Show HN: Visual DB – Airtable alternative for your own database
visualdb.com
Spreadsheets are a popular choice for storing tabular data due to their familiar, row-by-column interface and ease of use. However, they can quickly become unwieldy as data grows. Spreadsheets aren't ideal for large-scale structured data or maintaining data integrity. When individuals copy the spreadsheet and introduce inconsistent updates, it leads to the problem known as "multiple versions of the truth." Visual DB provides a solution. It maintains the familiar interface of spreadsheets, but each row is backed by a database record. Updates sync to a centralized database, ensuring data consistency, scalability, and integrity.
Visual DB performs double duty: In addition to providing a spreadsheet interface for updating data, it also has features traditionally seen in business intelligence reporting tools, such as grouping, aggregation, sorting and filtering.
Visual DB is very good at helping you locate the record you want to update. It has advanced filtering that supports combining AND/OR conditions. It also has full-text filtering that instantly updates the screen as you type.
Visual DB can display up to 100,000 records at a time. If your database table has more rows than that, you can use query parameters to let the user fetch a subset of the records (up to 100K) to the client. To enable this, Visual DB has a query builder and supports parameter prompting.
Relational databases frequently function as bridges between various business applications. However, if a database is proprietary and is behind the firewall of another company, its effectiveness as an integration hub is compromised. Visual DB allows users to bring their own databases, ensuring they have complete control and ownership. This ensures interoperability with multiple applications beyond just Visual DB. This flexibility distinguishes Visual DB from competitors like Airtable.
Here are the main features of Visual DB:
- BYOD (Bring Your Own Database).
- Your database can be hosted in any cloud provider, including Azure, AWS and Google cloud.
- Supports MySQL, PostgreSQL, Oracle, SQL Server.
- No code. Build sheets and forms with zero coding or SQL knowledge.
- Role-based access control: Decide who can add/remove columns and who can only enter/update data.
- Full-text filtering that instantly updates the screen as you type.
- Advanced filtering that supports combining AND/OR conditions.
- Grouping with unlimited levels of nesting.
- Unlimited number of records per table (compare to 50,000 in Airtable).
- Use query parameters to determine which subset of rows (out of millions) to display.
- Display columns from lookup tables, not just the main table.
- Instant scrolling of up to 100,000 rows.
For more information visit https://visualdb.com or go to https://app.visualdb.com to start using Visual DB right away.