Access database driver for Mac OS X

SAN FRANCISCO, USA: Provider of ODBC drivers for databases, Actual Technologies has released the Actual ODBC Driver for Microsoft Access, a new product that lets OS X users import data from Access databases using applications such as Excel and Filemaker.

The driver allows a Mac user to retrieve data from Access databases with applications such as Excel and Filemaker, using queries to populate spreadsheets, charts, and graphs with live data.

The driver is the first commercially available, native Mac solution for connecting to Access databases. Unlike many competing products, the Actual ODBC Driver for Access does not require the use of a separate Windows machine to communicate with the Access database. Anyone familiar with setting up an ODBC connection on a Windows machine will feel at home with the configuration wizard, while Mac users will experience the native OS X interface and ease of use that they expect.

"Our products target the population of Mac OS X-based users who find themselves working in primarily Windows-based enterprise IT," said Christine Toledo, managing partner of Actual Technologies. "Our ODBC driver brings to these users many of the same database connectivity and data manipulation capabilities that their Windows-based peers have."

The driver can also be used to incorporate Access connectivity into third-party applications or even custom software written in REALbasic, Carbon, Cocoa or PHP.

"We keep hearing that REALbasic developers want to connect to a Microsoft Access database from the Macintosh," stated Geoff Perlman, president and CEO of REAL Software, Inc, providers of REALbasic. "This new driver provides REALbasic developers the ability to connect to Access as easily from Macintosh as Windows. It's an ideal solution."