The Visibooks Guide To Access 2003 (2006) PDF

Table of Contents
Database Basics ............................................. 1

Create a new database ..........................................................................2
Create tables ........................................................................................13
Create records......................................................................................21
Create forms .........................................................................................28
Create queries ......................................................................................40
Create reports ......................................................................................47
Working with Tables ..................................... 63

Modify tables ........................................................................................64
Create new tables.................................................................................82
Specify data types................................................................................86
Specify field properties .....................................................................101
Edit records ........................................................................................104
Find records .......................................................................................108
Sort and filter records........................................................................113
Create table relationships .................................................................119
TABLE OF CONTENTS i
Working with Forms ....................................131
Modify forms ...................................................................................... 132
Add/delete records ............................................................................ 146
Edit records........................................................................................ 150
Find records....................................................................................... 153
Filter records...................................................................................... 156
Working with Queries ..................................161

Create queries.................................................................................... 162
Sort results......................................................................................... 169
Add criteria......................................................................................... 172
Employ Boolean operators ............................................................... 175
Find duplicate records ...................................................................... 181
Create Update queries....................................................................... 189
Create Delete queries ........................................................................ 197
Working with Reports..................................207

Format reports ................................................................................... 208
Create mailing labels......................................................................... 225
ii TABLE OF CONTENTS
Database Basics
In this section, youll learn how to:
Create a new database

Create tables
Create records
Create forms
Create queries
Create reports
DATABASE BASICS 1
Create a new database
1. Start Microsoft Access 2003.
Your screen should look like this:
2 DATABASE BASICS
2. In the Getting Started pane, click Create a new file.
DATABASE BASICS 3
3. When the New File pane appears, click Blank Database.
4 DATABASE BASICS
4. When the File New Database window appears, create a new
folder in the My Documents folder called Practice Access
Files.
Tip: To create a new folder, double-click the My Documents

folder so it appears in the Save in drop-down list.
Then click the icon.
DATABASE BASICS 5
5. Double-click the Practice Access Files folder.
It should appear in the Save in box.
6 DATABASE BASICS
6. In the File name box, type:
Friends.mdb
Tip: The file extension for Access databases is .mdb.
Just like Word files are something.doc, and Web pages are
somethingelse.html, Access databases are database.mdb.
MDB stands for Microsoft DataBase.
DATABASE BASICS 7
7. Click the button.
The window for the Friends database should open:
8 DATABASE BASICS
Identify database elements
Elements of databases
A database stores information in an organized way, and makes it easy

to get information in and out.
Tables store data within the database.
Forms make it easy to put data into tables.
Queries pull out specific data.
Reports put data in an easily-read format.
Form Query
Table Table
Report
DATABASE BASICS 9
1. In the Objects list, click Tables.
2. Click Queries.
10 DATABASE BASICS
3. Click Forms.
4. Click Reports.
DATABASE BASICS 11
5. Click Tables.
The Friends database window should expand to fill the screen:
12 DATABASE BASICS
Create tables
1. Double-click Create table by entering data.
A blank table should open:
DATABASE BASICS 13
Name fields
1. Double-click the Field 1 column header.
2. Type:
First Name
3. Press the ENTER key on your keyboard.
The column header should look like this:
14 DATABASE BASICS
4. Double-click the Field2 column header.
5. Type:
Last Name
It should look like this:
6. Press the ENTER key on your keyboard.
7. Double-click the Field3 column header, type:
City
then press ENTER.
DATABASE BASICS 15
Zip
then press ENTER.
Phone Number
then press ENTER.
The table should now look like this:
16 DATABASE BASICS
Delete unused fields
1. Right-click the Field6 column header.
2. When the menu appears, click Delete Column.
DATABASE BASICS 17
3. When the alert window appears, click the button.
4. Right-click the Field7 column header.
When the menu appears, click Delete Column.
When the alert window appears, click the button.
5. Delete the Field8, Field9, and Field10 columns the same way.
18 DATABASE BASICS
6. On the Menu Bar, click File, then Save.
7. When the Save As window appears, type:
Friends of Mine
in the Table Name box.
DATABASE BASICS 19
9. When the alert window that reads There is no primary key
defined appears, click the button.
Access will insert an ID fieldthe Key fieldin the table:
The key field

