Grist: A modern, open source spreadsheet that goes beyond the grid
Date and Time
Wednesday, July 16, 2025 from 6:30 pm to 9:30 pm
Location
Online at Jitsi
Presenters
Brendan Kidwell , Principal Application Developer , Abt Associates - brendan glump net
Summary
Brendan gives an overview of Grist, and demonstrates some practical uses for it
Abstract
Have you ever been frustrated with your spreadsheet program, fighting with cell formats when you just want to enter data, or not understanding how to link two spreadsheet tables to each other? Did you use Microsoft Access in the past, and don't want to use it now because it hasn't been updated in decades and doesn't run on Linux? Have you tried Kexi and only ever had it crash on you?
Do you just want to open a table from a text file, filter it, and export the results to another text file?
In this presentation we'll take a look at Grist, a “low-code” database product that anyone can use to organize hobby, home, or business data. We'll cover:
- What is a relational database and why would you want to use one?
- Differences between spreadsheets and relational databases
- How to install Grist
- What kinds of projects can be done in Grist, and when would you want to use a more advanced system instead?
- Example: Import, transform, and write a CSV file
- Example: Building a solution with Grist: “my home media collection”
- What are my options for going beyond “no-code”, to go a little beyond Grist's built-in features?
If you want to check it out before the presentation: See Grist's web site ( https://www.getgrist.com/ [getgrist.com] ), the Documentation ( https://support.getgrist.com/ [support.getgrist.com] ). Please note: the easiest way to try out Grist with no commitment is to use their not-well-publicized all-in-one Desktop build: https://github.com/gristlabs/grist-desktop/releases [github.com] .
Example files and presentation notes will be made available at https://go.glump.net/grist-blu [go.glump.net] on the evening of 16 July 2025.
Bio
Brendan is a web developer and computer nerd in New York City. Originally from Boston. Has a B.S. degree in Mathematics with a minor in Computer Science from Bridgewater State University (Massachusetts). Day job is building IT stuff for a big government policy research company. On the side, Brendan hacks on open source projects, writes, and tells people they should ditch proprietary software.
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