276 Access 2007 The Missing Manual

  Access 2007: The Missing Manual By Matthew MacDonald ...............................................

  Publisher : O' Re illy Pub Dat e: D e ce m be r 0 1 , 2 0 0 6

  I SBN- 10: 0 - 5 9 6 - 5 2 7 6 0 - 8

  I SBN- 13: 9 7 8 - 0 - 5 9 6 - 5 2 7 6 0 - 0 Pages: 6 0 0 Table of Cont ent s | I ndex

  Com pared t o indust rial- st rengt h dat abase product s such as Microsoft 's SQL Server, Access is a breeze t o use. I t runs on PCs rat her t han servers and is ideal for sm all- t o m id- sized businesses and households. But Access is st ill int im idat ing t o learn. I t doesn't help t hat each new version cram m ed in yet anot her set of feat ures; so m any, in fact , t hat even t he pros don't know where t o find t hem all. Access 2007 breaks t his pat t ern wit h som e of t he m ost dram at ic changes users have seen since Office 95. Most obvious is t he t horoughly redesigned user int erface, wit h it s t abbed t oolbar ( or " Ribbon" ) t hat m akes feat ures easy t o locat e and use. The feat ures list also includes several long- await ed changes. One t hing t hat hasn't im proved is Microsoft 's docum ent at ion. To learn t he ins and out s of all t he feat ures in Access 2007, Microsoft m erely offers online help.

  Access 2007: The Missing Manual was writ t en from t he ground up for t his redesigned applicat ion.

  You will learn how t o design com plet e dat abases, m aint ain t hem , search for valuable nugget s of inform at ion, and build at t ract ive form s for quick- and- easy dat a ent ry. You'll even delve int o t he black art of Access program m ing ( including m acros and Visual Basic) , and pick up valuable t ricks and t echniques t o aut om at e com m on t asks - - even if you've never t ouched a line of code before. You will also learn all about t he new prebuilt dat abases you can cust om ize t o fit your needs, and how t he new com plex dat a feat ure will sim plify your life. Wit h plent y of downloadable exam ples, t his obj ect ive and wit t y book will t urn an Access neophyt e int o a t rue m ast er.

  Access 2007: The Missing Manual By Matthew MacDonald ...............................................

  Publisher : O' Re illy Pub Dat e: D e ce m be r 0 1 , 2 0 0 6

  I SBN- 10: 0 - 5 9 6 - 5 2 7 6 0 - 8

  I SBN- 13: 9 7 8 - 0 - 5 9 6 - 5 2 7 6 0 - 0 Pages: 6 0 0 Table of Cont ent s | I ndex

  Copyright The Missing Credits Introduction

  Part I: Storing Information in Tables Chapter 1. Creating Your First Database Section 1.1. Understanding Access Databases Section 1.2. Getting Started Section 1.3. Saving and Opening Access Databases Section 1.4. The Navigation Pane Chapter 2. Building Smarter Tables Section 2.1. Understanding Data Types Section 2.2. Design View Section 2.3. Access Data Types Section 2.4. The Primary Key Section 2.5. Six Principles of Database Design Chapter 3. Mastering the Datasheet: Sorting, Searching, Filtering, and More Section 3.1. Datasheet Customization Section 3.2. Datasheet Navigation Section 3.3. Advanced Editing Section 3.4. Printing the Datasheet Chapter 4. Blocking Bad Data Section 4.1. Data Integrity Basics Section 4.2. Input Masks Section 4.3. Validation Rules Section 4.4. Lookups Chapter 5. Linking Tables with Relationships Section 5.1. Relationship Basics Section 5.2. Using a Relationship Section 5.3. More Exotic Relationships Section 5.4. Relationship Practice Part II: Manipulating Data with Queries Chapter 6. Queries That Select Records

  Section 6.1. Query Basics Section 6.2. Creating Queries Section 6.3. Queries and Related Tables

  Chapter 7. Essential Query Tricks Section 7.1. Calculated Fields Section 7.2. Query Functions Section 7.3. Summarizing Data Section 7.4. Query Parameters Chapter 8. Queries That Update Records Section 8.1. Understanding Action Queries Section 8.2. Update Queries Section 8.3. Append Queries Section 8.4. Delete Queries Section 8.5. Tutorial: Flagging Out-of-Stock Orders Chapter 9. Analyzing Data with Crosstab Queries and Pivot Tables Section 9.1. Understanding Crosstab Queries Section 9.2. Creating Crosstab Queries Section 9.3. Pivot Tables Section 9.4. Pivot Charts Part III: Printing Reports Chapter 10. Creating Reports Section 10.1. Report Basics

Section 10.2. Printing, Previewing, and Exporting a Report Section 10.3. Formatting a Report Section 10.4. Filtering and Sorting a Report Chapter 11. Designing Advanced Reports Section 11.1. Improving Reports in Design View Section 11.2. The Report Wizard Section 11.3. The Label Wizard Section 11.4. Fine-Tuning Reports with Properties Section 11.5. Expressions Section 11.6. Grouping Part IV: Building a User Interface with Forms Chapter 12. Creating Simple Forms Section 12.1. Form Basics Section 12.2. Sorting and Filtering in a Form Section 12.3. Creating Better Layouts Section 12.4. The Form Wizard Chapter 13. Designing Advanced Forms Section 13.1. Customizing Forms in Design View Section 13.2. Taking Control of Controls Section 13.3. Forms and Linked Tables Chapter 14. Building a Navigation System Section 14.1. Mastering the Navigation Pane Section 14.2. Building Forms with Navigation Smarts Section 14.3. Linking to Related Data Part V: Programming Access Chapter 15. Automating Tasks with Macros Section 15.1. Macro Essentials Section 15.2. Macros and Security Section 15.3. Three Macro Recipes Section 15.4. Managing Macros Section 15.5. Connecting Macros to Forms Section 15.6. Conditional Macros Chapter 16. Automating Tasks with Visual Basic Section 16.1. The Visual Basic Editor Section 16.2. Putting Code in a Form Section 16.3. Understanding Objects Section 16.4. Using Objects Chapter 17. Writing Smarter Code Section 17.1. Exploring the VB Language Section 17.2. Dealing with Trouble Section 17.3. Deeper into Objects

