--- product_id: 10509348 title: "Access Database Design & Programming (3rd Edition)" price: "Β£20.56" currency: GBP in_stock: true reviews_count: 9 url: https://www.desertcart.co.uk/products/10509348-access-database-design-and-programming-3rd-edition store_origin: GB region: United Kingdom --- # 3rd Edition Classic Boosts Functional DB Design Deep Normalization Focus Access Database Design & Programming (3rd Edition) **Price:** Β£20.56 **Availability:** βœ… In Stock ## Summary > πŸ“Š Unlock the power of Access with the definitive guide to database mastery! ## Quick Answers - **What is this?** Access Database Design & Programming (3rd Edition) - **How much does it cost?** Β£20.56 with free shipping - **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship - **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.co.uk](https://www.desertcart.co.uk/products/10509348-access-database-design-and-programming-3rd-edition) ## Best For - Customers looking for quality international products ## Why This Product - Free international shipping included - Worldwide delivery with tracking - 15-day hassle-free returns ## Key Features - β€’ **Insightful DAO Coverage:** In-depth exploration of DAO and the CurrentDB object empowers you to manage Access databases with precision. - β€’ **Trusted Reference for Pros:** A must-have companion book for serious Access developers seeking to deepen their expertise beyond basics. - β€’ **Master Database Fundamentals:** Comprehensive coverage of normalization ensures your Access databases are built on rock-solid relational principles. - β€’ **Free Shipping & Good Condition:** Get this used gem in good condition with free shippingβ€”upgrade your library without delay. - β€’ **Elevate Your Programming Skills:** Transforms scattered practical knowledge into a coherent, functional approach for efficient database design and programming. ## Overview Access Database Design & Programming (3rd Edition) by Steven Roman, PhD, is a well-regarded resource that deep dives into Access database design, emphasizing normalization and functional programming techniques. Ideal for professionals aiming to elevate their database skills, this edition offers detailed DAO coverage and practical theory to build efficient, maintainable Access databases. Available as a used book in good condition with free shipping. ## Description Access Database Design & Programming takes you behind the details of the Access interface, focusing on the general knowledge necessary for Access power users or developers to create effective database applications. When using software products with graphical interfaces, we frequently focus so much on the interface that we forget about the general concepts that allow us to understand and use the software effectively. In particular, this book focuses on three areas: Database design . The book provides an enjoyable, informative overview of database design that carefully shows you how to normalize tables to eliminate redundancy without losing data. Queries . The book examines multi-table queries (i.e.,various types of joins) and shows how to implement them indirectly by using the Access interface or directly by using Access SQL. Programming . The book examines the VBA integrated development environment (IDE). It then goes on to provide an excellent introduction to Data Access Objects (DAO), ActiveX Data Objects (ADO), and ADO Extensions for Data Definition and Security (ADOX). These sections serve as a handy introduction and primer for basic database operations,such as modifying a table under program control, dynamically adding and deleting a record, and repositioning a record pointer. The concluding chapter focuses on common programming problems, such as computing running sums and comparing two sets. Unlike other Access books that take the long, detailed approach to every topic of concern to Access programmers, Access Database Design &Programming instead focuses on the core concepts, enabling programmers to develop solid, effective database applications. This book also serves as a 'second course' in Access that provides a relatively experienced Access user who is new to programming with the frequently overlooked techniques necessary to develop successfully in the Microsoft Access environment. Anyone interested in learning Access in depth, rather than just scraping the surface, will enjoy and benefit immensely from reading this book. Review: Coherent and Functional Approach - I had somewhat unsystematized knowledge and understanding of Access database programming and design acquired via its practical use in the workplace. This book has helped me to round up all the bits and pieces into elegant theory. Now I can employ a much more functional approach and develop parsimonious yet comprehensive databases. In the beginning the book seemed slightly tedious due to its lengthy explanations of simple concepts, but I guess the idea was to build a solid understanding and address the needs of different audiences. Overall, a very useful and interesting book that will definitely improve your Access skills. Review: If you own 2 Access books, this should be one of them - I first read Steven Roman's book on Access a few years ago when it was written for Access 97. I recently bought a copy of the current version as a reference. What I liked about Steven's books was that he took seriously his coverage of normalization, which is rare amongst books on Access. If you're new to database programming, you need to learn the basics of normalization. In my experiences, I've come across a lot of databases designed by beginners that exhibit a "spreadsheet" type of understanding towards Access tables. The beauty of the relational model is that once you have your database set up, ongoing maintenance is minimal. If you learn how to program Access, but don't learn the basics of normalization and the relational model, you may as well just keep your data in Excel spreadsheets. My complaint with this book is his coverage of ADO. The author clearly prefers DAO for MS Access, and he states as much, and his coverage suffers. He covers the material, but he makes using ADO appear to be very difficult. In an entire chapter on ADO, he fails to show the user the most basic thing: how to generate a recordset for a table in your Access database. Instead, he shows you how to use ADO to query other databases, such as SQL Server and even Excel, but not the Access Database that you're currently using. In DAO one of the fundamental details that you need to know about is the CurrentDB object. Steven gets a gold star, because