Data Storage

• The Access database-management program's data is easily retrieved and searchable. Possible applications include product inventories, client lists, marketing mailing lists, billing, employee information or even an itemized list of a coin collection.
  
  

Queries

• Queries are basically snapshots of specific elements within a database. For example, a user could see a list of all her company's new clients since Jan. 1 or send a mailing to customers who live in Kansas.
  
  

Forms

• To streamline the data-entry process, Access has a forms function where a user can create a screen with specific fields like Name, Address, or Date Entered. Those fields can be set with a default or a drop-down list of choices.
  
  

Reports

• To present data in a more user-friendly format, Access offers a report generator. Whether it's a monthly expense report or an employee-performance breakdown, reports can be customized and graphically enhanced to fit the occasion.
  
  

Other Features

• Other Access applications include a macro builder, the ability to link queries, compatibility with other Office products, and data importing and exporting. Access 2010 introduces Internet-based databases that can be accessed by different users in various locations, as well as a more intuitive expression builder.