QuickStudy - Access 2007

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Contents

1. Office Button: Replaces the File menu in previous versions of Access;provides options to work with the database (EX: Save, Close, Print)

2. Quick Access Toolbar: Puts commonly used commands on a permanentlyvisible toolbar; fully customizable

3. Ribbon: The new User Interface (UI) for most Office 2007 products,replacing traditional menus; used to work in the database (EX: formatting text)

4. Title Bar: The Title Bar includes the name of the database (in this case,Northwind 2007) and the database format used (in this case, Access 2007)

5. Close: To close the currently displayed database, click this icon; if anything inthe database needs to be saved, a window will be displayed asking whether ornot to save the object(s) before closing

6. Help: Provides quick and easy access to the Help system7. Document Tabs: Displays open windows as tabs in this area; click on the tab

to display that window; icon before object name denotes the type

8. Shutter Bar Open/Close Button: Expands or collapses the NavigationPane

9. Navigation Pane: When a database is open, the Navigation Pane isdisplayed in this area of the window; it provides quick access to the tables,queries, forms, reports, macros and modules that are defined within adatabase

10. Expand/Collapse Object Type: Expands (as shown here) or collapses(to a single bar) selected object type

11. Status Bar: The current status of Access 2007 is displayed here; the statuswill often be “Ready,” whereas instructions and other information mayappear in this area in other views

12. Views: These icons in the Status Bar provide the ability to quickly changethe display view; buttons represent the following view types (left to right):Form, Layout and Design; buttons vary with selected object

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Access® 2007 Main Window

pg. 1 Main Windowpg. 2 New Features, New User Interface (UI)—(The Ribbon, Quick Access Toolbar, Getting Help,

Contextual Tools, Galleries, Key Tips & Keyboard Navigation, Status Bar, Super Tooltips, DialogBoxes & Dialog Box Launchers)

pg. 3 Database File Formats, Access 2007 Terminology, Record Navigation Icons, Database Objects,Office Button

pg. 4 Office Button continued, Undo, Redo & Save—Quick Access Toolbar, Home Tab

pg. 5 Home Tab continued, Creating Tables, Table Tools,Creating Queries, Common Keyboard Shortcuts

pg. 6 Data Types, Common Field Properties, PrimaryKeys

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Access 2007 offers many new features over Access 2003; some of the new andimproved features (those in red are described in greater detail in this guide) are:• New authoring tool allows preview of report layout while report is being

designed• Library of ready-made applications comes with Access, and more can be

downloaded from Office Online seamlessly; designed to be usedimmediately, though they can be customized if needed

• Data can be pasted from Excel and contacts can be imported from Outlook• Forms can be used to collect information via email—Access can create a

form, email it to contacts in Outlook, have them fill it in and email it back,and then Access can add the information into the database without the userneeding to retype the data

• Data modifications can be audited and deleted data can be undeleted whenAccess is used with SharePoint 3.0 (part of the Office family of products thatruns on a server)

• Each object that is opened opens as a new Tabbed Document across the topof the window

• AutoFilter makes it simple to filter any field for the data desired by checkingboxes of desired data (for text), specifying desired date data in English (EX:“last month”), etc., as well as specifying sort direction, etc.

• Layout View makes it very simple for anyone to create a form, report, etc. bysimply dragging and dropping; Design View is available for advancedfunctionality, if needed

• Calendar Icon automatically appears next to any field containing date values;pressing it brings up a calendar so a date can be selected graphically

• Rich Text (formatted, not plain text) can be entered in text and memo fields• Create Tab (on Ribbon) makes it simple to create new objects (EX: tables,

forms, macros), and great results are automatically generated when anexisting object is opened and a new object is created based on it (EX: creatinga form or report based on an open table)

• Fields can be multivalued (more than 1 value stored in the field), instead ofneeding to create a linked table

• The Navigation Pane makes it simple to view all objects in any way desired;it replaces the “Main” Window in previous versions of Access and can beminimized, if desired

New Features in Access® 2007

The new User Interface (UI) is the most striking feature of Access 2007; it cameabout as the program has gotten more and more complex with more and moreoptions; this section reviews the changes in each section and is designed to helpyou intuitively know where to look for the options you want (and along the way,discover some things you never knew existed!)

