Database Reference
In-Depth Information
Figure 7-5. The Part Setup dialog box is a catchall for the options pertinent to layout parts. You'll
find it especially useful for rearranging parts of your layout.
You can also rearrange parts by using the same technique you use to order fields in the Man-
age Database window. Just drag the arrow icon next to a part name. But some parts (most
parts, in fact) have a padlock symbol instead of an arrow icon. This symbol tells you the part
is
locked
in place and you can't move it. The reason is simple: It doesn't make sense to move
most parts. For example, the header is always below the Title Header, and above everything
else. You really only need to rearrange parts when creating
Subsummary reports
, which
Chapter 15
covers.
When to Use Each Type
While it's perfectly legal to put any parts on any layout, you've probably figured out that
some arrangements are more common than others:
▪ Detail layouts usually have just a Body part, or some combination of header, body, and
footer. These layouts show only a single record, so there isn't much point to Summary
parts since you have no list of data to summarize.
▪ List layouts usually have a header and a body, and sometimes a footer. Occasionally, you
want a Trailing Grand Summary on your List layout as well, since it can show summary
information after all the records without taking up space on every page like a footer.
▪ Printed reports come in many forms. It's common to use many layout parts in a single re-
port: a large Title Header for the first page, and a smaller Header for each additional
page; a Leading Grand Summary that shows below the Title Header and before the first
record; a Body part for each record; a Trailing Grand Summary to show totals from all
records; and a footer to show page numbers and the like.
▪ Envelopes and labels often need headers or footers just to get the record data to align
properly on the printed item. These parts are generally empty.