10.
When the alert window popped up, and you clicked the Yes button,
Access added the ID field to the table.
The ID field is now the tables primary key, or key field. That means it
cant contain any duplicates.
Every table should have a key field.
For example, if a hospital keeps a database, each patient can have a

unique ID number in the key field.
That way, if it has more than one patient named John Baker, it can
easily distinguish John Baker, ID #326 in for a checkup, from John
Baker, ID #298 who needs his gall bladder removed.
20 DATABASE BASICS
Create records
1. Click in the box under the First Name column header.
2. Type:
Elvis
3. Press the TAB key on your keyboard.
4. Type:
Presley
then press the TAB key.
5. Type:
Baltimore
then press TAB.
DATABASE BASICS 21
6. Type:
21212
then press TAB.
7. Type:
4105551212
then press TAB.
Tip: Notice how the cursor in the row selector has moved down
to the second (new) record. When you move on to a new record,
Access automatically saves the previous record.
22 DATABASE BASICS
Add new fields
1. Right-click the Zip column heading.
2. When the menu appears, click Insert Column.
The table should now look like this, with a new blank field:
3. Double-click the column heading and type:
State
4. Press the ENTER key.
DATABASE BASICS 23
5. Click inside the new State field for the first record.
6. Type:
MD
7. Press TAB until the cursor moves down to a new record.
Record number 1 is saved and complete.
24 DATABASE BASICS
Move fields
1. Click the Phone Number column heading.
The entire column should be selected.
2. Place the cursor on the Phone Number column heading.
Then drag the column so the cursor rests between the Last
Name and City columns.
3. When you see a thick black line between the two columns,
release the mouse button.
The Phone Number column should now rest between the Last
Name and City columns:
DATABASE BASICS 25
4. On the Menu Bar, click File, then Close.
5. When prompted to save the changes to the table layout, click the
button.
26 DATABASE BASICS
The Friends database window should now look like this:
DATABASE BASICS 27
Create forms
1. In the Objects list, click Forms.
2. Double-click Create form by using wizard.
28 DATABASE BASICS
3. When the Form Wizard window appears, click the button.
DATABASE BASICS 29
All the table fields should be added to the form:
30 DATABASE BASICS
5. When the next screen appears, leave Columnar selected, then
click the button.
DATABASE BASICS 31
6. When the next screen appears, make sure Standard is selected,
then click the button.
32 DATABASE BASICS
7. When the last screen appears, type:
Friends of Mine Data Input Form
in the box.
DATABASE BASICS 33
The form should open and look like this:
34 DATABASE BASICS
Add a new record
1. In the form window, click the button.
A blank record should appear:
DATABASE BASICS 35
2. Press TAB to advance to the First Name box.
3. Type:
Bo
4. Type:
Diddley
5. Type:
Richmond
6. Type:
VA
36 DATABASE BASICS
7. Type:
23220
8. Type:
8005557890
The form should now look like this:
DATABASE BASICS 37
9. Press the TAB key again.
The form should progress to a new, blank record:
The old record has been saved.
38 DATABASE BASICS
10. On the Menu Bar, click File, then Close to return to the database
window.
DATABASE BASICS 39
Create queries
Whats a query?
A query is a way to get specific information from the database.
Essentially, its a question. You use queries to ask the database things
like, Who are my customers in Montana?, or How many pipe fittings
have I sold this month?
1. In the Objects list, click Queries.
40 DATABASE BASICS
2. Double-click Create query by using wizard.
3. When the Simple Query Wizard opens, double-click First

Name in the Available Fields list.
DATABASE BASICS 41
First Name should appear in the Selected Fields column:
42 DATABASE BASICS
This should add the Last Name field to the Selected Fields list:
DATABASE BASICS 43
5. Double-click Phone Number.
44 DATABASE BASICS
This should add the Phone Number field to the Selected Fields
list:
DATABASE BASICS 45
7. When the final screen appears, type:
Names and Numbers
The query is automatically saved and executed.
9. On the Menu Bar, click File, then Close to return to the database
window.
46 DATABASE BASICS
Create reports
1. In the Objects list, click Reports.
2. Double-click Create report by using wizard.
DATABASE BASICS 47
3. When the Report Wizard window appears, click the
Tables/Queries drop-down arrow.
When the list appears, click Table: Friends of Mine.
48 DATABASE BASICS
4. Click the button to move all the fields into the Selected
Fields list.
DATABASE BASICS 49
5. In the Selected Fields list box, click ID, then click the
button.
The ID field should be removed.
The report wizard should now look like this:
50 DATABASE BASICS
7. When the next screen appears, click the button.
DATABASE BASICS 51
8. When the next screen appears, click the first drop-down arrow,
then click State in the list.
52 DATABASE BASICS
Choose layout and style
1. When the next screen appears, make sure Tabular is checked in

