Hi blue!
What we have here is a failure to communicate!
I simply wanted to point out, that if someone was to use Excel as a front end to a database, (which I would not do in a fit) then Access would be more suitable than any other, having a common scripting language with Excel.
And also I find that people complaning about programmers not understanding the "special" requirements of horseracing is a furphy. There is nothing special about it, in the end it all comes down to data manipulation. Ie. you tell me how to treat beaten margins and I will allocate the number of points you think they deserve, and if you stipulate any other variable that would alter these points like class of race etc. that would be taken into account as well.
In the end, if there is a problem, I think it is the punters inability to convey to the programmer what they actually want the programme to do.
Re. Price. 20K is probably a bit over the top, although some poor souls have forked it out before and may I say, doing it now.
But by the same token, for a slab of beer, I would not even turn on my machine , unless it was for a friend, but for a friend I would do it for nix anyway.
Good luck