Section 17.4. Using VB to Run a Better Business

Part VI: Sharing Access with the Rest of the World Chapter 18. Sharing a Database with Multiple Users Section 18.1. Opening Up Your Database to the World Section 18.2. Preparing Your Database Section 18.3. Playing Well with Others Section 18.4. Data Corruption Section 18.5. Securing Your Database Chapter 19. Importing and Exporting Data Section 19.1. Case for Importing and Exporting Section 19.2. Using the Clipboard Section 19.3. Import and Export Operations Section 19.4. Access and XML Section 19.5. Collecting Info by Email Chapter 20. Connecting Access to SQL Server Section 20.1. Should You Switch to SQL Server? Section 20.2. Getting Started: SQL Server 2005 Express Section 20.3. Creating a SQL Server Database Section 20.4. Adding Objects to a SQL Server Database Chapter 21. Connecting Access to SharePoint Section 21.1. Understanding SharePoint Section 21.2. Setting Up SharePoint Section 21.3. SharePoint and Access Part VII: Appendix Appendix A. Customizing the Quick Access Toolbar Section A.1. The Quick Access Toolbar Colophon Index

  Acce ss 2 0 0 7 : Th e M issin g M a n u a l

  by Mat t hew McDonald Copyright © 2007 O'Reilly Media, I nc. All right s reserved. Print ed in t he Unit ed St at es of Am erica. Published by O'Reilly Media, I nc., 1005 Gravenst ein Highway Nort h, Sebast opol, CA 95472. O'Reilly books m ay be purchased for educat ional, business, or sales prom ot ional use. Online edit ions are also available for m ost t it les ( safari.oreilly.com ) . For m ore inform at ion, cont act our corporat e/ inst it ut ional sales depart m ent : ( 800) 998- 9938 or corporat e@oreilly.com .

  

Ta ble

Pr in t in g H ist or y : Decem ber 2006: First Edit ion.

  Nut shell Handbook, t he Nut shell Handbook logo, t he O'Reilly logo, and " The book t hat should have been in t he box" are regist ered t radem arks of O'Reilly Media, I nc. Access 2007: The Missing Manual, The Missing Manual logo, Pogue Press, and t he Pogue Press logo are t radem arks of O'Reilly Media, I nc.

  Many of t he designat ions used by m anufact urers and sellers t o dist inguish t heir product s are claim ed as t radem arks. Where t hose designat ions appear in t his book, and O'Reilly Media, I nc. was aware of a t radem ark claim , t he designat ions have been print ed in caps or init ial caps. While every precaut ion has been t aken in t he preparat ion of t his book, t he publisher and aut hor assum e no responsibilit y for errors or om issions, or for dam ages result ing from t he use of t he inform at ion cont ained herein.

  This book uses RepKover™, a durable and flexible lay- flat binding.

  I SBN- 10: 0- 596- 52760- 8

  I SBN- 13: 978- 0- 596- 52760- 0 [ M]

  The Missing Credits About the Author M a t t h e w M a cD on a ld is an aut hor and program m er ext raordinaire. He's t he aut hor of

  Excel 2007: The Missing Manual, Creat ing Web Sit es: The Missing Manual, and over a dozen books

  about program m ing wit h t he Microsoft .NET Fram ework. I n a dim ly rem em bered past life, he st udied English lit erat ure and t heoret ical physics.

  About the Creative Team Pe t e r M e ye r s ( edit or) works as an edit or at O'Reilly Media on t he Missing Manual series. He lives wit h his wife and cat s in New York Cit y. Em ail: pet er.m eyers@gm ail.com .

Ju e l Bor t olu ssi ( t echnical reviewer) has worked as an Access dat abase developer for invent ory and

  asset m anagem ent syst em s in t he design, beverage, and publishing indust ries. She t hinks t his book would m ake a great classroom t ext book, providing st udent s wit h dat abase, Visual Basic, SQL, and SharePoint skills. Em ail: j uel@oreilly.com

  M ich a e l Sch m a lz ( t echnical reviewer) works in banking and perform s business and t echnology

  consult ing in a variet y of indust ries. He has done t echnical edit ing for O'Reilly on Microsoft Office books. Michael has a degree in finance from Penn St at e. He lives wit h his wife and daught er in Pennsylvania.

  Soh a ila Abdu la li ( copy edit or) is a freelance writ er and edit or. She has published a novel, several

  children's books, and num erous short st ories and art icles. She recent ly finished an et hnography of an aboriginal I ndian wom an. She lives in New York Cit y wit h her husband Tom and t heir sm all but larger- t han- life daught er, Sam ara. She can be reached t hrough her Web sit e at www.sohailaink.com .

