What is the best equivalent of MS Access now in Ubuntu?

[swarup]

I switched over from Windows to Ubuntu in 2007, and have been using Kexi as my replacement for MS Access since that time. But there have remained a number of problems with it, such as that once a table is made there is no facility for creating a new column, or for renaming a column, or for hiding a column. Additionally, I found that moving from my previous Ubuntu (9.04) to 11.10, I could not get Kexi to install properly or accept the databases which I had created in 9.04. My demands on a database program are not great; I just need a program that allows me to create tables and do very simple tasks with them. What have people found to work well in the new Ubuntu distributions?

[Basher101]

i dont know anything equivalent, but just a suggestion - did you try installing office in wine?

regards

[jerome1232]

http://www.openoffice.org/product/base.html

???

[bfmetcalf]

I was going to suggest LibreOffice, but I haven't used the database part much yet.

[swarup]

http://www.openoffice.org/product/base.html

???

Actually, when I first switched over from Windows to Ubuntu in 2007, Base was the first thing I tried. I used it for the better part of a year, but found it to be very buggy, extremely complex, and difficult to use. At that time doing even the simplest of tasks in Base was lengthy and technical. Ultimately I moved everything over to Kexi, which I found to be far more user-friendly. Has base improved much since then?

[winh8r]

You will have LibreOffice Base installed by default in Ubuntu 11.10, does it not work for you?
(this is the replacement for OpenOffice Base in Ubuntu)
It is broadly compatible with M S Access.

[swarup]

I was going to suggest LibreOffice, but I haven't used the database part much yet.

Actually, I haven't put a new distribution on my laptop yet-- still use 9.04! So I haven't personally used LibreOffice, and didn't know it had a database application. Has anyone used it, and how have you found it to be? I'm looking for something straightforward, clear, simple to use.

[jerome1232]

I actually haven't used it, I just figured Libreoffice being the MS office equivalent for Linux, would be closest your going to get.

I only briefly used access for a database class, then we used mySQL and SQL.

edit: Libreoffice is pretty much Openoffice with a different name on it.

[swarup]

You will have LibreOffice Base installed by default in Ubuntu 11.10, does it not work for you?
(this is the replacement for OpenOffice Base in Ubuntu)
It is broadly compatible with M S Access.

As I say, I haven't put 11.10 on my own personal laptop yet, so haven't had the opportunity to try LibreOffice Base. Have you found it to work well? MS Access was just about the only thing I liked in windows, and I haven't been able to find a satisfactory replacement for it in all these years. i.e. a program which does what it is supposed to do, is clear and simple to use, and free of bugs.

[Irihapeti]

You can also use Base as a front-end to another database program. I use sqlite, along with the odbc drivers. I'm using OpenOffice.org rather than LibreOffice, but I don't think that would make much difference.

The structure of the database can't be edited directly in Base, it seems, but I use sqlite-manager extension in Firefox to do that.

I believe that there are also other sqlite editors in Ubuntu, and these may be enough for what you are wanting to do.