I was a database administrator for a local university's physics department for a while.
Hit me up in a PM if you want to chit chat and design a decent database over the holidays. I could likely put together a platform-independent version taht would run on a PDA or PC, maybe even a WiMo cell phone.
I'm big on the PDA thing, since it's so portable and useful for electronic intervention - GPS, WiFi communications, SD card based data drops, and even a rather secure co-location beacon WTSHTF for your bugout party/family/etc.
Anyhow, if I design it, I'll want to make a version that will at least work on all my hardware (PC, PDA, Cell phone), and then publish it as open source - that means anyone that modifies the database would have to send/post back an update to the "software" for everyone else to use if they intend to redistribute it. Keeps things honest, and keeps things useful - if you find a solution to a bug, then everyone benefits from the fix, and best of all, it keeps it free!
OnionBlade, Tearfully Salivating Slayer of Source Code Semantics