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5/21/2012 5:33:20 PM
Access 2010 Beginner 3
 
 This Microsoft Access video tutorial picks up where Level 2 left off. This class focuses primarily on table field properties in Access. You will learn:

- What are Field Properties
- Field Size
- Caption & Description
- Format Property
- Decimal Places
- Input Masks
- Setting a Default Value
- Validation Rule & Text
- Using Inequalities

Click here for more information on Access 2010 Beginner Level 3, including a course outline, sample videos, and more.

Permanent Link
Course Link: Access 2010 Beginner 3
Keywords: access 2010 beginner 3 field properties field size caption description format input mask default
Page Tag: whatsnew
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Now function not working Comment from Patricia @ 4/8/2013
That's so logical!  Thanks.

Reply from Richard Rost:

Just call me Mr. Spock.
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Now function not working Comment from Tricia Clark @ 4/7/2013
I am in Access.  The function now() is in Defautl value for CustomerSince Date/Time field per the class instruction.

Reply from Richard Rost:

Does your format show time? If you have the "Short Date" format, for example, it will only show mm/dd/yyyy.
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Now function not working Comment from Patricia C @ 4/5/2013
Sorry,forgot to mention that I assume my system clock is set because time displays in the lower right corner of my screen.
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Now function not working Comment from Patricia C @ 4/5/2013
The NOW() function is not returning time with the date.  I am using Access 2007.  What am I doing wrong?

Reply from Richard Rost:

Where are you using it? In the default value property of a field? In a query? Is your system clock set?
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do memo fields with their memory capacity slow dow Comment from Vincent Dyas @ 3/18/2013
do memo fields with their memory capacity slow down the running speed of the data base ? if so should thy be used sparingly ?


Reply from Richard Rost:

Memo fields are OK if used properly. Don't OVERuse them. If you can get away with using a standard text field, then you should. There are benefits (you can't sort a memo field, for example).
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Pound Sign Comment from Vincent D @ 3/15/2013
at the 13:02 mark you refer to the pound sign but what im looking at on screen is the hash mark "#"


Reply from Richard Rost:

Yes, here in the States the hash mark is also called the Pound Sign #
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required field Comment from Yvonne Foord @ 3/7/2013
In the Beginner 3 review you say you covered the 'Required' field, but it's actually covered in beginner 4.

Reply from Richard Rost:

Thanks, Yvonne.
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required property Comment from John Mills @ 2/26/2013
As identified by Christine, the lesson did not cover the "Required" property although it is mentioned as covered in the lesson review.

Reply from Richard Rost:

Did I really skip it completely? Or did I just mention it and forget to go over it in detail? I seem to remember going over it. In any case, it's quite a simple property. If you set REQUIRED to YES then that field MUST have a value. The user cannot leave it blank.
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Course Topic Index Comment from Jennifer Hull @ 2/26/2013
Have asked my questions and love your course.  May I make a suggestion? Is it possible to add the topics covered in each lesson to the list of lessons? This would make it easy to go back to look again at a specific point.

Reply from Richard Rost:

There's a comprehensive index HERE.
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Comment from Jennifer Hull @ 2/26/2013
Again thank you so much . Am enjoying this.  Sorry for length of queries but am trying to sort this database asap. 1.  When I started with a data base of medical results, ( with access 2000) I battled with the number and decimal value fields.I was eventually advised to set all as currency as there was no problem in enterring the decimals or doing calculations. Is this still  acceptable.Have used this format with the new database.
2. Null values. I was advised to use a default value by a statistician to have a default value that equated to " no data available"    I set this as -9 as the database at that time set 0 automatically as default and I used 0 as a value and occasionally used '-' values up to -3. Is this still acceptable or is it now possible to use null value in number fields that will be used for calculations. I understand from what you have just said that I may be able to replace the -9 with a blank value with a query later on. Thank you so much again excellent series

Reply from Richard Rost:

1. Use currency for DOLLAR values. Otherwise use doubles for floating point numbers or long integers for everything else... when in doubt.