the Layout section.
Then click the button.
DATABASE BASICS 53
2. When the next screen appears, click Soft Gray in the list of
available styles.
54 DATABASE BASICS
View the report
My Friends
in the box.
Then click the Preview the report radio button.
DATABASE BASICS 55
The report is automatically created, saved and opened.
3. On the Menu Bar, click File, and then Close to return to the
Friends database window.
56 DATABASE BASICS
4. On the Menu Bar, click File, then Exit to close Access.
DATABASE BASICS 57
Practice: Database Basics
1. Open Microsoft Access.
2. Create a blank Access database in the Practice Access Files

folder called Music Library.mdb.
3. Create a new table with these fields:
CD Title
Artist
Genre
Date Purchased
Number of Songs
4. Delete unused fields from the table.
5. Save the table as CDs.
Allow Access to create a Primary Key.
6. Rename the ID field (the Primary Key) Album ID.
58 DATABASE BASICS
7. Enter these data into the table to create the first record:
CD Title: Pearls on a String

Artist: Dusty Trails
Genre: Folk
Date purchased: 05/10/2001
Number of Songs: 14
8. Close the CDs table.
9. Create a form for inputting data into the CDs table.
10. Save it as CDs Table Data Input.
11. Use the form to enter information for four more CDs.
Tip: Feel free to make things up.
DATABASE BASICS 59
12. Create a query that pulls out this information:
CD Title
Genre
Number of Songs
13. Save the query as Quick CD Notes.
14. Run the query.
15. Create a report based on the CDs table.
16. Include all the fields of the CDs table in the report, and sort the
records based on Genre.
Tip: Format the report using the Soft Gray style.
60 DATABASE BASICS
17. Name the report CD Inventory.
18. Close the report.
19. Exit Microsoft Access.
DATABASE BASICS 61
62 DATABASE BASICS
Working with Tables
Modify tables
Create new tables
Specify data types
Specify field properties
Edit records
Find records
Sort and filter records
Create table relationships
WORKING WITH TABLES 63

Modify tables
1. Open a web browser and go to:
www.visibooks.com/books/acc2003
2. Right-click the FoodStore1.mdb link.
When the menu appears, click Save Target As.
3. When the Save As window appears, open the Practice Access

Files folder on your hard drive.
64 WORKING WITH TABLES

4. Wait for the database to download completely, then close the
web browser.

Open an existing database
1. Start Microsoft Access.
2. In the Getting Started pane, click More.

3. Open the Practice Access Files folder, then double-click
FoodStore1.mdb.

4. When the database opens, click the button in its window.
The FoodStore1 database window should now look like this:

Employ an input mask
1. Make sure Tables is selected, then right-click the Customers

table.

2. When the menu appears, click Design View.

The Customers table should open in Design View.
3. Click in the Phone Number row.

4. In the Field Properties area of the window, click in the Input
Mask property.
5. Click the button beside the Input Mask property.

6. When the Input Mask Wizard window appears
make sure the Phone Number input mask is selected.
Then click in the Try It: box.

7. In the Try It box, type:
2125551515

9. When the next screen appears, click the button.

10. When the next screen appears, click the radio button in front of
With the symbols in the mask, like this.

11. When the final screen appears, click the button.
The Input Mask for the Phone Number field should now look like
this:

12. On the Menu Bar, click View, then Datasheet View.
13. When the alert window appears, click the button to save
the Customers table.
14. Use the TAB key to move across the first record until you are in
the Phone Number field.

15. Type:
3015551212
16. Press the TAB key four times to move to the next record.
The new phone number has been saved.
You should return to the FoodStore1 database window.

Adjust table layout
1. Double-click the Customers table to open it.
2. Place your cursor on the divider between the Company Name

and Address 1 column headings.

