Access 2007 for Starters: The Missing Manual

Access 2007 for Starters: The Missing Manual

by Matthew MacDonald
Released January 2007
Publisher(s): O'Reilly Media, Inc.
ISBN: 9780596553715

Read it now on the O’Reilly learning platform with a 10-day free trial.

O’Reilly members get unlimited access to live online training experiences, plus books, videos, and digital content from O’Reilly and nearly 200 trusted publishing partners.

Start your free trial

Book description

This fast-paced book teaches you the basics of Access 2007 so you can start using this popular database program right away. You'll learn how to work with Access' most useful features to design databases, maintain them, search for valuable nuggets of information, and build attractive forms for quick-and-easy data entry.

The new Access is radically different from previous versions, but with this book, you'll breeze through the new interface and its timesaving features in no time with:



  • Clear explanations
  • Step-by-step instructions
  • Lots of illustrations
  • Larger type
  • Plenty of friendly advice




Ideal for small businesses and households, Access runs on PCs and manages large stores information, including numbers, pages of text, and pictures -- everything from a list of family phone numbers to an enormous product catalog. Unfortunately, each new version of the program crammed in yet another set of features -- so many that even the pros don't know where to find them all. Access 2007 breaks the mold: Microsoft changed the user interface by designing a tabbed toolbar that makes features easy to locate.

One thing that hasn't improved is Microsoft's documentation. Even if you find the features you need, you still may not know what to do with them. Access 2007 for Starters: The Missing Manual is the perfect primer for small businesses with no techie to turn to, as well as those who want to organize household and office information.

