Your favorite database idea (1 Viewer)

[ByteMyzer]

I would like a database that would allow me to select a recipe, list the ingredients in a list and I could input how much I already have of that ingredient, and then it would produce a shopping list for me, Would also be great if it could give a shopping list based on multiple recipes. Or maybe it could keep track of my entire pantry/fridge inventory and produce grocery list off of that if I asked it to, or both.... I will design this someday.....In all my spare time, LOL,

Would you like a barcode scanner with that, to automate your pantry/fridge-inventory update?

 

[Kryst51]

That would be the ultimate toy! I would never be without the ingredients for a meal again!!!! Just the thought of it makes me giggle with joy.

 

[SOS]

Would you like a barcode scanner with that, to automate your pantry/fridge-inventory update?

NOW you're talking. I had the same idea with my music/video database. I want a database to track all of my record albums (vinyl), 45's, cassette tapes, CD's, VHS tapes, DVD's, MP3's, and Video files. I want to be able to scan in the barcode from the item, if it has one, and have the track information entered automatically.

 

[Kryst51]

That would be super cool as well....The possibilities are endless.

 

[Banana]

SOS, you already can do that with Delicious Library, i believe.

 

[SOS]

SOS, you already can do that with Delicious Library, i believe.

I've not seen that. But now that I went to look, I'm not surprised given that it is a program for the Apple OS. I am definitely not an "Apple person" even though I've used them in the past. I'm a PC

 

[Banana]

My bad. I thought Delicious was actually cross platform, but I must have been thinking of something else. For PC, there seems to be Mediaman...

 

[RossWindows]

Would you like a barcode scanner with that, to automate your pantry/fridge-inventory update?

Let's do it!

... Although, there are likely to be many versions of this already in existence in the form of commercial inventory management in grocery stores and/or restaurants, probably pre-populated with hundreds of thousands of upc codes and other skus.

What specific features need to be developed (or simplified) to tailor this for the average home chef.

Kryst51 and ByteMyzer: That's a great start!

 

[David Eagar]

I would like a database that would allow me to select a recipe, list the ingredients in a list and I could input how much I already have of that ingredient, and then it would produce a shopping list for me, Would also be great if it could give a shopping list based on multiple recipes. Or maybe it could keep track of my entire pantry/fridge inventory and produce grocery list off of that if I asked it to, or both.... I will design this someday.....In all my spare time, LOL,

No use for this personally, but an Inventory / Order Management / Bill of Material database has a million applications besides cooking.

They are also a mongrel to design (I've had several failed attempts) but keep trying

 

[Kryst51]

Are we starting from scratch or modifying something already available?

 

[David Eagar]

Are we starting from scratch or modifying something already available?

Well, if you think about it, does Maxim's or McDonalds manage their orders / inventory etc by pencil & paper? I think not.

There is bound to be professional software available to manage this sort of thing. More importantly for Forum members, is learn how to think of the database structure, processes etc to duplicate all the functions of professional software, but to create it oursleves in Access.

Realistically, something the size of McDonalds is not going to be using Access to do this, but the thought processes behind it is exactly the same: I have ingredients, I have recipes, I have a pantry - don't let the pantry get empty. What could be simpler?

 

[Atomic Shrimp]

Realistically, something the size of McDonalds is not going to be using Access to do this...

But I bet there are some interesting exceptions out there - the other day, I was reading about why NASA won't be going metric - partly because they are dependent upon calculations performed in Excel by formulae and macros that are thousands of lines long, and borderline impossible to maintain.

 

[David Eagar]

At the forfront of technology! Probably explains their success with things like Hubble - how much did they have to spend to get it right?

 

[gemma-the-husky]

Well, if you think about it, does Maxim's or McDonalds manage their orders / inventory etc by pencil & paper? I think not.

There is bound to be professional software available to manage this sort of thing. More importantly for Forum members, is learn how to think of the database structure, processes etc to duplicate all the functions of professional software, but to create it oursleves in Access.

Realistically, something the size of McDonalds is not going to be using Access to do this, but the thought processes behind it is exactly the same: I have ingredients, I have recipes, I have a pantry - don't let the pantry get empty. What could be simpler?

i agree completely

its a question of scale really - heres a similar thing

--- in the UK we have local councils that collect rates/council tax (is there a local us property tax) with which to administer local services (which includes schools, police, libraries, sports centres, refuse removal etc etc)

now (for example) a receivables ledger is a receivables ledger -so the council have to maintain a ledger to cover taxes due from maybe a million dwellings in their area - payment by instalments, direct debit etc.

There are some differences between big and small systems - big sytems will probably NEVER print out a full debtors list - everything will be managed by exception - but in principle its not too different, I dont think

However, for some reason BIG businesses do become convinced they have to pay BIG sums for BIG solutions.

 

[David Eagar]

Gemma, you have hit the nub of this thread:

If us G20 employees want to keep our jobs, we better figure out pretty quickly how to do all the things a fully blown ERP system (@ >1million $+) in a cheap, like Access technique.

If we all want to become as skilled as the venerated boblarson and access mvp's who constantly help us solve our problems, the thought processes in the the data structure and procedures is the same for General Motors (and bigger does NOT mean better!) as some backyard operation in Inner Mongolia.

Think like a BIG company, ACT like a small one

 

[RossWindows]

That's one aspect of Access that I really enjoy; You can do anything with Access/VBA and a couple tricks up your sleeve (with enough time and money, almost anything is possible). The only thing that sets Access apart from other solutions is scale. This works to our advantage as programmers because we can create a fully functional application tailored for any purpose in a minimal amount of time. This gives us the advantage because we are in a better position to price the application based on the size of the business we are selling to, but the original amount of time put into development almost remains constant. (But there is a limit to the scale of course.)

 

[RossWindows]

Are we starting from scratch or modifying something already available?

Whatever you think. If you had all the time and money in the world, what would you do with a DBMS of your choice.

 

[Kryst51]

From a learning perspective, it would be from scratch, completely customized. Part of the reason I want this so much, is what I would learn from it, and the pride I could take in having created it.

Ross, what about you? What would yours be?

 

[RossWindows]

From a learning perspective, it would be from scratch, completely customized. Part of the reason I want this so much, is what I would learn from it, and the pride I could take in having created it.

Ross, what about you? What would yours be?

lol. funny that you ask; I'm asking because I've thought about it, but I have no idea what I would do. I'd like to take a fairly simple idea and expand it to handle something unheard of, in a way that would benefit every citizen of the world.

 

[Kryst51]

A lot of people may not know how to change databases to fit their needs, like moi, So something like i'm talking about could be beneficial. here's why, I have been trying, for the past 3 years, to get on a budget and stick to it. But the problem I have is making my grocery portion fit the food I want to eat, consequently I never have what i need to make a meal, so I end up spending tons of money on eating out. This would be different if I was better organized at shopping and meal planning, which I am sure there are lots of people in this predicament. You could also incorporate prices at various grocery stores, for budget planning purposes, etc... Anyway, this idea has been floating around in my head for a very long time.