Databases
Jane McGary (Fri, 03 Oct 2003 11:57:57 PDT)

I use a database application called Filemaker Pro, available from Claris
Corporation. I think it's easier to use than any of the Microsoft
applications because it does not try to get you to do things you don't want
to do, and it doesn't suddenly perform actions you don't understand, and it
doesn't have cutesy features. It comes in PC and Mac versions, and I have
transferred data done on a Mac to my PC in the past. It is a little
difficult to learn how to design the layouts. Adding new entries, finding,
sorting, and selecting are easy and intuitive.

The fields I use are: Genus; species, subspecies, and cultivar name; source
(where I got it, including information on wild collection site, collector's
number, etc.); location (where it is in my bulb frames - which have
numbered sections - or garden); cost (what I paid per bulb); flowering
time; and comments. The Filemaker fields are expandable so I can write as
much as I want in any of them.

The data can be printed out in a variety of layouts and subsets, and this
is handy when I need to have a hard copy on a clipboard to do some
particular task in the collection.

I recommend this application for anybody who likes to avoid Microsoft. I
bought it even though I have Excel and Access, both of which I hate to use.

Jane McGary