  Jill St e in be r g ( copy edit or) is a freelance writ er and edit or based in Seat t le, and has produced

  cont ent for O'Reilly, I nt el, Microsoft , and t he Universit y of Washingt on. Jill was educat ed at Brandeis Universit y, William s College, and St anford Universit y. Em ail: saysj ill@m ac.com .

  Acknowledgements

  Writ ing a book about a program as sprawling and com plex as Access is a labor of love ( love of pain, t hat is) . I 'm deeply indebt ed t o a whole host of people, including t hose who helped m e t rack down all t he neat and nift y t hings you can do wit h t he lat est version of Office ( including bloggers ext raordinaire Jensen Harris and Erik Rucker) , t hose who kept t he book clear, concise, and t echnically accurat e ( Pet er Meyers, Sarah Milst ein, Brian Sawyer, Juel Bort olussi, and Michael Schm alz) , and t hose who put up wit h m e while I wrot e it ( m ore on t hat in a m om ent ) . I also owe t hanks t o m any people who worked t o get t his book form at t ed, indexed, and print edyou can m eet m any of t hem on t he Missing Credit s page. Com plet ing t his book required a few sleepless night s ( and m any sleep- deprived days) . I ext end m y love and t hanks t o m y daught er Maya, who put up wit h it wit hout crying m ost of t he t im e; m y dear wife Faria, who m ost ly did t he sam e; and our m om s and dads ( Nora, Razia, Paul, and Ham id) , who cont ribut ed hours of babysit t ing, t ast y m eals, and general help around t he house t hat kept t his book on t rack. So t hanks everyonewit hout you half of t he book would st ill be t rapped inside m y brain!

  The Missing Manual Series

  Missing Manuals are wit t y, superbly writ t en guides t o com put er product s t hat don't com e wit h print ed m anuals ( which is j ust about all of t hem ) . Each book feat ures a handcraft ed index. Recent and upcom ing t it les include:

  Access 2003 for St art ers: The Missing Manual by Kat e Chase and Scot t Palm er Access 2007 for St art ers: The Missing Manual by Mat t hew MacDonald AppleScript : The Missing Manual by Adam Goldst ein AppleWorks 6: The Missing Manual by Jim Elferdink and David Reynolds CSS: The Missing Manual by David Sawyer McFarland Creat ing Web Sit es: The Missing Manual by Mat t hew MacDonald Digit al Phot ography: The Missing Manual by Chris Grover and Barbara Brundage Dream weaver 8: The Missing Manual by David Sawyer McFarland eBay: The Missing Manual by Nancy Conner Excel 2003 for St art ers: The Missing Manual by Mat t hew MacDonald Excel 2003: The Missing Manual by Mat t hew MacDonald Excel 2007 for St art ers: The Missing Manual by Mat t hew MacDonald Excel 2007: The Missing Manual by Mat t hew MacDonald FileMaker Pro 8: The Missing Manual by Geoff Coffey and Susan Prosser Flash 8: The Missing Manual by E. A. Vander Veer

  Front 2003: The Missing Manual by Jessica Mant aro GarageBand 2: The Missing Manual by David Pogue

Google: The Missing Manual, Second Edit ion by Sarah Milst ein, J.D. Biersdorfer, and Mat t hew

  MacDonald

  Hom e Net working: The Missing Manual by Scot t Lowe iMovie HD 6: The Missing Manual by David Pogue iPhot o 6: The Missing Manual by David Pogue iPod: The Missing Manual, Fift h Edit ion by J.D. Biersdorfer Mac OS X: The Missing Manual, Tiger Edit ion by David Pogue Office 2004 for Macint osh: The Missing Manual by Mark H. Walker and Franklin Tessler PCs: The Missing Manual by Andy Rat hbone Phot oshop Elem ent s 5: The Missing Manual by Barbara Brundage PowerPoint 2007 for St art ers: The Missing Manual by E. A. Vander Veer PowerPoint 2007: The Missing Manual by E. A. Vander Veer QuickBooks 2006: The Missing Manual by Bonnie Biafore Quicken for St art ers: The Missing Manual by Bonnie Biafore

Swit ching t o t he Mac: The Missing Manual, Tiger Edit ion by David Pogue and Adam Goldst ein

The I nt ernet : The Missing Manual by David Pogue and J.D. Biersdorfer Windows 2000 Pro: The Missing Manual by Sharon Crawford Windows XP for St art ers: The Missing Manual by David Pogue Windows XP Hom e Edit ion: The Missing Manual, Second Edit ion by David Pogue

Windows XP Pro: The Missing Manual, Second Edit ion by David Pogue, Craig Zacker, and Linda

  Zacker

  Windows Vist a: The Missing Manual by David Pogue Windows Vist a for St art ers: The Missing Manual by David Pogue Word 2007 for St art ers: The Missing Manual by Chris Grover Word 2007: The Missing Manual by Chris Grover

  Introduction

  I n t he past , people have t ried a variet y of t echniques t o organize inform at ion. They've used Rolodexes, punch cards, cardboard boxes, vert ical files, Post - it not es, 10,000- page indexes, and ( when all else failed) large piles on t op of flat surfaces. But aft er m uch suffering, people discovered t hat com put ers were far bet t er at dealing wit h inform at ion, especially when t hat inform at ion's large, com plex, or changes frequent ly.