New User Interface (UI)

Super Tooltips

The Quick Access Toolbar places common commands on the screen at all times,no matter which tab in the Ribbon is displayed; these are common icons that canalways be used, such as Save and Undo, but any button can be added to it bysimply right-clicking on the button to add to the toolbar and selecting Add toQuick Access Toolbar

Quick Access Toolbar

Keyboard Shortcuts that were available in Access 2003 work in the same way inAccess 2007 [see Help for a list of them by looking under AccessibilityOptions]; to make selections from the Ribbon, press ALT and the shortcuts willappear, first to select the appropriate tab, then the option on the tab (ALT doesnot need to be held down), as shown here

One of the new features of the Ribbon is the ability to show new tabs based onthe object currently being used; in the example shown here, the cursor is in adatasheet (displays table data), so a new tab is shown—Datasheet; notice thatTable Tools is shown above this tab, denoting that the toolbar is used with tables;also notice that the tab and the Table Tools text are in yellow, whereas thestandard tab color is white, making it easy visually to see that they arecontextual tools (other tabs may appear in different colors)

Contextual Tools

Access offers an extensive Help system that can be displayed by clicking the on the right side of the Ribbon; alternatively, you can get Help by pressing F1

Getting Help

The Ribbon replaces all the menus that were part of every Windows program; itis designed to put the tasks and options you need at your fingertips and to showyou those that are only applicable when a particular kind of object is beingworked with; the parts of the Ribbon are as follows:

1. Tab: Groups tasks into areas of functionality; Home has the most commonoptions in one place

2. Group: Breaks the ribbon tab down into related areas of functionality, suchas formatting characters and filtering/sorting records

It is not optimized for any screen resolution and will adapt its contentsautomatically; supports the traditional button, as well as Galleries [seeGalleries] and can launch dialog boxes if they are required

The Ribbon

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Key Tips & Keyboard Navigation

Galleries are different from standard options,in that they show the results of what is selectedinstead of how to make those results appear(EX: colors, borders, shading, etc.), making itsimple to apply a coordinated look to anobject; however, the individual elements can beformatted to override the style, if desired There are 2 types of styles—In-Ribbon andDropdown; Access primarily uses dropdown;the example here is the AutoFormat on theArrange tab in Report Design View; dropdown galleries are displayed by clicking

the arrow (either or )

Galleries

The Status Bar can be configured to display as many or as few details as desiredabout the current database; to change what is displayed, simply right-click on thestatus bar and check or uncheck the options desired

1. Status/Prompt: Status of the program or prompt for what the user can/shoulddo (in this case, double-click the selected item to get the details on that item)

2. Num Lock Indicator: Num Lock appears if it is on, but is not display

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Super Tooltips are an enhanced version oftooltips that have been available for years inprevious versions of Access; in the past, theysimply provided the name of the tool that waspointed at (and, in some cases, this is still truewith Access 2007); however, in Access 2007,they often also provide descriptions (asshown here); while the tip is displayed, pressing F1 will open Help on the subject forthose tips that state that as well (usually for more advanced functionality)

Dialog Boxes still exist in Access 2007, but they are primarily to provide accessto advanced functionality; for example, Gridlines is on the Home ribbon, but theline style for them is not; to select the line style, the Datasheet Formatting dialogbox must be used by opening the Font dialog box launcher; to open any dialog box,

simple click on the Dialog Box Launcher icon at the end of a Group name

Status Bar

Dialog Boxes & Dialog Box Launchers

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Access 2007 has several brand-new file formats; Access can still read and writedatabases created in previous versions, and can create new databases in the oldformat as well; if the old format is chosen, however, Access will automaticallydisable any new features (EX: multivalued fields, the new attachment data type,

and SharePoint 3.0 integration) by graying them out in the Ribbon if they arenot compatible with that format; conversely, it will allow access to a fewfeatures that are not available with the 2007 format (EX: replication and user

level security)The table below summarizes the available formats in Access (new formats are inBOLD SMALL CAPS); the default format is .ACCDB