2. I would use NULL for "has no value." You can replace all of your negative numbers with an UPDATE QUERY.
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Access 2010 Beginner 3 Comment from Joe @ 2/6/2013
Is there a way to make the last item entered in a field in a form to become the default value until changed to something else?  I often enter data that has 5 or 6 fields the same for 10 or 12 entries of 1 item then I change most of the fields to something else.  It would be nice to not have to enter the same data in every field over and over again.  
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Field Size Comment from Robert Maddox @ 1/17/2013
Is Field Size storage actually based on the actual # of characters entered or by the defined field size (i.e.- a 30 character name or the 255 character definition)?

Reply from Richard Rost:

In the old days, when you specified 30 characters for a text field, Access reserved 30 bytes of storage for EACH record. This was a waste for something like FirstName when you only used, on average, 7 or 8 characters for each record. However, newer versions of Access don't do that anymore. They dynamically allocate the space per record. Furthermore, when you compact/repair your database, Access gets rid of any empty space for all of your fields (including Memo fields which are notoriously bad at bloating your database). Now, the field size is more for YOUR use - to limit the maximum size of the field.
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Format or Input Mask Comment from Nick WILLIAMS @ 1/6/2013
What to think about when deciding between format or input mask?

Reply from Richard Rost:

Do you want to control how the data is input, or just how it's displayed?
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Format in tables Comment from Nick P @ 12/30/2012
Is it best to format tables or would it be better to do all formatting in forms and reports?

Reply from Richard Rost:

That depends on the situation. If you know you're always going to use a specific format (like phone numbers or SSNs) then feel free to put the formatting in the table. If it's something you might only use in a specific situation, put the format in your form or report. Formatting in a form/report always overrides the table formatting so you can still change it on the fly if you want to.
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drop down lists Comment from Sereatha Berry @ 12/14/2012
How do i create a drop list under a tab where the customers can click on choices?
For instance, I want to create a tab for Areas of Interest, and when they click on the space a drop box appears with choices that they can check off with more than one answer.

Reply from Richard Rost:

This is way beyond Access Level 3. I start covering simple drop-down lists (called COMBO BOXES) in Access 8.

There is a way to select multiple items using a LOOKUP WIZARD in Access 2010, but I personally don't recommend them. I'll be covering them soon... probably in Access Expert 2 or 3.

The PROPER way to handle selecting multiple items involves using a MULTI-SELECT LIST BOX which I cover in Access 321, but that involves some VBA programming.
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Calculated Fields Comment from Raul Pendas @ 12/7/2012
How you can make a field to calculate?
I would like to make a invoice.
Thank you for your attention to this matter.
Raul F. Pendas

Reply from Richard Rost:

Raul, see this tutorial on Calculated Query Fields.

Invoicing is covered in my Access 300-series, starting with Access 301.
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Comment from Christine Lucas @ 11/21/2012
The lesson finished after Validation Rule & Text was demonstrated was there meant to be something about "Required" and "more..."

Reply from Richard Rost:

I'm not following you. Are you saying there's something missing?
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Comment from Leslie @ 10/22/2012
validation rule on date:
I want a date lets say 1/1/12 + 90.  I want it to tell me what is going to be the date 90 days after 1/1/12, so it will print a report?  
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Error using the wizard Comment from michael j @ 7/2/2012
i get an error message when i try to use wizard help me please?

Reply from Richard Rost:

Michael, I need a little more detail. Can you tell me EXACTLY what you're doing, and EXACTLY what the error message says? There are a lot of wizards in Access.
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Real Player Appears Comment from Miguel Cortez @ 6/24/2012
I can't open your video player, Real player appears
Instead

Reply from Richard Rost:

Download and install the VLC Media Player. Make sure it is associated with MP4 video files on your system.
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Comment from  Lynn @ 6/23/2012
I am working on my own project.
I need to scan a small document into
each record.How can I scan into attachment in one step  or
automate it? I assume this is best thing to do.
Thank you,  Lynn J Robbins

Reply from Richard Rost:

