In This Day and Age, Why Would Anyone Use A MS Access Database for Counting Votes?!?!

[Yavin4]

Are you kidding me? There are far, far, far better database management systems out there. Hell, some of them are even completely free, so cost is not even an excuse.

Unreal.

[jsamuel]

1. true

mysql is free, much better, but then you actually have to know how to use sql

[Yavin4]

10. Not Really

Any developer could design an easy to use interface so that the user wouldn't need to know any sql at all.

[inna]

2. presumably, ignorance is the only excuse. works for some, too.

[BrightKnight]

7. She is clearly not IT ignorant. - n/t

[Frank Cannon]

3. Open source will promote transparency, and we can't have that.

Not in the country that has the best elections money can buy.

You sound like some sort of pinko Commie, youngster.

[deaniac21]

4. access database with a SQL frontend is perfectly fine.

[ChromeFoundry]

14. Did you mean

"MS Access with a SQL Server backend is perfectly fine?"

SQL Server does not have a "frontend" GUI, except if you mean the DB management application (SQL Server Management Studio).

MS Access is a frontend to a Jet 3.0 structured file. It is not a database. It is a file management system not a service driven relational DB.
MS Assess is a glorified spreadsheet and has no business holding any data sensitive or critical in nature. It cannot be secured!

Hell, you may as well store the data in CSV or XML format... Jet tends to corrupt very easily (MS Registry anyone?). Sqlite would even be a better choice, but I would still complain that it is not much better in Access!

[Aerows]

5. I particularly like the part...

...where she forgot to save the data... In Microsoft Access. The Microsoft Access that you don't have to save data in because once you enter it in, it's there.

I would LOVE to get my hands on that database before she can re-index it and hide what she did. Hopefully she's too stupid to know to do that, which is highly likely since she's a Republican and is using Microsoft Access for counting votes in the first place.

[Horse with no Name]

11. I think I read she is a Computer Programmer

So...I don't think being an idiot is an issue...

[Aerows]

18. I've met programmers

that are idiots. You would not believe the things I have seen DBAs and programmers do - I'm a Network Engineer.

[ChromeFoundry]

23. I've met some network engineers

that messed up routing tables and hosed up load balancers in production environments, too. Doesn't mean all Net Engineers/Programmers/DBAs are idiots.

Cisco IOS was written by a programmers. As was the entire Network Stack of every appliance on the net. You would not have the job you have without non-idiot programmers.

[Yavin4]

21. If She's A Programmer, Then She Can Easily Rigged The Database

For even a rank amateur programmer with a few hours of training can rigged a database to export any results you want:

SELECT final_tally + 14000
FROM tblVotes

[Javaman]

30. Then she's being willfully stupid.

if she doesn't know that access auto saves.

I'm not in IT nor am a Network Engineer, I just input data into Access and even I know it autosaves.

[Ellipsis]

20. Thats an interesting point.

[dkf]

6. Why would there be a screwup if you input it directly into the database instead of using the form?

Doesn't the form change the database?

[SlimJimmy]

9. Inputing into the table makes the changes immediatley. Inputing into a form can change a lot of

options depending on how the programmer wrote the VBA behind the processes.

[dkf]

26. I really need to learn how to program in access.

It's been on my todo list forever.

[SlimJimmy]

28. It can be a very robust program is used properly. Most folks don't even use

a tenth of its capabilities.

[Spider Jerusalem]

8. Simple answer to that.

In terms of budgeting they're going to buy the cheapest thing that'll do the job and also get them long-term support. Which means Microsoft rather than Oracle or a low-cost (unsupported) open-source solution.

[Yavin4]

12. But There are Free Enterprise Level Databases Available

Hell, a lot of heavily traffic websites use MySql because it's freeee.

[Spider Jerusalem]

13. See "long-term support"

Free = unsupported (unless you go with Red Hat Enterprise or a similar *nix solution).

[riderinthestorm]

15. Okay so bottom line, it sounds as though she knew better and still chose the easy hack job program

Or am I misunderstanding? (be gentle, I'm a horse trainer/farmer and most of what you're putting out there sounds like gibberish).

This woman actually IS a programmer?? So she could manipulate an easily hacked program to produce the results she wanted?

[Yavin4]

29. I Could Train You For Four Hours and You Would Be Able To Hack A MS Access Database

It's really easy to do.

[coalition_unwilling]

16. Nickolaus needs to be subpoenaed to testify in front of a

federal grand jury. Under penalty of perjury. Like tomorrow.

[FeelingBlue]

17. You should start a new thread and say that.

You are absolutely right.

[coalition_unwilling]

24. Tee-hee-hee. Not sure if you are being sarcastic. If so, touche. If

not, I did start one and it plummeted down the list of threads:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=439x839808

Please feel free to weigh in. Look forward to hearing what you have to say :)

[FeelingBlue]

27. I am not being sarcastic at all.

You have an excellent point and you are right. I am completely in earnest when I agree with you that this person should absolutely be subpoenaed (especially since I just had to spell that word), and tomorrow! And furthermore, there should be some forensic programmer somewhere who can decipher what actually, truthfully, honestly happened to her computer. Try posting that in the Wisconsin section. I don't know: I think this is the best idea I have seen here tonight. And despite the fact that I am desperate for a good idea out of this mess, I am discerning! I know a good post when I read one!! Well done and thank you. :toast:

[IDemo]

19. First question:

WTF was a personal computer used for any purpose regarding this election other than surfing for relevant news?

[coalition_unwilling]

25. Second (and third) questions: what communications if any have

you had in the past x number of days with a) Governor Scott Walker, b) Speaker Fitzgerald and\or c) anyone associated with Koch brothers?

[Ellipsis]

22. There's certainly merit for it.