  That 's where Microsoft Access com es int o t he pict ure. Access is a t ool for m anaging dat abases carefully st ruct ured cat alogs of inform at ion ( or dat a ) . Dat abases can st ore j ust about any t ype of inform at ion, including num bers, pages of t ext , and pict ures. Dat abases also range wildly in sizet hey can handle everyt hing from your list of fam ily phone num bers t o a ginorm ous product cat alog for Aunt Et hel's Discount But t on Bout ique. I n t his book, you'll learn how t o design com plet e dat abases, m aint ain t hem , search for valuable nugget s of inform at ion, and build at t ract ive form s for quick and easy dat a ent ry. You'll even delve int o t he black art of Access program m ing , where you'll pick up valuable t ricks and t echniques t hat you can use t o aut om at e com m on t asks, even if you've never t ouched a line of code before.

  Best of all, t his book was writ t en from scrat ch for Access 2007, t he lat est and great est incarnat ion of Microsoft 's best selling dat abase soft ware. Access 2007's quit e a bit different from previous versions, wit h a slick new int erface t hat has com put er geeks buzzing. And for once, it 's not j ust a gim m ick. As you'll see in t his book, once you m ast er Access's new st yle, you'll be able t o build great dat abases in record t im e.

  What You Can Do with Access

  The m odern world is filled wit h inform at ion. A Web search for a ho- hum t opic like " canned carrot s" net s m ore t han a m illion Web pages. As a result , it 's no surprise t hat people from all walks of life need great t ools t o st ore and m anage inform at ion. I t 's im possible t o describe even a fract ion of t he different dat abases t hat Access fans creat e every day. But j ust t o get you t hinking like a dat abase m aven, here are som e com m on t ypes of inform at ion t hat you can st ore handily in an Access dat abase:

  Cat alogs of books, CDs, rare wine vint ages, risqué m ovies, or anyt hing else you want t o collect and keep t rack of Mailing list s t hat let you keep in t ouch wit h friends, fam ily, and co- workers Business inform at ion, like cust om er list s, product cat alogs, order records, and invoices List s of guest s and gift s for weddings and ot her celebrat ions

  List s of expenses, invest m ent s, and ot her financial planning det ails Think of Access as a personal assist ant t hat can help you organize, updat e, and find any t ype of inform at ion. This help isn't j ust a convenienceit also let s you do t hings you could never accom plish on your own. I m agine you've j ust finished com piling a dat abase for your collect ion of 10,000 rare com ic books. On a whim , you decide t o t ake a look at all t he books writ t en in 1987. Or j ust t hose t hat feat ure Aquam an. Or t hose t hat cont ain t he words " special edit ion" in t he t it le. Perform ing t hese searches wit h a paper cat alog would t ake days. On an average com put er, Access can perform all t hree searches in under a second. Access is also t he king of sm all businesses, because of it s legendary powers of cust om izat ion. Aft er all, you can use virt ually any dat abase product t o creat e a list of cust om er orders. But only Access m akes it easy t o build a full user int erface for t hat dat abase ( as shown in Figure I - 1 ) .

  The Two Sides of Access

  As you'll see, t here are act ually t wo separat e t asks you'll perform wit h Access:

  D e sign in g you r da t a ba se . This t ask involves creat ing t ables t o hold dat a, queries t hat can

  ferret out im port ant pieces of inform at ion, form s t hat m ake it easy t o ent er inform at ion, and report s t hat produce at t ract ive print out s.

  

D e a lin g w it h da t a . This t ask involves adding new inform at ion t o t he dat abase, updat ing

  what 's t here, or j ust searching for t he det ails you need. I n order t o do t his work, you use t he t ables, queries, form s, and report s t hat you've already built .

  This sales database includes handy forms that sales people can use to place new orders (shown here), customer Figu r e I - 1 .

service representatives can use to sign up new customers, and warehouse staff can use to review outgoing shipments. Best of all, the

people who are using the forms in the database don't need to know anything about Access. As long as a database pro (like your future

self, once you've finished this book) has designed these forms, anyone can use them to enter, edit, and review data.

  Most of t his book's dedicat ed t o t ask # 1creat ing and perfect ing your dat abase. This j ob's t he heart of Access, and it 's t he part t hat init ially seem s t he m ost daunt ing. I t 's also what separat es t he Access m ast ers from t he neophyt es.

  Once you've finished t ask # 1, you're ready t o m ove on t o t ask # 2act ually using t he dat abase in your day- t o- day life. Alt hough t ask # 1 is m ore challenging, you'll ( event ually) spend m ore t im e on t ask # 2. For exam ple, you m ight spend a couple of hours creat ing a dat abase t o keep t rack of your favorit e recipes, but you'll wind up ent ering new inform at ion and looking up recipes for years ( say, every t im e you need t o cook up dinner) .

  Access vs. Excel

  Access isn't t he only Office product t hat can deal wit h list s and t ables of inform at ion. Microsoft Excel also includes feat ures for creat ing and m anaging list s. So what 's t he difference? Alt hough Excel's perfect ly good for sm all, sim ple am ount s of inform at ion, it j ust can't handle t he sam e quant it y and com plexit y of inform at ion as Access. Excel also falt ers if you need t o m aint ain m ult iple list s wit h relat ed inform at ion ( for exam ple, if you want t o t rack a list wit h your business cust om ers, and a list of t he orders t hey've m ade) . Excel forces you t o com plet ely separat e t hese list s, which m akes it harder t o analyze your dat a and int roduces t he possibilit y of inconsist ent inform at ion. Access let s you set up st rict links bet ween t ables, which prevent s t hese problem s.