The cursor should turn into a double-headed arrow:
3. Double-click.
The Company Name column should resize to fit the widest

piece of data in that field:
Tip: Instead of double-clicking, you can also drag column

heading dividers to set column widths manually.
4. Double-click the divider between the Address 1 and Address 2

column headings.
The Address 1 field should resize to fit the data in it.
5. Click the windows button to close the Customers table.
6. When the alert window appears, click the button to save

changes.

Create new tables
1. Double-click Create table in Design view.

A blank table will open in Design View:

2. In the first box in the Field Name column, type:
Order ID
3. On the Toolbar, click the icon.

Orders
in the Table Name box.
Tip: Youll assign a Primary Key later.

Specify data types
Assign the AutoNumber data type
1. In the Data Type column beside the Order ID field, click the
drop-down arrow.
When the list appears, click AutoNumber.
2. In the Description column, type:
This is the Generic Order ID Number
then press TAB.
Tip: Filling in a Description is optional, but it helps you to

remember what sort of information is supposed to be stored in a
field.

Assign the Date/Time data type
1. In the Field Name column, in the second row, type:
Order Date
then press TAB.
2. In the Data Type column, click the drop-down arrow.
3. When the menu appears, click Date/Time, then press TAB.

Date the order was placed
then press TAB.

Employ the Lookup Wizard
What does the Lookup Wizard do?
The Lookup Wizard allows you to create a field where database

users can choose from a list of things.
This list can come from a table or query, or list items can be specified
manually.
1. In the Field Name column, type:
Customer
then press TAB.
2. In the Data Type column, click the down arrow, then Lookup
Wizard

3. When the Lookup Wizard appears, click the I want the lookup
column to look up the values in a table or query radio button.

4. Click the Customers table, then click the button.
5. When next screen appears, double-click First Name.

6. Double-click Last Name.

8. Click the first drop-down arrow, then Last Name.

The Lookup Wizard should show how the field will look with data
in it:

11. In the label box, type:
Customer Name
Name of the customer who placed the order
then press TAB.

The Orders table should look like this:
The table should change to Datasheet View:

16. Click in the Customer Name field, then click the drop-down
arrow.
A list of customers should appear:

The table should change back to Design View:

Assign a Primary Key
1. Right-click the Order ID field.
2. When the menu appears, click Primary Key.
The field should now show a key beside it:


Specify field properties
1. Click in the Order Date field.
2. In the Field Properties section of the window, click in the

Format box.
3. Click the drop-down arrow at the end of the box.

4. In the menu of formats that appears, click Short Date.
The Order Date field should now look like this:

The table design window should now look like this:
The table should look like this:
7. On the Menu Bar, click File, then Close to return to the

FoodStore1 database window.

Edit records
1. Open the Customers table.
Make sure its displayed in Datasheet View.
2. Click inside the Address 1 field for record number 3, between

the two fives in 35546 York Ave.
3. Press the BACKSPACE key on your keyboard.
The first 5 in the address should be gone:
4. Press TAB to move to the next field.

5. Type:
Unit L
It should replace the previous text:
6. Click in any other record.
Tip: Rememberchanged data in a record is saved when you

move off that record.
The Customers table should now look like this:

Delete records
1. Right-click the row heading for Chris Happs record.
2. In the menu that appears, click Delete Record.

Tip: Once a record has been deleted from the database, it

cannot be recovered. There is no Undo feature in Access.

Find records
Navigate records
1. In the Customers table window, click the button.
The last record in the database should be highlighted:

The sixth record should be highlighted.
3. Click the button again.
The fifth record should be highlighted.
The first record should be highlighted.
The second record should be highlighted.
The Customers table should look like this:

Search for records
1. Click the Company Name column header.

3. When the Find and Replace window appears, type:
BBC
in the Find What box.
4. In the Match list, click the drop-down arrow, then Any Part of
Field.

The Customers table should now look like this, with BBC
highlighted:
6. In the Find and Replace window, click the button.

Sort and filter records
Sort in descending order
1. Click the State column header.