Database File Formats

Extension Purpose

.ACCDB Normal database

.ACCDEDatabase in “execute-only” mode (code not accessible formodification); replaces .mde

.ACCDT Template for new databases

.ACCDRDatabase in “run-time” mode (only data can be changed); renameto .accdb for full functionality

.LACCDB

Locking file used with .accdb database format when multipleusers access the same database to prevent corruption(automatically deleted when all users are out of database)

.mdb Format used in Access 95 – 2003 for a normal database

.mde Format used in Access 95 – 2003 for an “execute-only” database

.ldbLocking file used with .mdb database format when multiple usersaccess the same database to prevent corruption (automaticallydeleted when all users are out of database)

• Database: A collection of related objects designed to be used together (EX:inventory management, scheduling, managing a list of recipes, etc.); in itssimplest form, it is composed of tables (which are made of fields andrecords) in which information can be stored in an organized manner; onceinformation is entered into a database, it can be analyzed, printed, sorted andretrieved; Access 2007 is a software application that assists in the creationand maintenance of databases

• Dialog Box: A window that provides access to the advanced functionality inAccess

• Dropdown Menu: A menu of choices that appears in dialog boxes and nextto some icons; accessed by clicking the downward-facing triangle shownhere

• Field: Column of data (EX: city, phone number)• Flat File Database: Database format that doesn’t allow related tables to be

used together; very few database applications are flat file anymore; mostflat file-style databases are created in other applications that use variousformats (EX: spreadsheet, text document, etc.), as opposed to the formatthat Access uses

• Foreign Key: A field in a table that references an indexed field (usually theprimary key) of another table

• Primary Key: A field that uniquely identifies each record; no 2 records canhave the same primary key in the same table; primary keys are often numbers(EX: Social Security numbers, UPC codes, etc.)

• Record: All related information for 1 item; a row• Relational Database: Database format that allows for the defining of

relationships among data contained in multiple tables; this capability allowsfor extensive information manipulation, as well as for smaller databases andfewer data entry errors (due to decreased duplication of information); Access2007 is a relational database application• Relationship: Link between 2 tables (EX: a table with item numbers and

descriptions, and a table with sales of those items)• Template: A predefined database that makes it easy to create a type of

database, such as for sales, contacts or inventory; some come with Access,but many more are available from Office Online

Databases are made up of objects; the following is a brief description of objectsavailable in Access 2007:

Table: Stores data in records and fields very similar to a spreadsheet; allother objects directly or indirectly access the data stored in them

Query: Locates and displays information (from tables and/or other queries)based on user-defined criteria; many query types can be created, but onlysimple Select queries will be discussed in this guide (they have the iconshown here)

Form: Forms allow information from a table or query to be displayed in auser-defined format (beyond the scope of this guide)

Report: Compiles, displays and prints information located in tables and/orqueries (beyond the scope of this guide)

Macro: Simple way to automate many tasks; can be used with forms, reportsand modules (beyond the scope of this guide)

Module: Provides access to complex and powerful programming abilities ofAccess (beyond the scope of this guide)

[NOTE: This guide will only describe the creation of a database, and thecreation and use of tables and queries]

Database Objects

Creating a New DatabaseUnlike the other applications in the Office 2007 suite, Access 2007 (like allprevious versions of Access) creates a database file on the disk as soon as thedatabase is created; when the application is started, the Getting Started withMicrosoft Office Access dialog box is displayed, which allows both blank andtemplate-based databases to be created