  UP TO SPEED The Benefits of a Good Database

  Many people use an address book t o keep t rack of close friends, dist ant relat ives, or annoying co- workers. For t he m ost part , t he low- t ech address book works great . But consider what happens if you decide t o st ore t he sam e inform at ion in an Access dat abase. Even t hough your cont act list isn't st oring Google- sized volum es of inform at ion, it st ill offers a few feat ures t hat you wouldn't have wit hout Access:

  

Ba ck u p . I f you've ever t ried t o decipher a phone num ber t hrough a coffee st ain, you know

  t hat som et im es it helps t o have t hings in elect ronic form . Once you place all your cont act inform at ion int o a dat abase, you'll be able t o preserve it in case of disast er, and print up as m any copies as you need ( each wit h som e or all of t he inform at ion showing) . You can even share your list wit h a friend who needs t he sam e num bers.

  

Spa ce . Alt hough m ost people can fit all t he cont act s t hey need int o a sm all address book, a

  dat abase ensures you'll never fill up t hat " M" sect ion. Not t o m ent ion t hat t here are only so m any t im es you can cross out and rewrit e t he address for your it inerant Uncle Sy before you run out of room .

  Se a r ch in g . An address book organizes cont act s in one wayby nam e. But what happens once

  you've ent ered everyone in alphabet ical order by last nam e, and you need t o look up a cont act you vaguely rem em ber as Joe? Access can effort lessly handle t his search. I t can also find a m at ching ent ry by phone num ber, which is great if your phone gives you a log of m issed calls and you want t o figure out who's been pest ering you.

  Sh a r in g . Only one person at a t im e can edit m ost ordinary files, like Microsoft Word docum ent s

  and spreadsheet s. This lim it at ion causes a problem if you need your ent ire office t eam t o collaborat e on a pot - luck m enu. But Access let s m ult iple people review and change your dat a at t he sam e t im e, on different com put ers. Chapt er 18 has t he full st ory.

  I n t e gr a t ion w it h ot h e r a pplica t ion s . Access int roduces you t o a realm of t im esaving

  possibilit ies, like m ail m erge. You can feed a list of cont act s int o a form let t er you creat e in Word, and aut om at ically generat e dozens of individually addressed let t ers. You'll see how t o do t his in Chapt er 19 .

  All t hese exam ples dem onst rat e solid reasons t o go elect ronic wit h alm ost any t ype of inform at ion. Access also provides all sort s of feat ures t hat don't have any parallel in t he spreadsheet world, such as t he abilit y t o creat e cust om ized search rout ines, design finet uned form s for dat a ent ry, and print a variet y of snazzy report s. Of course, all t his isn't t o say t hat Access is bet t er t han Excel. I n fact , in m any cases you m ight want Excel t o part ner up wit h Access. Excel shines when crunching ream s of num bers t o creat e graphs, generat e st at ist ics, or predict t rends. Many organizat ions use Access t o st ore and m anage inform at ion, and t hen export a port ion of t hat inform at ion t o an Excel spreadsheet whenever t hey need t o analyze it . You'll learn how t o t ake t his st ep in Chapt er 19 .

  Note: Looking to polish up your Excel skills? Check out Excel 2007: The Missing Manual .

  Access vs. SQL Server

  Microsoft provides anot her dat abase product t he indust rial- st rengt h SQL Server, which powers everyt hing from Microsoft 's own search engine t o t he NASDAQ st ock exchange. Clearly, SQL Server is big business, and m any Access fans wonder how t heir favorit e dat abase soft ware com pares. One of t he m ost im port ant differences bet ween Access and dat abase product s like SQL Server is t hat Access is a client - side dat abase. I n non- t echie t erm s, t hat m eans t hat Access runs right on your personal com put er. Dat abase engines like SQL Server are server- based : They st ore t he dat a on a high- powered server com put er, which you access from a garden variet y PC. ( This int eract ion happens over a local net work.) Server- based dat abases are m uch m ore com plex t o set up and m aint ain, but t hey provide enhanced perform ance and rock- solid st abilit y, even when t housands of people use t hem at once. However, t he only people t hat require high- end dat abases like SQL Server are large organizat ions. Am azon.com wouldn't last five m inut es if it had t o rely on an Access dat abase. But Access works j ust fine for m ost sm all and m id- sized businesses. I t 's also perfect for personal use. ( I f you st ill have lingering doubt s about whet her Access can m eet your needs, check out t he box " When Access I s Not Enough" in Sect ion 3.2 .) Anot her im port ant difference bet ween Access and server- side dat abase product s is t hat Access is an all- in- one solut ion for st oring and int eract ing wit h dat a. Server- side dat abase engines like SQL Server focus exclusively on st oring dat a ( and sending t hat dat a t o ot her com put ers when t hey request it ) . However, t his single- m inded design has a sizable price. An ordinary person can't direct ly edit a dat abase t hat 's st ored by SQL Server. I nst ead, you need t o use yet anot her program t hat can t alk t o SQL Server and ask for t he inform at ion it needs. I n m ost cases, t his program needs t o be hand- built by a savvy program m er. I n ot her words, if you're using SQL Server, you need t o writ e a whole applicat ion before you can effect ively use your dat abase. Som et im es, Access fans do t urn int o SQL Server gurus. You can st art wit h a m odest Access dat abase and t hen st ep up t o SQL Server when your needs exceed what Access provides. The process isn't always seam less, but it 's possible. You can even keep using Access as a front - end t o m anage your SQL Server dat abase. You can learn about t his t rick in Chapt er 20 .

  The New Face of Access 2007

  Ever since Microsoft Office conquered t he world ( way back in t he 1990s) , program s like Word, Excel, and Access haven't changed a lot . Alt hough a genuinely useful new feat ure appears once in a while, Microsoft spends m ore t im e wedging in odd gim m icks like a t alking paper clip.

