After writing a column searching for Linux alternatives to Microsoft's low-end database, Access, I received some great replies. Many readers pointed out the limitations of Microsoft Access, and while all of them are true, such comments miss the point. 

Users clearly want low-end databases that are relatively easy to use and a relatively easy path to make data-entry forms and other simple database-based applications. The two main databases that come with most Linux distributions, PostgreSQL and MySQL, far exceed Access as safe repositories for your data. Both these databases offer many more database features than Access, except for the handy means to make data-entry forms and simple database-driven applications.

A number of readers pointed me to StarOffice and the latest OpenOffice.org software. (StarOffice is a commercial product from Sun while OpenOffice.org is an open-source version that acts as a base for StarOffice.) This proved to be the best suggestions so far.

OpenOffice.org (http://www.openoffice.org) provides a near drop-in replacement for Microsoft Office. The software runs on Linux, Windows, and a number of Linux versions. A MacOS X port is also in the works.

The OpenOffice.org database access sub-project
(http://dba.openoffice.org) includes modules in the core office suite to access databases using a variety of methods including ODBC (mostly Windows), JDBC (Java), ADO, along with dBase and CSV, or Comma-Separated Value, files. You can create forms on top of data from a database, along with performing limited database functions within the OpenOffice.org suite.

A few how-to documents appear at http://dba.openoffice.org/howto. The most useful one for Linux users is the document on how to connect to the MySQL database using a Java JDBC driver at http://dba.openoffice.org/howto/mysql_jdbc.html.

OpenOffice.org connects to databases by defining data sources within the suite. A data source tells OpenOffice.org how to connect to a particular database. The OpenOffice.org site describes how to set up a data source at http://documentation.openoffice.org/HOW_TO/data_source/data1_EN.html. This example shows how to connect to a data source, create a table in the database, and enter data.

You can use dBase or CSV files if you just want to edit data locally. Many users, though, will opt for using a real database rather than just files. You can access most databases from the suite via the Java JDBC database drivers. (JDBC stands for Java DataBase Connectivity.) Just about every database in existence supports JDBC access. A good listing of where to find JDBC drivers appears at http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/Ken_North/jdbcvend.htm.

If you cannot get a JDBC driver, you can set up ODBC, Open DataBase Connectivity. Most ODBC usage is on Windows, but you can use the unixODBC project code, from http://www.unixodbc.org/, to use ODBC on Linux.