Access Cookbook

How This Book Is Organized

This book is organized into 14 chapters, each of which focuses on a particular topic in using or programming Access.

Chapter 1

This chapter covers the many types of queries and the power you have over the Access environment through the use of queries. From simple select queries through parameter, crosstab, totals, and Data Definition Language (DDL) queries, this chapter will show many different ways to use queries in your applications. Queries are the real heart of Access, and learning to use them intelligently will make your work in Access go much more smoothly.

Chapter 2

Most database applications require some sort of user interface, and in Access, that user interface is almost always centered around forms. This chapter demonstrates some useful ways to make forms do your bidding, whether in terms of controlling data or making forms do things you didn’t think were possible. We demonstrate how to create multipaged forms and how to create an incremental search list box. We also show how to create your own pop-up forms, with a technique you can use in many situations. Forms can do much more than you might have imagined, and this chapter is a good place to look for some new ideas.

Chapter 3

It seems as though reports ought to be simple: just place some data on the design surface and “let her rip!” That’s true for simple reports, but Access’s report writer is incredibly flexible and allows a great deal of customization. In addition, the report writer is ...