Database Reference
In-Depth Information
Create simple forms
3
IN THIS CHAPTER, YOU WILL LEARN HOW TO
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Create forms by using the Form tool.
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Format forms.
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Arrange the layout of forms.
A database that contains the day-to-day records of an active company is useful only if it is
kept current and if the information stored in it can be found quickly. Entering, editing, and
retrieving information from tables in Datasheet view is fairly easy for someone who is famil-
iar with Access. But for occasional users or people who are not familiar with Access, these
tasks might be tedious and inefficient and leave far too much room for error, especially if
details of complex transactions have to be entered into several related tables. The solution
to this problem is to create and use forms.
A form is an organized and formatted view of some or all of the fields from one or more
tables. Forms work interactively with the tables in a database. You use controls in the form
to enter new information, to edit or remove existing information, or to locate information.
The controls you will use most frequently in an Access form are as follows:
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Text box controls
You can view or enter information in these controls. Think of a
text box control as a little window through which you can insert data into the corre-
sponding field of the related table or view information that is already in that field.
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Label controls
You can tell what type of information you are looking at in the cor-
responding text box control, or what you are expected to enter in the text box control
by using these controls.
TIP
An Access form can also include a variety of other controls that transform the form
into something very much like a Windows dialog box or wizard page. For information, see
“Allowing only values in lists” in Chapter 6, “Maintain data integrity.”
In this chapter, you'll discover how easy it is to create forms to view and enter information.
You'll also modify forms to suit your needs by changing their appearance and the arrange-
ment of their controls.