To create a new database using a template:• Click the Office Menu

button and select New;the Getting Startedwith Microsoft OfficeAccess dialog box willappear as shown here

• In the Templatessection, click on theLocal Templates linkto view the templatesinstalled with Access;if the desired templatecan’t be found (and there is an active Internet connection), use the links underthe From Microsoft Office Online heading to download one instead

• Select the desired template and click OK

Office Button

1. First Record: Moves to the first record in the table/query (if filtered, thefirst record that matches the criteria) and makes it the current record

2. Previous Record: Moves back 1 record (relative to the current record) inthe table/query (if filtered, the first record before the current one thatmatches the criteria) and makes it the current record

3. Current Record: Displays the current record number; a specific recordcan be made the current record by typing its number in the text box

4. Next Record: Moves forward 1 record (relative to the current record) inthe table/query (if filtered, the first record after the current one that matchesthe criteria) and makes it the current record

5. Last Record: Moves to the last record in the table/query (if filtered, the lastrecord that matches the criteria) and makes it the current record

6. New Record: Adds a new record to the end of the table; same as the

button7. Filtered Status: If highlighted as shown here, a filter is in effect; if grayed

out, no filter is in effect; toggle the status with the button8. Search: Quick way to search for a specific value—type it here and press

<ENTER> to find the next matching value; similar to basic capabilities ofFind or Filter buttons

Record Navigation Icons

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Access® 2007 Terminology


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Undo, Redo & Save—Quick Access Toolbar

Clipboard GroupCut: Removes the currently selected text or object from the databaseobject and places it on the clipboard for pasting

Copy: Copies the currently selected text or object from the databaseobject and places it on the clipboard for pasting

Paste: Places the contents of the clipboard into the current databaseobject

Format Painter: Picks up the formatting of the currently selectedobject and allows it to be applied on another object while the formatpainter icon is the cursor; when single-clicked, the next objecthighlighted will be changed and the cursor returned to normal, butwhen double-clicked, format painter will remain active until the formatpainter icon is clicked again; primarily used in Design View

Views GroupDesign View: Design is available for all objects—used to change thestructure of the selected object

Datasheet View: Datasheet is available to view and change records likea spreadsheet; available for queries and tables

PivotTable View: PivotTable is used for complex data analysis; similarto a spreadsheet

PivotChart View: PivotChart is used for complex data analysis withgraphical output

SQL View: SQL (used to view the SQL [Structured QueryLanguage] code to produce the results shown graphically in DesignView); only used with queries

Font GroupFont: Displays the font of the currently selected text and

allows it to be changed to any installed font via the dropdown menu

Font Size: The size of the selected text is displayed and can bechanged by selecting from the dropdown menu or typing in a number

Align Left: Formats the selected text to have an even left margin anda ragged right margin

Center: Centers the selected text between the left and right margins,leaving both margins ragged

Align Right: Formats the selected text to have an even right marginand a ragged left margin

Bold: Changes the selected text to bold

Italic: Italicizes the selected text

Underline: Underlines the selected text

Font Color: Changes the text color of the selected text to a themecolor, a standard color or a custom color; selected color shows underthe A; others can be selected from the dropdown menu

Fill/Back Color: Changes (or removes) the background color of theselected object to any desired color

Gridlines: Displays gridlines options: Horizontal, Vertical, Both orNone

Alternate Fill/Back Color: Changes the background of every otherrecord to the specified color to make it easier to see records and editthe correct one

Rich Text Group[NOTE: Many of the rich text options can only be applied in DesignView, or to text and memo fields that have the Text Format property setto Rich Text]

Decrease List Level: Reduces the left margin indent of the selectedfield by 1/2 inch (and changes list number as appropriate in anumbered list)

Increase List Level: Increases the left margin indent of the selected fieldby 1/2 inch (and changes list number as appropriate in a numbered list)

Text Direction: Specifies that the text should be read Left-to-Right orRight-to-Left (used with other languages; EX: Arabic and Hebrew)