  WORD TO THE WISE When Access Is Not Enough

  I f you've picked up t his book, you probably have a good sense t hat Access will m eet your needs. But if you're in any doubt , a quick realit y check will confirm whet her you're on t he right pat h. The following list describes a few warning signs t hat suggest you and Access j ust aren't a good fit . I f you don't fall int o any of t hese cat egories, congrat ulat ionsyou're ready t o use t he m ost st raight forward and product ive dat abase soft ware anywhere!

You n e e d t o st or e h u ge volu m e s of in for m a t ion ( m or e t h a n 2 giga byt e s of da t a ) .

  You're unlikely t o hit t his m ark unless you're st oring large pict ures or ot her t ypes of digit al cont ent inside a dat abase. Most Access dat abases are several m ega- byt es in size ( about 1,000 t im es sm aller t han t he 2 GB lim it ) .

  You 'r e goin g t o sh a r e you r da t a ba se on a n e t - w or k , a n d m or e t h a n a doz e n pe ople

n e e d t o u se it a t on ce . I t 's difficult t o correct ly int erpret t his lim it . I t 's perfect ly fine for

  hundreds of people t o use your dat abase from t im e t o t im e, but problem s occur when a group of people are all j ockeying t o m ake changes t o t he sam e dat abase file at t he exact sam e inst ant . You need t o t est your dat abase t o figure out whet her you can cross t his lim it wit hout int roducing problem s. Chapt er 18 has m ore inform at ion about sharing Access wit h groups of people.

  You n e e d t o u se you r da t a ba se t o pow e r a W e b a pplica t ion . A Web applicat ion let s lot s

  of people access t he dat abase at once. Access probably can't keep up under t he st rain. I n t his sit uat ion, you're bet t er off wit h a server- side dat abase like SQL Server ( and a crack program m ing t eam t o help you out ) .

  Access 2007 breaks t his pat t ern and int roduces som e of t he m ost dram at ic changes Office fans have seen since Office 95. The m ost obvious change is t he t horoughly revam ped user int erface ( t he windows, t oolbars, m enus, and keyboard short cut s you use t o int eract wit h Access) . Aft er spending far t oo long t rying t o sim plify t he haphazard, t oolbar- choked int erfaces in m ost Office applicat ions, Microsoft finally worked up t he courage t o redesign it all from scrat ch.

  The Ribbon

  The Access 2007 ribbon is a super- t oolbar t hat replaces t he various t oolbars and m enus in previous versions.

  

Note: Access doesn't show the ribbon until you create a database. If you can't stand the suspense any longer, and you want to be able

to look at the ribbon on your monitor as you read the next couple of pages, follow the instructions in Section 1.2.1 to create a blank database.

  The ribbon's divided int o t ask- specific t abs Hom e, Creat e, Ext ernal Dat a, and so on. I nit ially, Access st art s out wit h four t abs ( alt hough ot her t abs appear when you perform specific t asks) . When you launch Access, you st art at t he Hom e t ab. Click Creat e ( as shown in Figure I - 2 ) , and you get access t o a slew of powerful com m ands t hat let you add new dat abase com ponent s.

  The ribbon's full of craftsman-like detail. When you hover over a button, you don't see a paltry two- or threeword Figu r e I - 2 .

description in a yellow box. Instead, you see a friendly pop-up box with a complete mini-description. Here, the mouse is hovering over

the Table command.

  

Tip: Want to reclaim the screen real estate that the ribbon occupies? Just double-click the current tab, and the ribbon collapses, leaving

only the row of tab titles visible. Double-click the tab again to pop the buttons back into sight. Section 1.4.2 has more about this feature.

  Here's a quick snapshot of t he four basic ribbon t abs:

  H om e gat hers t oget her a variet y of com m on com m ands, including t he fam iliar copy- and- past e

  t ools and form at t ing com m ands for t weaking font s and colors. You'll also find handy feat ures like sort ing, searching, and filt ering, all of which you'll t ackle in Chapt er 3 .

  Cr e a t e has com m ands for insert ing all t he different dat abase obj ect s you'll learn about in t his

  book ( see Sect ion 1.2 for t he lowdown) . These include t he t ables t hat st ore dat a, t he queries t hat search it , t he form s t hat help you edit it , and t he report s t hat help you print it .

  Ex t e r n a l D a t a has com m ands for im port ing dat a int o Access and export ing it t o ot her

  program s. You'll also find feat ures for int egrat ing wit h Microsoft Share- Point Server. You'll use t hese com m ands in Part Six .

  D a t a ba se Tools feat ures t he pro t ools you'll use t o analyze a dat abase, link t ables, and scale

  up t o SQL Server. You'll also find t he com m ands for insert ing Visual Basic code, which you'll explore in det ail in Part Five . I t 's wort h spending som e t im e get t ing accust om ed t o t he t ab- based ribbon. Try clicking one t ab aft er t he ot her, rifling back and fort h t hrough t he four sect ions t o see what t hey hold. You'll learn m ore about all t hese com m ands as you m ake your way t hrough t his book.

  Tip: If you have a scroll mouse, you can breeze through the tabs even faster by moving the mouse pointer over the ribbon, and then moving the scroll wheel up or down.

  One nice ribbon t ab feat ure is t hat t hey never changein ot her words, you don't see com m ands m yst eriously m oving around or winking out of exist ence. Microsoft designed t he ribbon t o be predict able, so com m ands always rem ain in t he sam e place. However, com m ands will change t heir arrangem ent a bit if you resize t he Access window, so t hat t hey bet t er use t he available space ( Figure I - 3 ) .

