Back in 2002 I wrote an Access Archon article dealing with reference issues, among them the problem of certain references being upgraded when a database is opened in a higher version of Access, but not downgraded when it is again opened in a lower version. You might think that over the last 16 years Microsoft […]
The two procedures will let you easily clear up redundant Word documents, and alphabetize lists of declarations. Access versions: 2007-2013 Level: Intermediate Introduction The two procedures described in this article will let you easily clear up redundant Word documents, and alphabetize lists of declarations. When working on the 3rd edition of my Working with Word […]
Q: Susan H. writes that she has some standard code that creates a Word document and puts some Access data into it, using VBA Automation code. But sometimes the Word window is hidden behind other windows, either the Access window itself or some other window. A: This is a long-standing problem in Office Automation. Many […]
Q: Lou writes that sometimes when he clicks on a label in Design view, in order to change the caption, it displays with a dark back color, which is disconcerting. The Label control’s BackStyle property is set to Transparent, so it shouldn’t be displaying as a color. How can this be fixed?A: This can happen […]
Back in Access 2003, you could easily change the font name and size for a datasheet form by clicking the square in the upper-left corner of the datasheet (in datasheet view), and selecting the font and size from the selectors on the Formatting toolbar, or by selecting Font from the Format menu. But these features […]
If you need to create a filter string for filtering by a person’s name, or a city name, you may run into this error: This is because single quotes are used as the delimiter for Text strings, and there is a single quote in the city name. To get around this problem, make a calculated […]
Some great tips on table formatting. Joey Cherdarchuk has a nice posting on a very different table styling to the type that Microsoft prefers. Under the banner ‘Clear Off the Table’ he suggests getting rid of gridlines and colors to simplify the look of tables. In his example, Joey takes a standard Microsoft auto formatted table […]
Access Archon Column #230 – Making Concatenated Strings from Linked Tables and Multi-valued Fields Access versions: 2007-2013 Level: Intermediate Introduction Back in 2001, I wrote an Access Archon article (#89, Flattening Linked Data) which showed how to create a string of concatenated data from values in a one-to-many linked table. That technique is still useful, […]
Access Archon Column #229 – Fixing Normalization Errors Access versions: 2002-2013 Level: Intermediate Introduction Sometimes when you take over an Access database created by an amateur (or at least, someone with a minimal understanding of normalization), you will find data such as employee names stored in a Text field in the Orders table. If the […]
Finding the location of the Office object model DLL Q: Frank H. writes: “I want to use the FileDialog object to create a browser for selecting a file, but it requires a reference to the Office object library, and I can’t find that library in the list of Microsoft objects. Where is it?” A: For […]
Access: Disabling a Label control Q: I need to disable a Label control, for a consistent appearance with some other controls on a form. But this control doesn’t have an Enabled property. Is there some way I can do this? A: You can’t disable a Label control, but you can make it look disabled by […]
Exporting Filtered Data to Excel Access versions: 2007 – 2013 Level: Intermediate In Access Archon #200 (Exporting Access Data to Excel), I showed how to export data to an Excel workbook, using various techniques. In this article, I expand on that theme, showing how to export filtered data from Access to multiple worksheets within […]
by Helen Feddema I recently had occasion to set up a VM with 64-bit Windows 8.1 and 64-bit Office 2013, and I tested several of my add-ins in that environment, as well as Rick Fisher’s Find And Replace (the 64-bit version). I found that my Extras Plus add-in (an .mda add-in that works in Access […]
By Helen FeddemaAccess versions: 2007-2013Level: Intermediate The main menu of the sample database for Access Archon #212 (A New Style Main Menu) has selectors for filtering a report by CustomerID or OrderNo. But sometimes you might want to print a filtered report right from the current record of a form. That is the topic of […]
A simple way to backup your SQL databases and move them offsite. SQL Server from Microsoft has a built-in backup utility however it doesn’t compress the backup nor let you move it to another machine. That’s where SQL Backup and FTP comes in, a nifty add-on for a reasonable price. SQL Backup and FTP lets […]
How to get detailed SuperPAC donation and spending information into Excel. Today the US Federal Election Commission (FEC) is receiving and publishing details of the controversial SuperPAC’s showing who has donated and what they spent money on. It’s a good and timely example of how you can get information from the web and turn it […]
How to enter accented characters, grave, circumflex, umlaut etc when they aren’t on the keyboard. Typing accented letters can be a chore and a mystery, especially for those of us unaccustomed to languages with the ‘extra’ letters. The keyboards don’t show accented letters and it’s not obvious how to type them. It’s good to get […]
Free training manuals for Office 2007 and before plus Quick References for Office 2010. Mouse Training in the UK has released their training manuals free for all comers plus some Quick Reference Guides. The Training Manuals are for Office 2007, Office 2003, Office XP (2002) and Office 2000. They cover Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Access, […]
There are several built-in ways to export Access data to Excel. There are several built-in ways to export Access data to Excel. You can use the Excel button on the Ribbon (or toolbar) to export a report (or other object) to Excel, or the TransferSpreadsheet method in code, to transfer data from the report’s record […]