Numbering: Places a number in front of each paragraph in the selectedtext (used with memo fields)

Bullets: Places a bullet in front of each paragraph in the selected text(used with memo fields)

Text Highlight Color: Highlights (by changing the background color)the selected text in 1 of 15 colors (or removes highlighting); selectother colors from the dropdown menu

Records Group

Refresh All: Updates the data and calculated fields; most useful in amultiuser database

New: Creates a new record

Save: Saves the current record (automatically happens when anotherrecord is selected)

Delete: Deletes the selected text in a field; if record(s) or field(s)is/are selected, the entire record(s) or field(s) is/are deleted; can alsochoose to delete a record or field from the dropdown menu

Warning: Deleting records and fields is not undoable

Totals: Adds a summary row at the bottom of Datasheet Viewfor totals (numeric fields can be summed, averaged, counted, etc.,whereas text fields can only be counted); dynamic data that is notstored in the table

Home Tab

Opening a Database

To open a database recently accessed:• Click on the Office Menu button and point at (but don’t click on) Open• Select the desired file from the list on the right of the menu; if any

existing database is open, it will prompt you to save any changes, as only1 database can be open at the same time

To open any database:• Click on the Office Menu button and select Open• Navigate to the desired folder in the Open dialog box• Select the name from the list• Click the Open button

Printing a Database Object

To print a database object:• Open the desired object (EX: form, report, table, etc.)• Click on the Office Menu button and point at Print• Select Print

OR• Select Quick Print to print a single copy of all the pages of the object to

the printer last used (usually the system’s default printer)TIP: To view the printer that will be used, point at (but don’t click) the QuickPrint button, and the printer name will be in parentheses of the Tooltip• Select the printer you wish to print to and observe its status (ready, needs

attention, or the number of print jobs waiting to be printed on thatprinter); click the Properties button if printing properties (color vs.black & white, contrast, etc.) need to be set

• Select the number of copies desired and check the Collate box if youwant multiple copies collated

• Specify the pages to be printed or choose to print just Selected Record(s)(records must be selected first)

• Click OK to print the database object

To preview what a database object will look like when printed:• Open the desired object (EX: form, report, table, etc.)• Click on the Office Menu button, point at Print and select Print Preview• The Print Preview tab will be displayed (and all other tabs hidden),

allowing you to change margins, change the page orientation (portrait orlandscape), scroll through the database, etc.

• Click the Close Print Preview button to return to the normal ribbon tabs

Office Button (continued ) Home Tab (continued )

Undo: Reverses the last action taken; not all actions are undoable andmany only have 1 level of Undo; if multiple items can be undone, selectthem in order from the dropdown menu

Redo: Undoes the last Undo; not all actions that can be undone can beredone

Save: Saves the current object (in Design View only); saves the currentrecord in all other views


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Spelling: Spell-checks the data in the underlying table

More: Other display options (EX: setting row height or columnwidth, and hiding/unhiding fields); also used to add data as an Outlookcontact or importing data from Outlook

Sort & Filter GroupAscending: Sorts data in current field in ascending order (EX: A to Z,smallest to largest, oldest to newest)

Descending: Sorts data in current field in descending order (EX: Z to A,largest to smallest, newest to oldest)

Clear All Sorts: Clears any sort criteria that have been specified,returning to the default data order (usually the way data was entered)

Filter: Displays dialog box for simple filtering of data—check/uncheckboxes for desired data; can also sort data and specify advanced filtercriteria (EX: <, >, =, between, contains, starts or ends with, etc.)

