SQL Server Front End - VB/MDB/ADP?

Below is a post by blindman from my other "mentoring" thread (http://www.dbforums.com/showthread.php?t=1608569). I wanted to respond to it but not in that thread:

Yeah, but if he's going to go unbound he might as well develop in .Net rather than Access. You lose half the convenience of MSAccess as a front end if you use unbound forms and controls.

Besides, he's trying to learn SQL Server, not front-end development. Learning both at the same time may be a bit much. I'd suggest he stick with his idea of converting the Access database to SQL Server back-end.

But, you should definitely convert the Access front-end to a Microsoft Access Data Project, rather than a classic mdb file.

Going unbound would increase your application performance, but probably not noticably unless you have scores of uses, and since you are currently using straight MS Access I'd guess you have no more than five or six simultaneous users, right?

blindman

To start I have decided that ADO is the way to go even though I don't necessarily need the performance boost for my current situation. Keep in mind I am planning for future and more demanding opportunities, hopefully :) And I'd like to learn the "right" way to do things.

I actually use ADO quite a bit in my current DB app and bound controls as well so it really wasn't a new concept. However using strictly ADO produces alot more work and code. And like blindman says it pretty much takes all the ease of Access away and VB.NET for that matter too. I mean all the wizards are useless. So I have two questions:

1. When going to all ADO you are pretty much recreating what Access already does for you right? Coding in ADO is more work right? I mean you have to setup connections and fill fields and listboxes manually in code right? I don't mind the extra work I just want to make sure if I'm going to be doing all this extra coding that it is the right thing to be doing.

2. MDB vs. ADP - From what little I've read Access Data Projects are made for use with SQL Server. It is even more useful if you don't/can't actually work in SQL Server. But again if I'm using ADO it strips all the usefulness of the ADP's doesn't? I don't need ADP's to create views or sprocs. I can do all of that through the management studio. So does it really matter if I use an ADP or MDB as my front end if that is all it is going to be is a front end?

Lastly I wanted to use VB 2005 as the front end but we utilize a ton of reports. As far as I know Crystal Reports or something like it has to be used with VB 2005. Or does VB 2005 have some built in reporting capabilities? I thought I saw some report designer for VB6. Anyway I decided to stick with Access because I am familiar with its reporting capabilities.

I should note that I have VB 2005 Express and SQL Server Express. Right now my company is not putting any money into a higher version.

Let me know what you all think.
Thanks,
GG