The Customers table should now look like this, with the States
arranged in descending alphabetical order:

Sort in ascending order
1. Click the Customer ID column header to highlight the column.
The Customers table should now look like this, with the
customer ID numbers arranged in ascending order:

Filter records
1. Click in the State field for customer number 1.
Notice that the State is Florida.
The Customers table should now look like this, showing all
customers whose State is Florida:

The Customers table should show its original contents:


When to filter
Filtering records works like a query, bringing up specific information

from a table.
But unlike a query, your filtering doesnt remain part of the database.
When you perform a query and save it, the query remains with the
database, even after you close it. Filtering does not.
Since you cant save filtering like a query, filter records when you need
quick results. Think of filtering as a temporary, quick, on the spot
query.

Create table relationships
What are relationships?
Relationships are links that associate a field in one table with a field in
another.
An example is a school database with two tables:
Students
Classes
The Students table holds students names and addresses:
Students
Student Name Address
John Elm St.
Jane Oak St.
The Math Class table holds information about the students in math
class:
Math Class
Student Name Grade
John A
Jane B
Both tables have a Student Name field.
By linking the Student Name fields, you make sure that John in the
Students table is the same John listed in the Math Class table:
Students Math Class

Student Name Address Student Name Grade
John John
Jane Jane

Examine current table relationships
3. When the Show Table window appears, double-click

Customers.

The Customers table should appear in the Relationships field:
4. In the Show Table window, double-click Employees.
The Employees table should appear in the Relationships field:
5. Double-click Order Details.
6. Double-click Orders.

7. Double-click Products.
8. In the Show Tables window, click the button.
The relationships window should now look like this:

Add relationships
1. Place the cursor on the Title Bar at the top of the Employees
table.
2. Click and drag the Employees table to place it under the

Customers table.

3. Click and drag the Orders table to place it between the
Customers table and Order Details table.
4. Click the Order ID field in the Order Details table, then drag it
and rest it on top of the Order ID field in the Orders table.
The Orders table should look like this:

5. Release the mouse button.
When the Edit Relationships window appears, click the

button.
The relationships window should now look like this:
The Order ID field in the Orders table is linked to the Order ID

field in the Order Details table.
The same Order ID number in both tables refers to the same

order.

8. On the Menu Bar, click File, then Exit.

Practice: Working with Tables
2. Open the Music Library database in the Practice Access Files

folder.
3. Create a new table in Design View.
4. Add the following fields in the new table (data type in

parentheses):
Artist ID (Autonumber)
Artist Name (Text)
Band or Solo Artist? (Lookup Wizard)
Good Artist? (Yes/No)
Tip: When assigning the Lookup Wizard datatype to the Band

or Solo Artist field, click the radio button for:
I will type in the values that I want.
Then type in the two values:
Band
Solo Artist

5. Set the Artist ID field as the key field.
The table design should look like this:
6. Save the table as Artists, then close it.
7. Create a new table with the following fields (data type in

parentheses):
Track ID (Autonumber)
Album ID (Text)
Track Name (Text)
Track Length (Text)
Favorite Track on Album? (Yes/No)
8. Set the Track ID field as the key field.
The table design should look like this:

9. Save the table as Tracks, then close it.
10. Open the CDs table and view it in Design View.
11. Change the name of the Artist field to Artist ID.
Set its data type to Number.
12. Change the data type of the Date Purchased field to Date/Time,
and its format to Short Date.
13. Save the CDs table, then close it.
Tip: An alert window will appear saying there was an error, due
to switching the Artist data type to Number. Click the
button.

14. Open the Relationships window.
15. Add the three tables: CDs, Artists, and Tracks.
16. Link the Artist ID fields of the Artists and CDs tables.
17. Accept the default options in the Create Relationship window.
18. Link the Album ID field of the CDs table to the Album ID field in
the Tracks table.
19. Accept the default options in the Create Relationship window.
When youre done, it should look like this:
20. Close the Relationships window and save the changes.
21. Exit Access.

Working with Forms
Modify forms
Add/delete records
Edit records
Find records
Filter records
WORKING WITH FORMS 131

Modify forms
1. Start Access, then open the FoodStore1 database.
2. In the Objects list, click Forms.
3. Double-click Customer Form.
132 WORKING WITH FORMS

4. When Customer Form opens, click the icon on the
Toolbar.
Tip: The icon changes to Form View:
The form should look like this in Design View:

Add a field
A list of fields in the Customers table should appear:

2. Click and drag the Address 2 field from the Customers field list
to the form.
Place it between the Address 1 box and the City box:

There should be a new box on the form:
4. Close the Field List window.