he not only covers the CurrentDB object, but he spends 6 pages on it. In ADO, an object that is used for a somewhat similar purpose is the CurrentProject object. You won't find coverage on it anywhere in this book - just check the index. Perhaps the author's surreptitious goal of the chapter is to frustrate you so much with ADO that you will return to DAO, his preferred choice. Tsk, tsk Steven. After reading the books section on ADO over and over again, I cannot recommend this book if you plan on owning only one Access book. Instead, I would recommend Alison Balter's Mastering Access Databases. It is the best Access book on the market(as most desertcart reviewers will attest to) and covers nearly ever topic that you'd want to know about Access. Even so, Steven's book covers normalization so much better than the other Access books out there that I would advise serious Access programmers to buy two books: Alison's and Steven's. ## Features - Used Book in Good Condition ## Technical Specifications | Specification | Value | |---------------|-------| | Best Sellers Rank | #2,680,047 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #505 in Computer Simulation (Books) #722 in Data Modeling & Design (Books) #845 in Computer Operating Systems (Books) | | Customer Reviews | 4.0 out of 5 stars 39 Reviews | ## Images ![Access Database Design & Programming (3rd Edition) - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/81qQ0zkpJLL.jpg) ## Customer Reviews ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Coherent and Functional Approach *by C***1 on April 17, 2011* I had somewhat unsystematized knowledge and understanding of Access database programming and design acquired via its practical use in the workplace. This book has helped me to round up all the bits and pieces into elegant theory. Now I can employ a much more functional approach and develop parsimonious yet comprehensive databases. In the beginning the book seemed slightly tedious due to its lengthy explanations of simple concepts, but I guess the idea was to build a solid understanding and address the needs of different audiences. Overall, a very useful and interesting book that will definitely improve your Access skills. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐ If you own 2 Access books, this should be one of them *by F***S on June 7, 2005* I first read Steven Roman's book on Access a few years ago when it was written for Access 97. I recently bought a copy of the current version as a reference. What I liked about Steven's books was that he took seriously his coverage of normalization, which is rare amongst books on Access. If you're new to database programming, you need to learn the basics of normalization. In my experiences, I've come across a lot of databases designed by beginners that exhibit a "spreadsheet" type of understanding towards Access tables. The beauty of the relational model is that once you have your database set up, ongoing maintenance is minimal. If you learn how to program Access, but don't learn the basics of normalization and the relational model, you may as well just keep your data in Excel spreadsheets. My complaint with this book is his coverage of ADO. The author clearly prefers DAO for MS Access, and he states as much, and his coverage suffers. He covers the material, but he makes using ADO appear to be very difficult. In an entire chapter on ADO, he fails to show the user the most basic thing: how to generate a recordset for a table in your Access database. Instead, he shows you how to use ADO to query other databases, such as SQL Server and even Excel, but not the Access Database that you're currently using. In DAO one of the fundamental details that you need to know about is the CurrentDB object. Steven gets a gold star, because he not only covers the CurrentDB object, but he spends 6 pages on it. In ADO, an object that is used for a somewhat similar purpose is the CurrentProject object. You won't find coverage on it anywhere in this book - just check the index. Perhaps the author's surreptitious goal of the chapter is to frustrate you so much with ADO that you will return to DAO, his preferred choice. Tsk, tsk Steven. After reading the books section on ADO over and over again, I cannot recommend this book if you plan on owning only one Access book. Instead, I would recommend Alison Balter's Mastering Access Databases. It is the best Access book on the market(as most Amazon reviewers will attest to) and covers nearly ever topic that you'd want to know about Access. Even so, Steven's book covers normalization so much better than the other Access books out there that I would advise serious Access programmers to buy two books: Alison's and Steven's. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Not too shabby *by E***E on June 29, 2016* I _really_ didn't want a "Total Beginner's Guide" because every book out there tries to be it and as a result 80% of the book is useless junk. Such was not the case for this book, mostly; I wish people could write books with the assumption that readers have a basic grasp of programming (e.g. ByRef vs ByVal, what a database is...), but since that doesn't seem to be metaphysically possible, this book comes the closest to cutting out the crap. It doesn't focus on how to create forms or queries or really anything interface-oriented. It deals with (1) database fundamentals (but not _too_ fundamental) and (2) VBA concerning Access. This book, to me, was worth it just for clarifying the lines between DAO, ADO, OLE, Jet, ODBC and how they all interact. It's old, but I think still relevant? I dunno, I'm new, and at least I can say that I feel more comfortable with Access 2003 after reading this book, which means that it succeeded for what it is. --- ## Why Shop on Desertcart? - πŸ›’ **Trusted by 1.3+ Million Shoppers** β€” Serving international shoppers since 2016 - 🌍 **Shop Globally** β€” Access 737+ million products across 21 categories - πŸ’° **No Hidden Fees** β€” All customs, duties, and taxes included in the price - πŸ”„ **15-Day Free Returns** β€” Hassle-free returns (30 days for PRO members) - πŸ”’ **Secure Payments** β€” Trusted payment options with buyer protection - ⭐ **TrustPilot Rated 4.5/5** β€” Based on 8,000+ happy customer reviews **Shop now:** [https://www.desertcart.co.uk/products/10509348-access-database-design-and-programming-3rd-edition](https://www.desertcart.co.uk/products/10509348-access-database-design-and-programming-3rd-edition) --- *Product available on Desertcart United Kingdom* *Store origin: GB* *Last updated: 2026-05-23*