Well, the first thing to come to mind is, "Yes, Selwyn, you've satisfied us over and over again, for the past 20 years! It's just that when you spoil us so much, we don't know when to stop asking for yet another ingenous version!"

Until I saw all the new, extraordinary features of Alpha Five version 5, I just didn't have enough confidence to build shrink-wrapped "programs". Now, I can not hold back my confidence and enthusiasm. The potential market version 5 is so willing to lay at my feet makes it possible for me to live absolutely anywhere, as long as I have Alpha Five. I can now very easily reach the entire world with an endless number of database management systems. THANK YOU, SELWYN!

Sincerely,

Wanda Tucker
Data Analyst
Mendocino County Children's System of Care

In 1982 or 1983 my job required that I track over 1200 applicants to the Local 483 Sprinkler Fitters Apprenticeship program. The applicants were ranked according to the date of application, and score on the entry exam and interview. Having spent an entire year manually processing these applications via Wang Word Processing, I was determined to find an easier, more efficient and accurate way to sort and report the data.. Rejecting the limited features of Lotus 1,2,3, and the non-user-friendliness of DBASE, I gave Alpha III a try. Its ease of use, coupled with the expertise of the folks in the Alpha technical department, easily enabled me to create a database that handled future applications like a dream…all in spite of no previous experiense with any database management program. Not only could I sort (index, at that time) on any field (which came in handy for bulk mailings, as well as state reporting), I could also flag disqualified applicants, and detail why they were disqualified, and set up an automated letter-generator, advising applicants of their status, test dates, scores, disqualification reasons, etc. Remarkably, I was also able to create an index to sort by application date in ascending order, AND by test score in descending order…no small feat for a flat-file database program. (Relational database programs were not yet available, that I knew of.)

From there, being totally impressed with its powerful features and user-friendliness, I upgraded to Alpha IV. I changed employment, and spent the next 1 ½ years convincing my employer of all the ways Alpha could solve many organizational needs. Then the opportunity arose within this same agency, to apply for the data analyst position for the Children's System of Care program. In spite of being the last one on the hiring list (due to little college education and experience as an "analyst"), since I had convinced my employer that Alpha could handle the many tracking tasks, and that I knew how to set it up, he offered me the position. My employer continues to be both satisfied and amazed at what I can produce with Alpha.

I am certain that without Alpha, my salary would probably be only half of what I currently command.