Change field position
1. Click the Address 2 box.
2. Position the cursor over the move handle of the Address 2 box.
It should turn into a black hand with a finger:

3. Click-and-drag the box to line it up with the other boxes.
Then release the mouse button.
4. Position the cursor over the move handle of the Address 2 label.

5. Drag the label to line it up with the other labels.
Then release the mouse button.

7. On the Toolbar, click the icon to return to Design View.

Adjust size of fields
1. Click the Address 1 box.
2. Press and hold down the SHIFT key, then click the Address 2
text box.
Both objects should be selected:

3. On the Menu Bar, click Format, then Size, then To Widest.

Change caption
1. Double-click the Address 1 label.
The Properties window should appear:
Tip: Access automatically creates names when something is

added to a form. Dont worry if your computer has given the label
a name different from the one above.

2. Click the Format tab.
3. Click the Caption item to highlight it.
4. Type:
Street Address
then press ENTER.

The label should look like this:
6. On the Toolbar, click the icon to return to Form View.

Add/delete records
Add a new record

2. Fill in the following information:
Amy Preston
Preston Publishing
1214 North Ave.
Suite 118
Redmond, WA 98049
4255556113
4255557441
[email protected]
Tip: Using the TAB key to move through the form doesnt
access the field in the right sequence.
To correct this, click the icon to enter Design View.
Then on the Menu Bar, click View, then Tab Order.
3. When the Tab Order window appears, click and drag the row
headers to place the fields in correct order.

The record should look like this:
4. Click the button to save the record and advance to a new

one.

Delete records
1. Click the button to go back to record number 9, the one you

just added.

Edit records
Navigate to a specific record number
1. Click in the Current Record box.
2. Highlight the current record number, then type:
The form should now show record number 2:

Edit data in a record
1. Delete the contents of the Street Address field.
2. Type:
476 New York Ave.

3. Press the TAB key.
The record should look like this:

Find records
2. Click in the Company Name box to place the cursor there.

4. When the Find and Replace window appears, type:
Metro-Corp
in the Find What box.
The window should look like this:


Filter records
1. Click in the State box.

Tip: Notice the number of records now reads 1 of 1 (Filtered).
4. On the menu bar, click File, then Close.
When the Alert window appears, click the button.

The database window should now look like this:
5. On the Menu Bar, click File, then Exit to close Access.

Practice: Working with Forms
2. Right-click the Music Library 2.mdb link, and save the database
in the Practice Access Files folder.
3. Close the browser and start Microsoft Access.
4. Open the Music Library 2 database.
5. Using the Form Wizard, create a new form based on the Artists
table, using all the fields.
6. Save the form as Artist Information Input.
7. Using the form, enter information for Elvis:
Artist ID: (Autonumber)

Artist Name: Elvis Presley
Band or Solo Artist? Solo
Good Artist? Yes
8. Close the form.
9. Open the Artists table to check that Elvis information was

entered.

10. Close the Artists table.

Working with Queries
Create queries
Sort results
Add criteria
Employ Boolean operators
Find duplicate records
Create Update queries
Create Delete queries
WORKING WITH QUERIES 161

Create queries
1. Start Access, and open the FoodStore1 database.
3. Double-click Create query in Design view.
162 WORKING WITH QUERIES

The query Design View window should appear:
4. In the Show Table window, click Customers, then click the

button.

This adds the Customers table to the query. The query window
should look like this:

Add fields to query
1. Drag the Customer ID field from the Customers table to the first
column of the query design grid.
Release the mouse button.
The query design grid should look like this:

2. Drag the First Name field and Last Name field to the design grid
the same way.
The design grid should look like this:
The query is now set up to show the Customer ID, First Name,
and Last Name of each customer in the Customers table.

Run the query
The query window should now look like this:

The query shows the Customer ID, First Name, and Last Name
of each customer in the Customers table:

Sort results
1. On the Toolbar, click the icon to return to the query Design
View.
2. In the Last Name field, click in the Sort row.
When the drop-down arrow appears, click it, then click

Ascending.

The query should run, and sort the records alphabetically by

Last Name:
4. On the Toolbar, click the icon to return to the query Design

View.

