Looking to hire an Access consultant

[stephen81]

Afternoon all, long time member but very infrequent visitor in recent years. I used to do a fair amount with Access/VBA, but haven't really got my hands very dirty for about 10 years.

I now need to take a couple of applications using Access front end (Access 2003 I think) and a SQL Server 2008 back end and migrate the back end to a more up-to-date back end (preferably) Azure SQL DB and migrate the front end to Access 365.

They're fairly complex applications, I'm told it took a couple of years to design and build, and they've been enhanced over the years. Unfortunately the guy who built it has gone AWOL and the company has no support agreement. I'm so out of practice I don't think I could confidently take this on myself, nor do I have the time at present.

We're therefore looking for an Access developer who can carry out the migrations and preferably provide ongoing support and maintenance, including some enhancements in the future. Ideally we'd like to get the systems documented at the same time, as we may want to look at integrating with other in-house systems in the future.

Does anyone have any recommendations for where I might begin to look for someone suitable? I'm guessing there are a fair few people on here that would be more than capable, so can you share where you go to find work or how people find you? Also, please feel free to message me if you're interested yourself (if that's not against the rules)?

Thanks in advance!

 

[Pat Hartman]

If you want someone to work onsite, you need to look locally. I'm sure there are people on this site who can do the job. You should carefully review their history though to see if you can understand their answers and if they even bother to explain their solution. Be very careful if you go to a job board because everyone "knows" Access but very few can actually do the project you have.

Both conversions should be easy enough. If the app already works with SQL 2008, the transition to Azure shouldn't take more than a few minutes. Converting the FE is also probably trivial unless you are using an .mdw and want to replicate the functionality.

You might just take a few hours over the weekend and try it yourself.

Documenting the application is a different problem. It is probably far better for the user community to document it from their perspective than for a stranger to do it by looking at structure and reading code especially if they are working offsite. www.fmsinc.com has an excellent technical documentation tool called Total Access Analyzer. It provides dozens of reports that show how the database is structured and some even identify potential problems. It's not cheap as far as tools go but I guarantee it will save you lots of effort and is worth every penny and Luke doesn't even pay me for the recommendations. The site has other excellent tools and lots of good articles so it is worth bookmarking and visiting regularly.

As someone who has had to fix many apps created by others, it sucks. Somehow, most were started by amateurs and modified by Rube Goldberg. It is exhausting to try to get inside their heads, not that it is a place I want to be. They document the obvious but never the business rules or why one solution was chosen over another.

I'm not volunteering. I am mostly retired and so I don't have a current version of TAA or Azure installed but if you get stuck or want advice on someone, PM me.

 

[Uncle Gizmo]

were started by amateurs and modified by Rube Goldberg

Ha! The UK equivalent is "Heath Robinson"!

W. Heath Robinson - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[Pat Hartman]

Yep, that's o'l Rube They do make for some really interesting miniature golf holes though.

 

[stephen81]

Thanks Pat for your very thorough reply. Some valuable points, and I totally understand your points about documenting.

 

[jokerjiraz]

Hello sur stephen ..
I think i have the solution for your request .. we can help you with your problem
just contact me on e-mail : contact@nefritech.com