Forms: Getting Started

1
Forms Getting Started

• Why use forms?
• Make applications easier to use
• Prevent errors
• provide different groups of users with different
  views of the database
• There are LOTS of details in creating forms
• We will just get started on it here -- use your
  book to learn more if you want

2
Two strategies for forms

• Make an autoform and adjust it
• Move the controls around
• Remove controls you dont want
• change colors and other properties
• Design the form from scratch
• Put the controls you want, where you want
• Set the properties as you want

3
Controls and Properties

• On forms, everything is called a control
• Boxes, buttons, etc
• Controls have properties that govern their
  appearance, behavior and their connection to the
  underlying data
• Properties are CRUCIAL
• the more you know, the more you can do

4
Making a new form is easy
Experiment with autoforms the form wizard
Forms work with both tables queries
5
Autoforms include all the fields
6
Changes to design mode to modify the form
7
Right-button for colors, alignment, tab order and
other properties
8
To kill that annoying cloud picture, change the
forms picture property
9
And choose a color...
10
Forms can have validation rules for each control
(data field)
11
Moving controls can be frustrating -- stay calm!
Click drag here to move the LABEL
Click drag here to move the DATA
12
Forms and subforms

• How to display one-to-many data in a way that
  can be easily edited?
• Parent form displays unique data from one side
• Subform displays repeating data from the many
  side
• Examples
• Each resume has many prior jobs
• Each resume has many educations credentials
• In the ActRep database, each person has many
  activities
• Need a form for people and a sub-form for their
  activities

13
Strategy for subforms

• Draw the forms and subforms on paper
• Create the main form first, then the subform
• Edit the main form to include the subform
• Link them together
• Use the properties of the subform control
• Use the subform field linker
• Adjust everything until you like it

14
Make the main form based on the people table
This time, try working without the wizard...
15
A blank form, a list of field, and a toolbox for
all the controls
16
Lots of controls to choose from
Hold the mouse over the icon to see what kind of
control it is. EXPERIMENT!
Buttons, boxes ...
pictures...
Tabs (HR/Vantage uses this a lot)
Subforms (to include related tables)
17
Add the controls you want to the parent form
1. First click on the kind of control
2. Next click on the name of the field
3. Drag the field onto the form move it where
you want it
18
Make the subforms (try the tabular autoform)
19
Needs work, but not a bad start...
20
Edit the form as necessary

• Remove, re-label, and move controls
• Note the exact width (e.g., 5-1/2 inches)

21
Heres just the subform...
22
Edit the parent to include the subform
23
Make it the right size and set its properties
Right-button on the subform area to get at the
properties
24
Data properties are critical

• Source object is the name of the subform

25
Use the Subform Field Linker

• This determines which fields are linked

Read this description of the result if youre
not sure
26
Adjust things until you like it