  This super-skinny Access window doesn't have much room for ribbon buttons. All the same commands that you Figu r e I - 3 .

saw in Figure I-2 are still in the ribbon, but now you see only small icons with no text. When you're in doubt about a button, hover over it

to see its name.

  NOSTALGIA CORNER Why Reinvent the Wheel?

  Som e Access vet erans are underst andably skept ical about t he new Access int erface. Aft er all, we've had t o suffer t hrough som e painful experim ent s. Past versions of Access have int roduced kooky ideas like personalized m enus t hat always seem t o hide j ust t he com m and you need, pop- up side panels t hat appear when you least expect t hem , and float ing t oolbars t hat end up st rewn across t he screen.

  I n realit y, all t he Office applicat ions have been st ruggling t o keep up wit h m ore t han a decade's wort h of new feat ures. The m enus in m ost Office program s haven't changed since Word 2.0 hit t he scene in t he early 1990s. I n t hose days, a basic m enu and a single t oolbar were j ust t he t icket , because t he num ber of com m ands was relat ively sm all.

  Today, t he Office program s are drowning in feat uresand t hey're cram m ed int o so m any different nooks and crannies t hat even pros don't know where t o look.

  That 's where t he new ribbon fit s in. Not only can you easily underst and and navigat e it , it provides one- st op shopping for everyt hing you need t o do. Microsoft 's user int erface designers have a new m ant ra: I t 's all in t he ribbon . I n ot her words, if you need t o find a feat ure, t hen look for it in one of t he t abs at t he t op of t he Access window. As you get accust om ed t o t his new syst em , you'll find it not only helps you quickly use your favorit e feat ures, it also helps you discover new feat ures j ust by browsing.

  Using the Ribbon with the Keyboard

  I f you're a diehard keyboard lover, you'll be happy t o hear t hat you can t rigger ribbon com m ands wit h t he keyboard. The t rick's using keyboard accelerat ors , a series of keyst rokes t hat st art s wit h t he Alt key ( t he sam e keys you used t o use t o get t o a m enu) . When using a keyboard accelerat or, you don't hold down all t he keys at t he sam e t im e. ( As you'll soon see, som e of t hem have enough let t ers t o t ie your fingers up bet t er t han t he rowdiest gam e of Twist er.) I nst ead, you hit t he keys one aft er t he ot her.

  The t rick t o keyboard accelerat ors is t o underst and t hat once you hit t he Alt key, you do t wo t hings, in t his order:

  1 . Pick t h e cor r e ct r ibbon t a b . 2 . I n t h a t t a b, ch oose a com m a n d .

  Before you can t rigger a specific com m and, you m ust select t he right t ab ( even if you're already t here) . Every accelerat or requires at least t wo key presses aft er you hit t he Alt key. You'll need even m ore if you need t o dig t hrough a subm enu. By now, t his whole process probably seem s hopelessly im pract ical. Are you really expect ed t o m em orize dozens of different accelerat or key com binat ions? Fort unat ely, Access is ready t o help you out wit h a new feat ure called KeyTips . Here's how it works: Once you press t he Alt key, let t ers m agically appear over every t ab in t he ribbon. Once you hit a key t o pick a t ab, let t ers appear over every but t on in t hat t ab. You can t hen press t he corresponding key t o t rigger t he com m and. Figure I - 4 shows how it works.

  Top: When you press Alt, Access pins KeyTips next to every tab, over the Office menu, and over the buttons in the Figu r e I - 4 . Quick Access toolbar (more about the Office menu and the Quick Access toolbar in a moment).

Bottom: If you follow up with A (for the Database Tools tab), you'll see letters next to every command in that tab. Now you can hit another

key to run a command (for example, W moves your data to SQL Server). Don't bother trying to match letters with tab or button namesthe

ribbon's got so many features packed into it that in many cases, the letters don't mean anything at all.

  Note: In some cases, a command may have two letters, and you need to press both keys, one after the other. You can back out of KeyTips mode at any time without triggering a command by pressing the Alt key again.

  Som e ot her short cut keys don't use t he ribbon. These key com binat ions st art wit h t he Ct rl key. For inst ance, Ct rl+ C copies highlight ed t ext , and Ct rl+ S saves your current work. Usually, you find out about a short cut key by hovering over a com m and wit h t he m ouse. Hover over t he Past e but t on in t he ribbon's Hom e t ab, and you see a t oolt ip t hat t ells you it s t im esaving short cut key is Ct rl+ V. And if you've worked wit h a previous version of Access, you'll find t hat Access 2007 keeps m ost of t he sam e short cut keys.

  NOSTALGIA CORNER Access 2003 Menu Shortcuts

  I f you've worked wit h a previous version of Access, you m ay have t rained yourself t o use m enu short cut skey com binat ions t hat open a m enu and pick out t he com m and you want . When you press Alt + E in Access 2003, t he Edit m enu pops open ( in t he m ain m enu) . You can t hen press t he S key t o choose t he Past e Special com m and.

  At first glance, it doesn't look like t hese keyboard short cut s am ount t o m uch in Access 2007. Aft er all, Access 2007 doesn't even have a m ain m enu! Fort unat ely, Microsoft went t o a lit t le ext ra t rouble t o m ake life easier for longt im e Access aficionados. You can st ill use your m enu short cut s, but t hey work in a slight ly different way.