Lynn, I've been asked this question before. I don't really recommend scanning documents DIRECTLY into Access. However, most scanners have a feature where you can scan and save to file images (JPG or whatever). If you take all of your documents and scan them to a folder, then you can use the techniques I show in my Access Imaging Seminar to just go through and pick them, one at a time, and save the location (full path and filename) in your database. After that point, users can just click on your link to open the document. No need to save the actual documents in your database. That makes your database big and inefficient.
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Comment from Richard @ 6/21/2012
IMPORTANT: There is an ERROR in the video. A Long Integer is +/- 2 BILLION not million. I do say "BILLION" in the video, but the slide is wrong - it only shows 2,000,000. The actual range of a Long Integer is −2,147,483,648 to 2,147,483,647 which is just fine for numbers you're going to use on a daily basis that don't need a floating point. Sorry for the mistake. Thanks to Micah M. for pointing this out.
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Comment from Edward C @ 6/20/2012
Thank you Richard, another DB I was working on gave the option to give a start number

Reply from Richard Rost:

Yes that's just the quick trick.  Like I said you can create a macro or some programming to do this with a loop so you don't have to sit there entering 1000 records, but for beginner users just create a bunch of records, copy and paste them, and that's easy to do.
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Comment from Edward Clancy @ 6/20/2012
Can autonumber be forced to start at a number other than 1, lets say 1001.
Beginner 3 Field Properties 5 (00:00)-(00:37)

Reply from Richard Rost:

Yes, but it involves a trick. Just insert as many BLANK RECORDS as you want (in your case, 1000) and then add your first real record. It will have ID 1001. Now you can go back and delete the first 1000 blank records.

Yes, you can do this automatically with a macro, SQL, or some VBA programming, but that's beyond the scope of my beginner lessons.
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Comment from   @ 6/20/2012
In the UK we have a Disability Discrimination Act and the description ought to be used as a person suffering from disability might find the description useful.
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Access 2010 Comment from Masroor @ 6/16/2012
Hi Richard,
           Can you please tell me the final release date for Access 2010 beginner 4 and 5. I would like to finish this class as soon as possible.

thank you,
masroor

Reply from Richard Rost:

I'm working on them. Probably another day or two for Level 4.
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Comment from Masroor Sarwar @ 6/6/2012
Hi Richard,
           what is the scheduled date of release for Access 2010 Beginner 4 and 5.

thank you,
masroor

Reply from Richard Rost:

Working on Access 4 today. I hope to have it released tonight. 5 should be another day or two. My goal is to get them both out this week so I can start the Searching/Sorting Seminar this weekend.
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Form Themes Comment from  Maurice @ 6/3/2012
Richard,

I have my own preferences for how a form should look so my question is can I create my own theme that can be saved so whenever I need to create a form my preferred fonts, colours etc are already set?

Kind regards

Maurice
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Comment from Bruce Reynolds @ 5/24/2012
Module 6 stopped at time index 11:24. Will go into Chrome and retry. If it happens in Chrome, will try Opera. If it happens in Opera, will try IE9.

Reply from Richard Rost:

Same problem. Happens for me too. The old Flash player doesn't like the NEW videos... will be fixed soon. The whole video IS playing though.
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Comment from  Bruce @ 5/24/2012
Field Properties module 1 stops at the time index of 8 minutes and 19 seconds. I will re-try in Firefox. I am currently in Chrome.

Reply from Richard Rost:

The video isn't cut off. The problem is that the FLASH PLAYER that I'm using is garbage. It's ticking off seconds too fast. Not to worry... I just purchased a NEW video player that I'll be incorporating into the web site over the next couple of days. In the mean time, as long as you see the AccessLearningZone.com logo at the end of the video, it's done.
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Comment from  david @ 5/23/2012
when I press escape once it reverts the whole record back to what it was before I do not have to hit the ESC key twice.  Do we have different releases of Access 10?

Reply from Richard Rost:

This is how Access behaves on both computers I have Office 2010 installed on. I do have the same version on both. Does anyone else experience different behavior? I hit ESC once to abort entry in the current FIELD, then a second ESC press aborts editing of the entire record.
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Comment from  david @ 5/23/2012
the F1 key does not bring up the help screens when I press it on my computer

Reply from Richard Rost:

They're context sensitive, so it all depends on WHERE your cursor is when you click on F1. Also, it is possible if you didn't perform a FULL install of Office that you don't have the Help files on your computer. Rare, but possible.
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Survey Comment from Richard R @ 5/21/2012
Now that you're finished with this class, please take a few short minutes to complete our STUDENT SURVEY and let us know what you thought of the lessons!
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