Microsoft Access Programmer Oakland, California

Using Microsoft Access Fields

Call MS Access Solutions at (323) 285-0939 for your FREE consultation

The material below originally appeared in Alison Balter's book Mastering Microsoft Office Access 2007 Development and is reprinted here with the author's permission. There may be references to "Figures" or "Chapters" that are not reprintable and are not used on this page.

Yes/No Fields: When One Of Two Answers Is Correct

You should use Yes/No fields to store a logical true or false. What's actually stored in the field is -1 for Yes, 0 for No, or Null for no specific choice. The display format for the field determines what the user actually sees (normally Yes/No, True/False, On/Off, or a third option— Null—if you set the TripleState property of the associated control on a form to True). Yes/No fields work efficiently for any data that can have only a true or false value. They not only limit the user to valid choices, but they also take up only one bit of storage space.

OLE Object Fields: The Place To Store Just About Anything

Microsoft designed OLE Object fields to hold data from any object linking and embedding (OLE) server application registered in Windows, including spreadsheets, word processing documents, sound, and video. There are many business uses for OLE Object fields, such as storing resumes, employee reviews, budgets, or videos. However, in many cases, it is more efficient to use a Hyperlink field to store a link to the document rather than store the document itself in an OLE Object field.

Attachment Fields: Storing Several Files In A Single Field

Using the attachment field type, you can store multiple attachments in a single field. Those attachments can even be of various types. For example, you can use an Excel spreadsheet and a Word document in a single field. Attachment fields are meant to replace their predecessor, OLE Object fields. With OLE Object fields, Access stored the bitmap of the object in the Access database. This caused database bloat. Access stores the data in Attachment fields much more efficiently.

There are additional benefits of Attachment fields. For example, Access renders image files and displays the program icon associated with other file types. If a field contains a photo, spreadsheet, and Word document, Access will display the image and will present application icons for the other objects. Access compresses the objects as it stores them, unless those files are compressed natively. Finally, you can manipulate attachments programmatically!

There are also some other things about Attachment fields that you should be aware of. You can attach a maximum of 2GB of data per database, and each attachment must be less than 256MB in size. You must use the Attachments dialog box to add, edit, and manage attachments, unless you manage them programmatically.

Hyperlink Fields: Your Link To The Internet

You use Hyperlink fields to store uniform resource locator addresses (URLs), which are links to web pages on the Internet or on an intranet, or Universal Naming Convention paths (UNCs), which are links to a file location path. Access breaks the Hyperlink field type into three parts:

• What the user sees
• The URL or UNC
• A subaddress, such as a range name or bookmark

After the user places an entry in a Hyperlink field, the entry serves as a direct link to the file or page it's referring to. I cover the Hyperlink field type in more detail later in this chapter, in the section "Using Access Tables with the Internet."

---

Author Attribution

The preceding material originally appeared in Alison Balter's book Mastering Microsoft Office Access 2007 Development and is reprinted here with the author's permission.

---

When you need a Microsoft Access programmer for your Oakland, California business, call MS Access Solutions at (323) 285-0939. We have over 25 years experience in Microsoft Access programmer solutions.

Just Some Of The Many Industries We Support

• Healthcare: Hospitals and medical facilities requiring patient management systems
• Government: Local, state, and federal agencies needing secure data management database applications
• Military: U.S. military branches with specialized tracking and reporting requirements
• Education: Universities and educational institutions managing student records and administrative data
• Agriculture: Agricultural businesses tracking growth cycles, inventory, and distribution
• Human Resources: Workforce services organizations managing candidate and employee information
• Insurance: Insurance providers handling policy management and claims processing
• Technology: Tech startups and established firms needing flexible database solutions

Our Expert Microsoft Access Services

From comprehensive enterprise solutions to targeted fixes, we handle projects of all sizes:

• Custom Database Development: Building tailored Access applications that perfectly match your workflow
• SQL Server Integration: Creating hybrid solutions that leverage the power of both Access and SQL Server
• Form Design and Repair: Crafting intuitive user interfaces or fixing damaged Access database forms
• Report Creation and Troubleshooting: Developing or repairing MS Access reports that transform raw data into important business information
• Macro Development: Building and troubleshooting Access macros to automate repetitive tasks
• VBA Programming: Writing custom code to extend functionality beyond standard Access capabilities
• Data Migration: Securely transferring information between systems while maintaining integrity
• Performance Optimization: Tuning databases for maximum speed and efficiency
• Cloud Integration: Connecting your Access database to cloud services for improved accessibility
• Security Implementation: Establishing robust user permissions and data protection protocols
• Training and Documentation: Providing comprehensive guidance for your team to maintain and use your database

---

Get more information about our Access database programming services on the Microsoft Access Programmer Riverside, California web page