Selection: Filters records based on data in current field (equal toor not equal to field’s value, or other similar, simple criteria)

Advanced Filter Options: Advanced filtering and sortingoptions, such as sorting by multiple fields or filtering data by filling outa form with all the desired criteria

Toggle Filter: Turns on/off the last filter usedTIP: If filter is enabled, “Filtered” appears in the status bar by the view

buttons

Find GroupFind: Finds text, numbers, dates, etc., throughout the current field or inall fields of the current table or query; can be used to find part of a word,number, etc. (beginning, anywhere in field or entire field contents)

Replace: Provides all the functionality of Find, with the addedability of replacing any or all occurrences of that text with thereplacement text specified

Go To: Moves the current record to the First, Previous, Next orLast record, or creates a new record at the end of the table

Select: Can be used to select entire record (not just current fieldcontents) or all records in table/query

Tables are the key to storing information; proper table design is beyond thescope of this guide, but the mechanics of how to do so are described here;Access 2007 makes it much simpler to create simple tables than it was inprevious versions, but table design wizards have been removed

To create a blank table:• On the Create tab, click Table• Begin entering data and new fields will automatically be created

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• Click the Design View button and build the table design as describedbelow

To create a table based on a template:• On the Create tab, click the Table Templates button and select one of

the built-in templates: Contacts, Tasks, Issues, Events or Assets• Access will automatically create a new table with predefined fields• Enter data into the table as created

Using Design ViewTo create a new field, give it a name and select the appropriate data type;optionally, a description may be entered for the field to describe its purpose,its role in relationships with other tables, expected data, etc.

To create or modify a table in Design View:• In the desired table, click the Design View button on the Home tab

ORRight-click it in the Navigation Pane and select Design View

• Enter or change names for each field (up to 64 characters long), select adata type for each field, and optionally enter a description for each field

• Optionally, enter field properties in the bottom half of the screen as needed

• When finished, click the Save button to save it and remain in Design

View, or click the Datasheet View button to save it and beginentering/changing data

Creating Tables

Table Tools

Queries make databases useful; data is stored in tables and is just that—raw data, but queries turn the raw data from the tables into usefulinformation; queries are questions you need answered (such as “Whatare the names and phone numbers of everyone in the marketingdepartment?” or “What are the top-selling products?”); most queries arecreated in Design View, but a query that returns all the records forselected fields and a query that generates summary data (such as totalunits sold or average selling price) have been automated in wizards; afew complex tasks can also be accomplished with specialized wizards;unfortunately, they are beyond the scope of this guide, but fortunately,the new sorting and filtering options already described can help answermany questions of this type without creating queries

Creating Queries

When entering data into a table or query, the following keyboardshortcuts can greatly speed up the process:• <ESC>: Once undoes any change to a field; twice undoes all changes

to the record• <CTRL> + ; (semicolon): Inserts the current date• <CTRL> + <SHIFT> + : (colon): Inserts the current time• <CTRL> + <ALT> + <SPACE>: Enters the field’s default value (if

specified [in Design View for the table for that field])• <CTRL> + ’ (apostrophe): Copies the same value for field from

previous record• <CTRL> + + (plus): Adds a new record (at the end of the table)• <CTRL> + – (minus): Deletes current recordMany more keyboard shortcuts are available; view them by openingHelp, then selecting Accessibility from the list of options; from there,click on the Use the keyboard to work with Ribbon programs to viewhow to use Help in conjunction with buttons on the Ribbon or KeyboardShortcuts for Access to view the keyboard shortcuts unique to Access2007 (and there are lots of them!)

Common Keyboard Shortcuts

Home Tab (continued )

Tools GroupPrimary Key: Sets the primary key to the selected field(s)

Builder: Wizard that helps with some field properties (such as InputMask) or opens Expression Builder to help enter complex criteria forother field properties (EX: Default Value and Validation Rule)

TIP: The Builder button also appears to the right of thoseproperties and does the same thing

Test Validation Rules: Tests existing data in the table to make surethat validation rules, allow zero length fields, and required fieldsrules are valid for all the records; a dialog box appears for each rulenot met, with the name of the rule violated and the field involved

Delete Rows: Deletes the selected field(s)