How to index the code on ASP and ASP.net web pages with Windows Search A problem with Windows Search is the default treatment of web pages with programming code like PHP, ASP and ASP.net. The Windows Search indexing filter for these types only indexes the visible parts of the web page using a HTML filter, […]
The new cover for third generation Kindle devices is very clever. I like the look of the new Kindle with WiFi only. Many people have never felt a pressing need to use the 3G service if only because it’s too tempting to make impluse purchases. It also reduces the battery life of the device – even […]
The distributable code for Access 2010 developers is now available, but beware bugs. The Microsoft Access 2010 runtime download is now available from Microsoft. There are two versions available – 32-bit and 64-bit depending on which type of Windows you have. The runtime download is freely distributable and allows Access developers to make ‘solutions’ (aka […]
From: Microsoft This is a direct copy of the Office 2010 pricing as presented by Microsoft with all the footnotes described as a ‘more detailed guide’. Microsoft Office 2010 Retail Pricing Comparison Chart January 2010 Office Home and Student1 Office Home and Business Office Professional Office Professional Academic Word 2010 Word 2010 Word 2010 Word […]
Pity about the name but ‘God mode’ is a handy trick for Windows 7 and Vista. In fact you don’t need ‘God’ at all. Again, this isn’t MS Office but it’s too good to ignore … Given how sensitive some religious people can be, it’s little wonder Microsoft doesn’t want to talk about the Windows […]
Q: Mark Jackson writes that he is having trouble getting code that picks up values from textboxes on a form to work – a Help topic said that the focus must be on the control in order to pick up the topic. A: Some of those Help topics are very old. You don’t need to […]
Microsoft may have announced support for the ODF document format, but it’s still a long way off. Microsoft has announced support for the ODF document format in Microsoft Office. But don’t get too excited about it, it’s a long time coming. click here for more …
Link to information about hiding the database title bar. Hiding the Database Title Bar Q: Bill Johnston wants to know if there is any way to hide the database title bar. A: I found something on the Web (I haven’t tried it). See Terry Kreft’s post on TheScripts Developer Network Web site.
How to open a form when making a selection from a listbox on another form. Q: Martin wrote to ask if I could help with code to open a form to a specific record when the user makes a selection from a listbox on another form. A: This is easy to do, at least if […]
How to save a report to PDF file in Access 2007. Access Archon #156 Introduction For many years now, Access users have wanted the option of saving a report to the PDF format. An Access report saved as a PDF file can be opened by anyone (unlike Access snapshots, which are only viewable by […]
A reader offers some further information about the CreateMonthList function. José Dumoulin wrote in response to the CreateMonthList function in the sample database for Access Archon #146: For us, Europeans, it is necessary, in this line, to replace commas by semicolons: strMonthList = strMonthMinus3 & ” ” & strYearMinus3 & “; ” _ & […]
How to display an ID field in a closed combo box but hide it in a drop-down list. Q: Rich writes that he needs to display an ID field in a closed combo box, but doesn’t want it to appear in the drop-down list. The field is the first one in the combo box’s row […]
A reader suggests another way to convert a numeric option value to text. In AW 7.12 I suggested using the Switch function to convert numeric values from a choice in an option group to text values. Tom Bushaw writes to suggest another possibility, the Choose function. The Choose function yields a value (such as a text […]
The Office Update page of the Microsoft Web site offers a useful toolkit for analyzing databases prior to converting them to Access 2003 format. It is called the Access 2003 Conversion Toolkit, listed under the Add-ins link under the Access 2003 heading on the page. Donn Edwards offers a utility called AccessOpener, which avoids those […]
How to create a file name that includes the date. Q: Steve Mason is trying to export data from a query to an Excel worksheet, and save each exported file with today’s date in the file name, for example qrytest.01/01/2004.xls. How can this be done? A: Slashes in the date won’t work — they are […]
How to successfully merge data from Access to Word. Q: Bruce Michael writes: “I have been attempting to do a merge in Word 2003 using an Access 2003 query. When I look in the query, the data is correct, but when I actually merge using the data, for one column in the database, the values […]
How to get group headings to repeat for groups that extend over several pages. Q: Saul writes that he is having problems with getting headers to repeat on each page in a report. A: To get group headings to repeat for groups that extend over several pages, set the Repeat Section property to Yes for […]
How to print larger Memo fields without truncation. Q: Tara Santmire wants to know how to print Memo fields with more than 255 characters on an Access report, without truncation. A: All you need to do is set the CanGrow property of the text box bound to the Memo field to Yes.Make sure that there […]
Follow up on the recently reported NT error message. A follow-up on the weird NT error message reported in the WAW 2.06: “The control registers for COM2 overlaps with the COM2 control registers.” followed two lines later by “While validating that COM2 was really a serial port, the contents of the divisor latch register was […]
Access Archon #172 Using the AddItem and RemoveItem Methods The frmPairedListboxesMethodsUnsorted form uses the new AddItem and RemoveItem methods to move items from one listbox to the other. You can’t simply iterate through the ItemsSelected collection of the listbox, and use the appropriate method, since using AddItem or RemoveItem clears the selections, so I […]
Microsoft Australia is trying to lure Aussies to buy Office 2007 with petrol. Down in Australia you can buy Office 2007 and get money back for petrol see Office 2007 plus petrol