or pay shipping and handling for a CD. There is a 30-day free trial. The previous version (4.5) is available for $145. You may find version 4.5 has all the power you need. However, nearly every day, I use one of several Alpha Software database applications I've created, so for those who want the latest and greatest features, I feel you will prefer the added power and ease of use provided by version 5. Take a moment to browse their web site, especially the "more info" button and the testimonials link about version 5.
Alpha Software Inc.
83 Cambridge St.Burlington, MA
01803-4483 Toll Free: (800) 451-1018
<www.alphasoftware.com/> :
Copyright 2002. This article is from the December 2002 issue of the Sarasota PC Monitor, the official monthly publication of the Sarasota Personal Computer Users Group, Inc., P.O. Box 15889, Sarasota, FL 34277-1889. Permission to reprint is granted only to other non-profit computer user groups, provided proper credit is given to the author and our publication. We would appreciate receiving a copy of the publication the reprint appears in, please send to above address, Attn: Editor. For further information about our group, email: admin@spcug.org/ Web: http://www.spcug.org/
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