Insert Rows: Inserts a new row for a new field above theselected field

Insert Lookup Column: Inserts a new field and openswizard to create a lookup list (list of possible values for a field; EX:state abbreviations or days of the week)Creates a combo (dropdown) menu used to select data from anothertable or a list of entered values; typically, text data (such as customernames) is displayed in the list, but the underlying primary key for therecord (EX: customer ID) is stored in this table, not the longertextual form (easier to use and reduces data entry errors)TIP: Use the Lookup tab in the Field Properties area of the designwindow to change the properties of the list after it is created

Show/Hide GroupProperty Sheet: Displays (on the right side of the screen) theproperties of the table and allows modifications to them, if needed

Indexes: Opens a dialog box where indexes can be created andmodified, including sort order, making the index the primary key,forcing all records in the field to be unique, and ignoring (in theindex) NULL (blank) values


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Screen shots may vary depending on the version installed. This guide is based on thesoftware version shipping at the time of publication and is accurate to that version. *Microsoft®, Access®, MSN®, and Windows® are either registered trademarks ortrademarks of Microsoft Corporation® in the United States and/or other countries.Microsoft product screen shot(s) reprinted with permission from Microsoft Corporation.Disclaimer: This guide is intended for informational purposes only. Due to itscondensed format, it cannot possibly cover every aspect of the software. BarCharts, Inc.,its writers and editors are not responsible or liable for the use or misuse of theinformation contained in this guide. All rights reserved. No part of this publication maybe reproduced or transmitted in any form, or by any means, electronic or mechanical,including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system,without written permission from the publisher. ©2007 BarCharts, Inc. 0208

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Data TypesText: Fixed-length text and numbers not used in calculations (EX: names,

phone numbers, ZIP codes); 1 to 255 characters; requires 1 byte ondisk per character entered per record

Memo: Variable-length text and numbers (EX: notes on a customer); up to63,999 characters; requires 1 byte on disk per character entered perrecord

Number: Byte: Whole numbers from 0 to 255; used for small values (EX:number purchased) or as a key for small sets of data (EX: days ofthe week); requires 1 byte on disk per recordInteger: Numbers from –32,768 to +32,767 (with 0 digits to theright of the decimal); requires 2 bytes on disk per recordLong Integer: Numbers from –2,147,483,648 to +2,147,483,647(with 0 digits to the right of the decimal); commonly used whenlinking fields; requires 4 bytes on disk per recordSingle: Numbers from –3.40282338 to –1.401298–45 for negativenumbers, and from +1.401298–45 to +3.40282338 for positivenumbers (with 6 digits of precision to the right of the decimal inscientific notation); requires 4 bytes on disk per recordDouble: Numbers from –1.79769313486231308 to–4.94065645841247–324 for negative numbers, and from+4.94065645841247–324 to +1.79769313486231308 for positivenumbers (with 14 digits of precision to the right of the decimal inscientific notation); requires 8 bytes on disk per recordDecimal: Stores numbers with 28 digits of precision (with 0 to 28digits to the right of the decimal); (thus, number range with 0 to theright of the decimal is +/–79,228,162,514,264,337,593,543,950,335and with 28 digits is +/–7.9228162514264337593543950335, with thesmallest non-zero value of +/–0.0000000000000000000000000001); itrequires 12 bytes on disk per record

Date/Time: Dates (from 100 to 9999 A.D.) and times; requires 8 bytes on diskper record

Currency: Used for financial calculations and other mathematical calculations(with 1 to 4 characters after the decimal point); faster than single ordouble-data types if 1 to 4 decimal places needed as fixed-pointmath used instead of floating point math; accurate to 15 charactersto the left of the decimal and 4 after it; requires 8 bytes on disk perrecord

AutoNumber: Unique, sequential number that is typically incremented by 1 foreach new record; used often in relationships between tables; valuecan’t be modified; if the FieldSize property is set to ReplicationIDinstead of Long Integer, it is a random number guaranteed to beunique (a GUID); requires 4 bytes on disk (16 for ReplicationIDs)per record

Yes/No: Simplest data type; can contain only yes/no, true/false, on/off orchecked/unchecked data; requires 1 byte on disk per record(minimum 1 byte per record for yes/no data types, but up to 8yes/no fields can be placed in 1 byte)

OLE Object: Data linked or embedded from another application (up to 1 GB insize), such as a picture, Word document, etc.