Publisher resources

View/Submit Errata

Table of contents

  1. Access 2007 for Starters: The Missing Manual
    1. SPECIAL OFFER: Upgrade this ebook with O’Reilly
    2. The Missing Credits
      1. About the Author
      2. About the Creative Team
      3. Acknowledgements
      4. The Missing Manual Series
    3. Introduction
      1. What You Can Do with Access
        1. The Two Sides of Access
        2. Access vs. Excel
      2. The New Face of Access 2007
        1. The Ribbon
        2. Using the Ribbon with the Keyboard
        3. The Office Menu
        4. The Quick Access Toolbar
      3. About This Book
        1. About the Outline
        2. About → These → Arrows
          1. Contextual tabs
          2. Drop-down buttons
        3. About Shortcut Keys
        4. About Clicking
        5. Examples
        6. About MissingManuals.com
        7. Safari® Enabled
    4. I. STORING INFORMATION IN TABLES
      1. 1. Creating your First Database
        1. 1.1. Understanding Access Databases
        2. 1.2. Getting Started
          1. 1.2.1. Creating a New Database
          2. 1.2.2. Understanding Tables
          3. 1.2.3. Creating a Simple Table
          4. 1.2.4. Editing a Table
            1. 1.2.4.1. Edit mode
            2. 1.2.4.2. Shortcut keys
            3. 1.2.4.3. Cut, copy, and paste
        3. 1.3. Saving and Opening Access Databases
          1. 1.3.1. Making Backups
          2. 1.3.2. Saving a Database with a Different Name or Format
          3. 1.3.3. Opening a Database
          4. 1.3.4. Opening More Than One Database at Once
          5. 1.3.5. Opening a Database Created in an Older Version of Access
          6. 1.3.6. Creating Another Database
        4. 1.4. The Navigation Pane
          1. 1.4.1. Browsing Tables with the Navigation Pane
          2. 1.4.2. Managing Database Objects
      2. 2. Building Smarter Tables
        1. 2.1. Understanding Data Types
        2. 2.2. Design View
          1. 2.2.1. Organizing and Describing Your Fields
          2. 2.2.2. How Updates Work in Design View
        3. 2.3. Access Data Types
          1. 2.3.1. Text
            1. 2.3.1.1. Text length
          2. 2.3.2. Memo
            1. 2.3.2.1. Formatted text
          3. 2.3.3. Number
            1. 2.3.3.1. Number size
            2. 2.3.3.2. Number formatting
          4. 2.3.4. Currency
          5. 2.3.5. Date/Time
          6. 2.3.6. Yes/No
          7. 2.3.7. Hyperlink
          8. 2.3.8. Attachment
          9. 2.3.9. AutoNumber
            1. 2.3.9.1. Using AutoNumbers without revealing the size of your table
            2. 2.3.9.2. Using Replication IDs
        4. 2.4. The Primary Key
          1. 2.4.1. Creating Your Own Primary Key Field
        5. 2.5. Six Principles of Database Design
          1. 2.5.1. 1. Choose Good Field Names
          2. 2.5.2. 2. Break Down Your Information
          3. 2.5.3. 3. Include All the Details in One Place
          4. 2.5.4. 4. Avoid Duplicating Information
          5. 2.5.5. 5. Avoid Redundant Information
          6. 2.5.6. 6. Include an ID Field
      3. 3. Mastering the Datasheet: Sorting, Searching, Filtering, and More
        1. 3.1. Datasheet Customization
          1. 3.1.1. Formatting the Datasheet
          2. 3.1.2. Rearranging Columns
          3. 3.1.3. Resizing Rows and Columns
          4. 3.1.4. Hiding Columns
          5. 3.1.5. Freezing Columns
        2. 3.2. Datasheet Navigation
          1. 3.2.1. Sorting
            1. 3.2.1.1. Sorting on multiple fields
          2. 3.2.2. Filtering
            1. 3.2.2.1. Quick filters
            2. 3.2.2.2. Filter by selection
            3. 3.2.2.3. Filter by condition
          3. 3.2.3. Searching
        3. 3.3. Printing the Datasheet
          1. 3.3.1. Print Preview
            1. 3.3.1.1. Moving around the print preview
            2. 3.3.1.2. Changing the page layout
          2. 3.3.2. Fine-Tuning a Printout
      4. 4. Blocking Bad Data
        1. 4.1. Data Integrity Basics
          1. 4.1.1. Preventing Blank Fields
            1. 4.1.1.1. Blank values and empty text
          2. 4.1.2. Setting Default Values
          3. 4.1.3. Preventing Duplicate Values with Indexes
            1. 4.1.3.1. Multifield indexes
        2. 4.2. Input Masks
          1. 4.2.1. Using a Ready-Made Mask
        3. 4.3. Validation Rules
          1. 4.3.1. Applying a Field Validation Rule
          2. 4.3.2. Writing a Field Validation Rule
            1. 4.3.2.1. Validating numbers
            2. 4.3.2.2. Validating dates
            3. 4.3.2.3. Validating text
            4. 4.3.2.4. Combining validation conditions
          3. 4.3.3. Creating a Table Validation Rule
        4. 4.4. Lookups
          1. 4.4.1. Creating a Simple Lookup with Fixed Values
          2. 4.4.2. Adding New Values to Your Lookup List
      5. 5. Linking Tables with Relationships
