Excel's collaboration challenges

There are two main problems with using Excel files for collaborative data storage:

The "multiple copies" problem: When people work on separate copies of the same Excel file, you end up with different versions that need to be manually reconciled. This creates versioning headaches — which copy has the most recent data? How do you merge changes from multiple files without losing important updates or introducing errors?

The "shared file" problem: When multiple people try to edit the same Excel file simultaneously (even with Excel's co-authoring features), there's risk of users overwriting each other's work, especially if they're working on the same cells or sections at the same time.

This is exactly why organizations often migrate from Excel-based data management to proper database systems that are designed to handle concurrent access more gracefully.

Airtable's dirty secret

Airtable doesn't fully solve the fundamental collaboration problems, particularly around simultaneous editing conflicts.

While Airtable handles some issues better than Excel (like real-time syncing and avoiding the multiple file copies problem), it still has limitations:

• Concurrent editing conflicts: If two people edit the same cell or record simultaneously, one person's changes can still overwrite the other's
• No true transaction control: Unlike proper databases, Airtable doesn't have robust locking mechanisms or transaction rollback capabilities
• Limited conflict resolution: When conflicts do occur, the resolution is often just "last edit wins" rather than intelligent merging

Moving from Excel to Airtable (or Nocodb) is more of an incremental improvement rather than a complete solution. True database systems with proper ACID properties (Atomicity, Consistency, Isolation, Durability) and sophisticated conflict resolution are really what's needed to fully address these collaboration challenges.

Visual DB is what Airtable should have been

Storing data in a database won't automatically solve collaboration problems. Databases facilitate but do not enforce proper collaboration. In particular, you only get the data integrity benefits of databases if you follow these basic rules:

Rule 1: When inserting or updating records, send the entire record to the database in one piece, not field by field. This is called an atomic update.

Rule 2: When inserting or updating records in a one-to-many relationship, use the transaction feature offered by databases so that it can prevent partial updates.

These rules aren't complex, yet our competitors don't follow them. Here's why it matters: Consider a medication table where one user updates a patient's pill strength while another changes the dosage frequency. Without atomic updates, you could end up with unintended—and potentially dangerous—combinations that neither user intended. Visual DB follows these rules: we update the record atomically so your updates can't mix with someone else's, and we prevent overwriting other users' changes.

When evaluating database solutions, ask: Does this tool actually deliver the data integrity benefits of a real database, or just the complexity of one?

Read our full blog for technical explanation and examples →

Garbage in, garbage out

A database is only as good as the data you put in

Visual DB prevents bad data at the source with comprehensive field validation. You can specify minimum and maximum values for numeric fields, validate email addresses and phone numbers, enforce social security number formats, and much more. When a user enters invalid data, Visual DB marks the cell with a red squiggly line and displays an error message when clicked. Most importantly, the record won't be saved to the database until all validation errors are corrected—ensuring your database stays clean from day one.

As shown in the screenshot, Visual DB highlights cells that fail validation with a squiggly underline. Click the cell to view the associated error, which can be customized.

Our competitors, including Airtable and NocoDB, lack field-level validation, allowing incorrect data to accumulate over time.

Review changes before committing

Why double-check your changes?

In database systems, validating updates before committing isn't just recommended—it's essential for maintaining data integrity and operational control. Once changes are committed, they may trigger automated workflows, notifications, or integrations with other systems almost instantly. At that point, retroactive corrections cannot prevent downstream impacts.

Visual DB ensures reliability by letting you review and confirm all pending changes before they're finalized. You gain full visibility into every modification, can proactively revert incorrect updates, and commit only when you're confident they are correct.

Competing solutions like Airtable and NocoDB lack pre-commit review capabilities, forcing users to make changes directly to live data. These platforms rely on post-commit undo features that address mistakes only after consequences have already propagated across your organization. Visual DB's approach minimizes risk and empowers teams to operate with confidence and precision.

Even if your data updates don't typically trigger downstream processes, reviewing changes before committing remains a valuable safeguard—helping ensure accuracy and prevent errors before they happen.

Conditional coloring

Visual DB's conditional coloring lets you color individual fields within each record to spotlight exceptions—for example, highlighting strong sales in green while flagging low profitability in red.

Our competitors only support record-level coloring, which limits you to one color per record. That's only half a feature.

Offline-viewable snapshots

This feature captures a moment-in-time snapshot of your data, making it easy to share, archive, and reference later. It preserves the data exactly as it appeared at a specific date and time, eliminating the need to rely on live database queries that could change over time.

Snapshots are exported as self-contained HTML files and can be opened in any web browser without special software, ensuring long-term durability. You can share these HTML files with external users who can view the data without needing Visual DB or direct access to the live database. This protects your database while simplifying distribution.

Quickly locate records

In any database with more than a handful of records, finding the specific record you need to update can become a time-consuming bottleneck. Users shouldn't have to scroll through pages of data or remember exact values to locate what they're looking for.

Visual DB's as-you-type find feature instantly locates and highlights matching records as you type. It searches all fields automatically—no need to specify which column to search or hit Enter. Results appear immediately, letting you spot the right record in seconds rather than minutes.

This isn't just about convenience. When users can't quickly find what they need, they're more likely to give up and work around the system, create duplicate records, or make updates to the wrong record. Fast, intuitive search keeps your data clean and your team productive.

As an added bonus, totals instantly update as you type, so you can see the total for just the records that match your search text.