Hyperlink: Link to a URL (on the Internet, for example) or a UNC path(location on the network); can also display different text from URLor UNC path and have associated tooltip text; requires up to 2,048bytes on disk for each of the 3 parts (text, URL, tooltip) per record,depending on data entered for each part

Attachment: New in Access 2007; similar to but a little more efficient than OLEObject type, because it can store any kind of file (similar to emailattachment); up to 1 GB per record

Lookup Wizard: Same as Insert Lookup Column buttonTIP: When choosing a number type, use the simplest type that will meet therequirements, as they can be processed faster in calculations and don’t take asmuch space to store in the database; number formats are listed in the table abovefrom simplest/smallest to most complex/largest

Common Field Properties

Primary KeysMost tables should have aPrimary Key; it uniquelyidentifies each record in atable; the primary key is oftena field with “ID” in the fieldname and is often anAutoNumber field (EX: in thefigure here, the Products tablecontains all the informationabout each product—eachproduct has a ProductID associated with it that is the primary key for that table;the Orders table contains the “header” information for an invoice—who it wassold to, where to ship it, P.O. number, etc.—while the Order Details table lists eachitem ordered, how much it cost, any discount, etc.; in this example, the Orderstable is linked to the Order Details table by OrderID; OrderID is the primary keyin the Orders table and a foreign key in the Order Details table; likewise,ProductID is the primary key in the Products table and a foreign key in the OrderDetails table); referencing ID fields in other tables reduces errors and makes dataentry faster; all but the simplest of databases should have tables with primary keysdefined; they are also very useful when creating queries

Microsoft®

There are, for most data types, the additional properties listed below; althoughthey vary from data type to data type, and each data type has its owncombination of properties, the common ones are:Field Size: For text, the maximum number of characters allowed; for

numbers, the number type (EX: Byte, Integer, etc.)Format: For text and memos, force to upper- or lowercase, require

a minimum number of characters, etc; for numbers andcurrency, the display of the numbers (EX: scientificnotation, currency, percent, etc.); for date/time, the formatof the date and/or time (formats are defined in the RegionalSettings control panel); for yes/no, whether to displayyes/no, true/false or on/off; for numbers, yes/no anddate/time fields, custom formats can be defined

Decimal Places: The number of digits that will be displayed to the right ofthe decimal point

Warning: The actual value, not the number of digitsdisplayed, will be used in all calculations involving the field

Input Mask: Usually used with text fields to format the display of datafor specific purposes (EX: ZIP codes, phone numbers,Social Security numbers, passwords, etc.); can also be usedwith date/time fields to format dates and times

Default Value: The value that will automatically be placed in the field forall new (but not existing) records (EX: the current date, acommon title or an area code)

Caption: Used as the field (column) heading in Datasheet View forqueries and tables, and as the label for a field on a form; thedefault (if nothing is entered for this property) is the field name

Required: Whether or not data must be entered in the field when a newrecord is created or an existing record is edited; data iscommonly required for things like names, phone numbers, etc.

Indexed: An index makes data retrieval and relationships to othertables faster and more efficient; creating indexes on otherfields generally decreases performance; 3 settings areavailable: No (no index for the field; the default), Yes(Duplicates OK) (field is indexed, but there may be morethan 1 record with the same value; EX: last name), andYes (No Duplicates) (field is indexed; no 2 records canhave the same value in the field; EX: employee IDnumber or Social Security number); primary key is alwaysYes (No Duplicates)


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QuickStudy - Access 2007