        1. 5.1. Relationship Basics
          1. 5.1.1. Redundant Data vs. Related Data
          2. 5.1.2. Matching Fields: The Relationship Link
          3. 5.1.3. Linking with the ID Column
          4. 5.1.4. The Parent-Child Relationship
        2. 5.2. Using a Relationship
          1. 5.2.1. Defining a Relationship
          2. 5.2.2. Editing Relationships
          3. 5.2.3. Referential Integrity
            1. 5.2.3.1. Blank values for unlinked records
            2. 5.2.3.2. Cascading deletes
            3. 5.2.3.3. Cascading updates
          4. 5.2.4. Navigating a Relationship
          5. 5.2.5. Lookups with Related Tables
        3. 5.3. More Exotic Relationships
          1. 5.3.1. One-to-One Relationship
          2. 5.3.2. Many-to-Many Relationship
            1. 5.3.2.1. Junction tables
        4. 5.4. Relationship Practice
          1. 5.4.1. The Music School
            1. 5.4.1.1. Identifying the tables
            2. 5.4.1.2. Identifying the relationships
            3. 5.4.1.3. Getting more detailed
          2. 5.4.2. The Chocolate Store
            1. 5.4.2.1. The product catalog and customer list
            2. 5.4.2.2. Ordering products
    5. II. MANIPULATING DATA WITH QUERIES
      1. 6. Queries that Select Records
        1. 6.1. Query Basics
        2. 6.2. Creating Queries
          1. 6.2.1. Creating a Query in Design View
            1. 6.2.1.1. Building filter expressions
            2. 6.2.1.2. Getting the top records
          2. 6.2.2. Creating a Simple Query with the Query Wizard
        3. 6.3. Queries and Related Tables
          1. 6.3.1. Joining Tables in a Query
          2. 6.3.2. Outer Joins
            1. 6.3.2.1. Finding unmatched records
          3. 6.3.3. Multiple Joins
        4. 6.4. Query Power: Calculated Fields and Text Expressions
        5. 6.5. Calculated Fields
          1. 6.5.1. Defining a Calculated Field
          2. 6.5.2. Simple Math with Numeric Fields
            1. 6.5.2.1. Date fields
            2. 6.5.2.2. Order of operations
          3. 6.5.3. Expressions with Text
      2. 7. Queries that Update Records
        1. 7.1. Understanding Action Queries
          1. 7.1.1. Testing Action Queries (Carefully)
          2. 7.1.2. The Action Query Family
        2. 7.2. Update Queries
        3. 7.3. Append Queries
          1. 7.3.1. Creating an Append (or Make-Table) Query
        4. 7.4. Delete Queries
    6. III. PRINTING REPORTS AND USING FORMS
      1. 8. Creating Reports
        1. 8.1. Report Basics
          1. 8.1.1. Creating a Simple Report
          2. 8.1.2. Arranging a Report
          3. 8.1.3. Adding and Removing Fields
          4. 8.1.4. The Many Views of a Report
          5. 8.1.5. Creating a Report from Scratch
        2. 8.2. Printing, Previewing, and Exporting a Report
          1. 8.2.1. Previewing a Report
          2. 8.2.2. Exporting a Report
          3. 8.2.3. Getting the "Save As PDF" Add-in
        3. 8.3. Formatting a Report
          1. 8.3.1. Formatting Columns and Column Headers
            1. 8.3.1.1. Formatting numeric fields
            2. 8.3.1.2. Alternating row formatting
            3. 8.3.1.3. Gridlines
            4. 8.3.1.4. Borders
        4. 8.4. Filtering and Sorting a Report
          1. 8.4.1. Filtering a Report
          2. 8.4.2. Sorting a Report
      2. 9. Creating Simple Forms
        1. 9.1. Form Basics
          1. 9.1.1. Creating a Simple Form
          2. 9.1.2. Using a Form
            1. 9.1.2.1. Finding and editing a record
            2. 9.1.2.2. Adding a record
            3. 9.1.2.3. Deleting a record
            4. 9.1.2.4. Printing records
        2. 9.2. Sorting and Filtering in a Form
          1. 9.2.1. Sorting a Form
          2. 9.2.2. Filtering a Form
          3. 9.2.3. Using the Filter by Form Feature
          4. 9.2.4. Saving Filters for the Future
        3. 9.3. The Form Wizard
    7. IV. SHARING ACCESS WITH THE REST OF THE WORLD
      1. 10. Importing and Exporting Data
        1. 10.1. Case for Importing and Exporting
          1. 10.1.1. Understanding Exports
          2. 10.1.2. Understanding Imports
        2. 10.2. Using the Clipboard
          1. 10.2.1. Copying a Table from Access to Somewhere Else
          2. 10.2.2. Copying Cells from Excel into Access
        3. 10.3. Import and Export Operations
          1. 10.3.1. Importable File Types
          2. 10.3.2. Importing Data
          3. 10.3.3. Importing from an Excel File
          4. 10.3.4. Importing from a Text File
          5. 10.3.5. Exportable File Types
          6. 10.3.6. Exporting Data
    8. Index
    9. About the Author
    10. Colophon
    11. SPECIAL OFFER: Upgrade this ebook with O’Reilly

Product information

  • Title: Access 2007 for Starters: The Missing Manual
  • Author(s): Matthew MacDonald
  • Release date: January 2007
  • Publisher(s): O'Reilly Media, Inc.
  • ISBN: 9780596553715