Reviews

Piranha Personal Database

February 11, 2003

Piranha truly is the ultimate personal database. It may not have all of the advanced features of other database applications such as HanDBase, but it does more than enough for the average user. If you’re anything like me, you want a database to keep track of your music CDs, your DVD collection, your shopping lists, etc. You could potentially use the built in Memo Pad application, but you also would like advanced sorting and filtering capabilities so that you can see the portion of your list that you’re interested in at any given moment. And of course you need a good desktop component so that you can import and export your databases, as well as large amounts of data entry. So how does Piranha measure up?

For starters, Piranha is very small— it only requires 297K of memory on your Palm OS device. That’s much better than the 472K required by HanDBase 3. Each of the individual databases is smaller as well, by an average of at least 40K, and sometimes even more. Since I have 15 databases, I was able to free up over 700K of space on my handheld. That’s quite important if you have an older device, but even if you have a Tungsten it certainly helps— now I have some more space for games and applications I’m currently testing for review. But how does Piranha measure up as far as features and ease of use are concerned? After all, the smallest program isn’t always the best. Thankfully Piranha delivers speedily and very well, with fast performance and a very intelligent layout.

Since I was converting from another database program, I used the Piranha Desktop application to import my previous databases from *.CSV files, a common format that works with most other databases, as well as spreadsheets such as Microsoft Excel. I must say that the Piranha Personal Database Import Wizard is truly impressive. Go through five steps, starting with the choice of a file to import, preview the data, set the field delimiter, set up the fields and database properties, and then hit start. Don’t worry, I know that sounds complicated—but for the most part you will simply accept the default values the program suggests, and conversion is lightning fast. Once the database is imported, simply click on “Install to HH (handheld)” and you’re ready to go. I was able to convert all of my files in less than ten minutes. After that, assuming that you set your default directory to be your “C:\Program Files\Palm\username\backup” directory, you can edit either on the desktop or the handheld (though not on both before syncing), which is very convenient.  

The handheld application is a dream to use. One of my tests for software I review is whether or not I have to read the manual before I can use it effectively, and I’m glad to say that I was using Piranha in no time at all, without even looking at the manual. Everything just makes sense! The databases are listed on the opening screen of the program, and there are buttons on the bottom that allow you to create a new database, open an existing file, change the setup, beam it to another Palm OS device, or set the properties of the database. If Open is highlighted, tap on a database name to open it. In the screenshots below, I used a file called “Games.” The small icon at the top left corner of the screen allows you to use the menu options; just to the right of that is the number of entries in the database and a small drop down arrow. That’s what you use for filtering options— you can create custom filters that allow you to get the information you need, and it’s very simple to do. At the bottom of the screen is the “New” button for creating new records, along with a small “pop-up” list that allows you to choose among the custom views you’ve created.

Piranha is definitely my new favorite database. It doesn’t have all of the advanced features of some of the others Palm OS applications out there right now, but it does what I need. I’ve heard too that there are some exciting things in store for Piranha in the future, and I can’t wait to see what they are.

Piranha is available at the Fresh Perspective web site for $24.95. You can also get a free 30 day demo at the site. Even better, if you use the coupon code POCKETGODDESS when you place your order at the FPS web site, you’ll save 20% on any FPS product priced at $20 or more— that makes the Piranha Personal Database only $19.95.

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