# Desktop databases vendor-specific interface · access · 1989

Revision 1 (11 October 2026) · Modeled snapshot · through 8 October 2026.

All figures are research-informed estimates of analytical activity. Significant errors may remain; decimal places do not imply measurement precision.

6.5% of the full access layer.

[Desktop databases vendor-specific interface](https://history.columnar.tech/technologies/access/vendor-desktop.md): historical names and annual shares.

Local and departmental analytical execution in desktop database families, including dBASE, FoxBASE/FoxPro, Clipper, Paradox, and FileMaker. The pool counts reporting and analysis, not all licensed copies, data entry, or operational applications. SQLite has its own box. Queries passed through to a server are counted with that server; local desktop execution over another database’s tables uses federated native storage. Early FileMaker was not yet relational; this is a desktop-origin family, not a claim that every product was relational in every year.

Connections below describe the whole Desktop databases engine. Access and storage mixes are estimated separately; they are not a joint interface-to-storage distribution.

## Access use within this engine

| Option | Share of engine activity | Share of full access layer |
| --- | --- | --- |
| [Desktop databases vendor-specific interface](https://history.columnar.tech/technologies/access/vendor-desktop.md) | 100% | 6.5% |

## Storage use within this engine

| Option | Share of engine activity | Share of full storage layer |
| --- | --- | --- |
| [Local/shared row files](https://history.columnar.tech/technologies/storage/legacy-local.md) | 77.5% | 5% |
| [Desktop databases native storage](https://history.columnar.tech/technologies/storage/native-desktop.md) | 22.5% | 1.5% |

[All percentages for 1989](https://history.columnar.tech/years/1989.md)

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[Markdown overview](https://history.columnar.tech/index.md) · [Interactive visualization](https://history.columnar.tech/?1989) · [Methodology](https://history.columnar.tech/methodology.md) · [Terms of use](https://history.columnar.tech/terms.md)

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