Basically, this means that you divide the database application to 2 MDB /
MDE files called Front-End and Back-End due to their usage. The Back-End
contains only Tables (ie. shared data) and should reside on a network drive
/ directory that database users have Read / Write permissions. The
Front-End contains the user interface elements ( Forms / Reports ) as well
as other support objects like Queries / Macros / Modules. The Tables from
the Back-End are linked to the Front-End
so that the user of the Front-End can access the data. Each user should
have his own copy of the Front-End on his PC.
This way, each user (including you) has exclusive use of his Front-End. You
can then modify your Front-End independently and when you are ready with the
new Front-End, you can distribute the new Front-End to each use.
See Access Help on "Splitting a Database" and Tony Toews' article:
http://www.granite.ab.ca/access/splitapp/index.htm