LibreOffice Base

Last updated
LibreOffice Base
Developer(s) The Document Foundation
Stable release
  • Fresh: [1] 7.5.0 [2]   OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg (2 February 2023)
  • Still: [1] 7.4.5 [3]   OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg (26 January 2023) [±]
Repository
Operating system Linux, FreeBSD, Mac OS X and Microsoft Windows
Type RDBMS
License MPLv2.0 (secondary license GPL, LGPLv3+ or Apache License 2.0) [4]
Website www.libreoffice.org/discover/base/

LibreOffice Base is a free and open-source database development and administration tool for relational database management systems that is part of the LibreOffice office suite. LibreOffice Base was built off of a fork of OpenOffice.org and was first released as version 3.4.0.1 on October 4, 2011. [5]

Contents

Similarly to the other packages in the LibreOffice suite, Base is supported across multiple platforms including Microsoft Windows, macOS, and Linux. Base is recognized for its cross-platform compatibility relative to Microsoft Access, which is developed exclusively for Windows. [6]

Features

LibreOffice Base is designed to allow users to easily create, access, modify, and view databases and their data. This is done by providing users with a graphical user interface that allows users to work with four main tools: Tables, queries, forms, and reports. [7] [8] Base includes software wizards to assist users with various aspects of the program. [9] [10] LibreOffice Base requires Java in order to create databases with forms, wizards, and more. [11]

Table Data View in Libreoffice Base LibreOffice 7.2.4.1 Base Table Data View screenshot.png
Table Data View in Libreoffice Base

Base is able to work with both embedded and external database files. Embedded databases are stored as a single file using C++ based Firebird and Java-based HSQLDB as its storage engine. When connecting to external databases, Base acts as a graphical user interface front-end to facilitate interactions with various database systems including Access Database Engine (ACE/JET), ODBC/JDBC data sources, MySQL, MariaDB, and PostgreSQL. [8]

Base has been described as an unusual project in the niche of database management system software which tends toward proprietary software designed for enterprise users. [7] Proprietary database management software costs have been described as a reason for the use of Base in small businesses. [12]

Migration From HSQLDB to Firebird

Work was started in 2014 to transition the embedded storage engine from HSQLDB to the Firebird SQL back-end. Firebird has been included in LibreOffice as an experimental option since LibreOffice 4.2. [13] [14]

In August 2018, The Document Foundation announced the release of LibreOffice version 6.1. If the experimental mode is used, the embedded Firebird engine support is fully available, and the old HSQLDB engine is deprecated—although still available—and replaced by Firebird as the default option. [15] [16]

In February 2019, The Document Foundation released LibreOffice version 6.2. The embedded Firebird engine support was moved from experimental mode to operational and the Firebird Migration Assistant can create a backup copy of content as an XML document for the migration process. [17] In February 2020, embedded Firebird was moved back to experimental mode, taking effect in version 6.4.1. [18]

Related Research Articles

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OpenOffice.org (OOo), commonly known as OpenOffice, is a discontinued open-source office suite. Active successor projects include LibreOffice, Apache OpenOffice, Collabora Online and NeoOffice.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Firebird (database server)</span> Relational database management system

Firebird is an open-source SQL relational database management system that supports Linux, Microsoft Windows, macOS and other Unix platforms. The database forked from Borland's open source edition of InterBase in 2000 but the code has been largely rewritten since Firebird 1.5.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">HSQLDB</span> Java-based database engine

HSQLDB is a relational database management system written in Java. It has a JDBC driver and supports a large subset of SQL-92, SQL:2008, SQL:2011, and SQL:2016 standards. It offers a fast, small database engine which offers both in-memory and disk-based tables. Both embedded and server modes are available.

The following tables compare general and technical information for a number of relational database management systems. Please see the individual products' articles for further information. Unless otherwise specified in footnotes, comparisons are based on the stable versions without any add-ons, extensions or external programs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kexi</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of free and open-source software</span> Aspect of history

In the 1950s and 1960s, computer operating software and compilers were delivered as a part of hardware purchases without separate fees. At the time, source code, the human-readable form of software, was generally distributed with the software providing the ability to fix bugs or add new functions. Universities were early adopters of computing technology. Many of the modifications developed by universities were openly shared, in keeping with the academic principles of sharing knowledge, and organizations sprung up to facilitate sharing. As large-scale operating systems matured, fewer organizations allowed modifications to the operating software, and eventually such operating systems were closed to modification. However, utilities and other added-function applications are still shared and new organizations have been formed to promote the sharing of software.