  I f you hit Alt + E in Access 2007, a t oolt ip appears over t he t op of t he ribbon ( Figure I - 5 ) t hat let s you know you've st art ed t o ent er an Access 2003 m enu short cut . I f you go on t o press S, t hen you wind up at t he fam iliar Past e Special dialog box, because Access knows what you're t rying t o do. I t 's alm ost as t hough Access has an invisible m enu at work behind t he scenes.

  Of course, t his feat ure can't help you out all t he t im e. I t doesn't work if you're t rying t o use one of t he few com m ands t hat don't exist any longer. And if you need t o see t he m enu t o rem em ber what key t o press next , you're out of luck. Access j ust gives you t he t oolt ip.

  By pressing Alt+E, you've triggered the "imaginary" Edit menu. You can't actually see it (because it doesn't exist in Figu r e I - 5 . Access 2007). However, the tooltip lets you know that Access is paying attention. You can now complete your action by pressing the next key for the menu command.

  The Office Menu

  One sm all part of t he t radit ional Access m enu's left in Access 2007sort of. The t radit ional File m enu t hat let s you open, save, and print files has been t ransform ed int o t he Office m enu . You get t here using t he Office but t on, which is t he big, round logo in t he window's t op- left corner ( Figure I - 6 ) .

  The Office menu's bigger and easier to read than a traditional menu. When you click it, it displays a list of menu Figu r e I - 6 . commands (on the left) and a list of the databases you used recently (on the right).

  You generally use t he Office m enu for t hree t hings: Opening, creat ing, and saving your dat abase. You'll do plent y of t his in Chapt er 1 .

  Print ing your work ( Chapt er 3 ) and sending it off t o ot her people by em ail ( Chapt er 19 ) . Configuring how Access behaves. Choose Access Opt ions at t he bot t om of t he m enu t o get t o t he Access Opt ions dialog box, an all- in- one hub for configuring Access set t ings.

  There's one m enu quirk t hat t akes a bit of get t ing used t o. Som e Office m enu com m ands hide subm enus t hat have m ore com m ands. Take t he Print com m and. You can choose Print from t he Office m enu t o fire off a quick print out of your work. But if you click t he right - point ing arrow at t he edge of t he Print com m and ( or if you hover over it for a m om ent ) , t hen you see a subm enu wit h m ore opt ions, as shown in Figure I - 7 .

  Print's both a clickable menu command and a submenu. To see the submenu, you need to hover over Print (without Figu r e I - 7 . clicking), or click the arrow at the right edge (shown here). The ribbon also has a few buttons that work this way.

  The Quick Access Toolbar

  Keen eyes will have not iced t he t iny bit of screen real est at e t hat sit s on t he Office but t on's right side, j ust above t he ribbon ( Figure I - 8 ) . This bit of screen holds a series of t iny icons, like t he t oolbars in older versions of Access. This area's t he Quick Access t oolbar ( or QAT t o Access nerds) .

  The Quick Access toolbar puts the Save, Undo, and Redo commands right at your fingertips. Access singles out Figu r e I - 8 .

these commands because people use them more frequently than any other commands. But as you'll learn in the Appendix, you can add

anything you want here.

  I f t he Quick Access t oolbar were not hing but a specialized short cut for t hree com m ands, it wouldn't be wort h t he bot her. However, t he nift y t hing about t he Quick Access t oolbar is t hat you can cust om ize it . I n ot her words, you can rem ove com m ands you don't use, and can add your own favorit es. The Appendix shows how.

  Microsoft 's deliberat ely kept t he Quick Access t oolbar very sm all. I t 's designed t o give a carefully cont rolled out let for t hose cust om izat ion urges. Even if you go wild st ocking t he Quick Access t oolbar wit h your own com m ands, t he rest of t he ribbon rem ains unchanged. ( And t hat m eans a co- worker or spouse can st ill use your com put er wit hout suffering a m igraine.)

  The New Features in Access 2007

  Access 2007's m ost im pressive enhancem ent is t he new int erface. But t he new look isn't t he only significant change. When Microsoft decided t o rework Access 2007, t hey creat ed a developm ent t eam t hat was seven t im es larger t han t he t eam t hat creat ed Access 2003. All t his ext ra m anpower allowed t hem t o m ake a num ber of long- await ed changes. Here are som e of t he highlight s:

  

A n e w a n d im pr ove d da t a ba se e n gin e . Longt im e Access pros know t hat Access uses t he

Jet engine t o m anage operat ions ( like insert ing and updat ing dat a) behind t he scenes. Jet 's part

  of t he Microsoft operat ing syst em , so it 's rarely changed. But Access 2007 now has it s own cust om ized version of Jet , which let Access creat ors add new feat ures and fine- t une perform ance. The new dat abase engine goes hand- in- hand wit h a new dat abase file form at , as you'll see in Sect ion 1.2.2 .

  Note: Don't worry, Access 2007 is 100 percent backward compatible with earlier versions. That means you can keep using old-

style Access 2003 databases in Access 2007, although you can't use a few features (like attachments and complex data,

described next) until you upgrade to the new file format.

  At t a ch m e n t s . One of t he nift iest new feat ures in Access is t he At t achm ent dat a t ype, which let s you st ore ent ire files in your dat abase, including pict ures, docum ent s, and spreadsheet s.

  ( Movies, m usic, and ot her heft y m edia files need not apply, as all Access dat abases have a 2 GB dat abase size lim it .) You'll learn how t o use at t achm ent s in Sect ion 2.3.8 .