Best GUI-based programming utility for...

[M-Tee]

My programming experience is limited to say the least, a semester of Javascript and two of Visual Basic, both more than a decade ago.

However, I find myself in the need to create a small utility capable of

• creating entries within a database, using a series of dropdowns, radioboxes, textboxes, etc.
  
• searching and producing lists from those entries
  
• exporting formatted word processor files from those entries
  

I'm very much a visual person, so I'm wanting to make this through something GUI-based, similar to the experience I recall with visual basic. And I'm wanting to be able to distribute it in a fashion that does not require the downloading of anything additional for users.

Although not romhacking related, due to the members' experience making editors, etc. I thought it'd be wise to inquire here.

[FAST6191]

I would strongly advise against going into the database world half cocked. You make a program that is not easily adapted and it sucks but you can deal with it. Do it with a database, especially one you aim to have each person maintain their own copy of, and you are in for a nightmare a year or so down the line.
If nothing else go have a look in the site suggestions forum and see all the long and detailed discussions on the changes to a few categories -- basically any of the suggestions/points of discussion could be added to the site layout in minutes at best but I am sure the list I am sure the list of unpleasant things Nightcrawler would sooner do than make a hasty change like that would be quite long indeed; most of those are just refinements to categories as well, mess up the overall layout (aka database schema) and you might as well not have bothered.

This then sounds like a job for sqlite, it is not quite big boy SQL but it should be more than capable of doing what you want. I forget the programs I used to use with them (I have mainly been dealing with mysql for websites of late) but they should make for something almost exactly like what you want ( http://sourceforge.net/projects/sqlitebrowser/ should be a good start). SQL is not very visual but it is very human readable for basic queries. Alas most of the things I have for SQL are paid books and I would rather not link w3schools (though you could do worse I guess).
Fully formatted documents might be a stretch. Nicely formatted text files, csv files and more besides are a different matter entirely. On the flip side I have never really had call to interface between a sqlite database and an office suite and fumbling with spreadsheets and more besides over the years they do appear to have something in that world (see also ODBC)

[hugues]

It's called Microsoft Access, it also has a Visual Basic macro language. I'm not really joking either...

-creating entries within a database, using a series of dropdowns, radioboxes, textboxes, etc - check
-searching and producing lists from those entries - check
-exporting formatted word processor files from those entries - doable with some VBA scripting
-able to distribute it in a fashion that does not require the downloading of anything additional for users - all Access databases can be exported to an .exe, although you lose platform neutrality if you care about that

Old copies are cheap on eBay too. You can go back to the '97 version and everything still works fine.

[M-Tee]

Thanks. I had used Access very lightly before, but was unaware of the ability to distribute independent applications from it.