An embedded database system is a database management system (DBMS) which is tightly integrated with an application software; it is embedded in the application. It is a broad technology category that includes:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LibreOffice</span> Free and open-source office software suite

LibreOffice is a free and open-source office productivity software suite, a project of The Document Foundation (TDF). It was forked in 2010 from OpenOffice.org, an open-sourced version of the earlier StarOffice. The LibreOffice suite consists of programs for word processing, creating and editing of spreadsheets, slideshows, diagrams and drawings, working with databases, and composing mathematical formulae. It is available in 115 languages. TDF doesn't provide support for LibreOffice, but enterprised-focused editions are available from companies in the ecosystem.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LibreOffice Writer</span> Open-source word processor

LibreOffice Writer is the free and open-source word processor and desktop publishing component of the LibreOffice software package and is a fork of OpenOffice.org Writer. Writer is a word processor similar to Microsoft Word and Corel's WordPerfect with many similar features, and file format compatibility.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">LibreOffice Calc</span> Spreadsheet component of LibreOffice

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">LibreOffice Draw</span> Vector graphics editing software

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Apache OpenOffice</span> Free and open-source office software suite

Apache OpenOffice (AOO) is an open-source office productivity software suite. It is one of the successor projects of OpenOffice.org and the designated successor of IBM Lotus Symphony. It is a close cousin of LibreOffice, Collabora Online and NeoOffice. It contains a word processor (Writer), a spreadsheet (Calc), a presentation application (Impress), a drawing application (Draw), a formula editor (Math), and a database management application (Base).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Foswiki</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Database Workbench</span>

Database Workbench is a software application for development and administration of multiple relational databases using SQL, with interoperationality between different database systems, developed by Upscene Productions.

Microsoft, a technology company historically known for its opposition to the open source software paradigm, turned to embrace the approach in the 2010s. From the 1970s through 2000s under CEOs Bill Gates and Steve Ballmer, Microsoft viewed the community creation and sharing of communal code, later to be known as free and open source software, as a threat to its business, and both executives spoke negatively against it. In the 2010s, as the industry turned towards cloud, embedded, and mobile computing—technologies powered by open source advances—CEO Satya Nadella led Microsoft towards open source adoption although Microsoft's traditional Windows business continued to grow throughout this period generating revenues of 26.8 billion in the third quarter of 2018, while Microsoft's Azure cloud revenues nearly doubled.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Collabora Online</span> Online office suite by Collabora Productivity based on LibreOffice

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References

  1. 1 2 https://www.libreoffice.org/download/download/
  2. ↑ "The Document Foundation announces LibreOffice 7.5 Community". 2 February 2023. Retrieved 2 February 2023.
  3. ↑ "The Document Foundation releases LibreOffice 7.4.5 Community". 26 January 2023. Retrieved 26 January 2023.
  4. ↑ "Licenses". The Document Foundation. Retrieved 12 August 2018.
  5. ↑ "Index of /libreoffice/old". The Document Foundation. Retrieved 13 August 2018.
  6. ↑ Klosowski, Thorin (15 August 2013). "Battle of the Office Suites: Microsoft Office and LibreOffice Compared". LifeHacker. Retrieved 13 August 2018.
  7. 1 2 Gaskin, James (5 August 2016). "LibreOffice 5 Review". Laptopmag. Retrieved 13 August 2018.
  8. 1 2 Elena, Opris (17 January 2014). "LibreOffice Base Review". Softpedia. Retrieved 13 August 2018.
  9. ↑ "Microsoft Access alternatives: are there any free applications that achieve the same result?". 1&1. 6 November 2017. Retrieved 13 August 2018.
  10. ↑ Wallen, Jack (20 February 2015). "Creating Forms for Easy LibreOffice Database Entry on Linux". Linux. Retrieved 13 August 2018.
  11. ↑ "on firefox and have loaded java 32 [closed] - Ask LibreOffice". ask.libreoffice.org. 17 November 2017. Retrieved 2021-03-16.
  12. ↑ Wallen, Jack (27 January 2012). "DIY: Create easy to use databases with LibreOffice Base". TechRepublic. Retrieved 13 August 2018.
  13. ↑ "LibreOffice 4.2 released with new SQL preview feature: Firebird SQL backend". Firebird News. 30 January 2014. Retrieved 2 May 2015.
  14. ↑ "HSQLDB to be replaced by Firebird". LibreOfficeForum.org. Archived from the original on 19 March 2015. Retrieved 2 May 2015.
  15. ↑ "The Document Foundation announces LibreOffice 6.1, a major release which shows the power of a large and diverse community of contributors". The Document Foundation. LibreOffice. 8 August 2018. Retrieved 13 August 2018.
  16. ↑ "LibreOffice 6.1: Release Notes". The Document Foundation's Wiki. Retrieved 26 August 2018.
  17. ↑ "ReleaseNotes/6.2". The Document Foundation's Wiki. Retrieved 26 February 2019.
  18. ↑ "Set Firebird creation option experimental". The Document Foundation. Retrieved 26 October 2020.
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