5. In the Customer Last Name field, click in the Sort row, then
click (not sorted).

Add criteria
1. In the querys Customer table, scroll down to the State field.
2. Add the State field to the query design grid.
3. In the State field, click in the Criteria row.

4. Type:
FL

Tip: Notice that Access automatically surrounded the FL
criterion with double quotes. Thats because the State field
stores text data. In database query language, double quotes
signify a string of text.
If this field held date data, Access would have surrounded it with
hash marks (#).
If the field stored number data, Access wouldnt have added

anything.
The query results should look like this:
It has returned all customers who live in the State of FL.

Employ Boolean operators
What are Boolean operators?
Boolean operators are expressions such as AND, OR, NEITHER, and

NOR that allow you to add multiple criteria to a query. They take their
name from George Boole, the mathematician who first used them.
If you had a T-shirt store with an Access database, for instance, and
you wanted to find out how many of your California customers had
ordered blue T-shirts, youd employ the AND operator in your query:
customers from California

AND
who also bought blue T-shirts
If you wanted to see how many customers were from California (these
California customers could have bought T-shirts of any color),
and how many customers bought blue T-shirts (these blue T-shirt
customers could be from anywhere),
youd employ the OR operator:
customers from California

OR
customers who bought blue T-shirts

Employ the OR operator
1. Click the icon to return to the query Design View.
2. In the State field, click in the or row under the criterion FL.
3. Type:
MD
then press the ENTER key.
The design grid should look like this:

Tip: The two common Boolean operators are AND and OR.
Theyre easily confused. If you dont know which to use, ask
yourself the purpose of the query:
Do I want to find customers with a state of both Florida AND

Maryland?
Noa customer cant be in two places at once.
Do I want to find customers with a state of either Florida OR

Maryland?
That makes sense, so this query would use the OR operator.
4. Click the icon.

Employ the AND operator
1. Click the icon.
2. Remove the query criteria from the State field.
(Highlight them, then press the DELETE key.)
The Criteria row in the design grid should be blank:
3. Add the Company Name field to the query:
Drag it from the field list in the Customers table and drop it in
the blank field to the right of the State field in the design grid.

4. In the Company Name field, click in the Criteria row.
5. Type:
A*
Tip: An asterisk (*) stands for any character or combination of

characters. For instance, Ap* would match Ape, Aptitude,
Apparent, etc.
6. Click the icon.
The query shows all companies whose names begin with A.

Companies that begin with A
in the Query Name box.
You should return to the FoodStore1 database window.

Find duplicate records
1. Make sure Queries is selected in the Objects list.
3. When the New Query window appears, click Find Duplicates

Query Wizard.

4. When the next screen appears, click Table: Customers, then
click the button.

5. When the next screen appears, double-click First Name, then
Last Name to add the fields to the query:

The screen should look like this:

Find Duplicate Customers
in the name box.
The query should run, and look like this:
There are two identical entries for Jane Doe in the database.

Remove duplicates
1. Click the row selector button for the Jane Doe record with the
Customer ID of 7.

The query results should now look like this:
Record number 7 is removed from the database.
Tip: Deleting a record from a query also deletes it from the table
it was stored in.

Verify results
3. Double-click the Customers table.
It should now look like this, with only one record for Jane Doe:
4. Close the Customers table.

Create Update queries
1. Double-click the Products table to open it.
2. Note the price (to customers) of French Truffles ($8.99) and Blue
Mountain Coffee ($9.99).
3. Note the cost (to the store) of French Truffles ($6.15) and Blue



7. When the Show Table window appears, click Products.

The query window should look like this:
9. On the Menu Bar, click Query, then Update Query.

10. In the field list of the Products table, scroll down and double-
click the Price field.
The query design grid should now look like this:
11. In the Price column, click in the Update To row.

12. Type:
[Cost]*1.25
Then press the ENTER Key.
This will raise prices for all products by 25%.
Tip: The square brackets [ ] tell Access that Cost is a field.
Tip: No records will appear.
This is a type of Action query, which affects records directly,

rather than a Select query, which retrieves records.

Update Product Prices

Verify results
2. Double-click the Products table.
It should open and look like this:
Note the updated price of French Truffles ($7.69) and Blue

3. Click File, then Close to return to the FoodStore1 database

window.

Create Delete queries
1. Double-click the Employees table.
It should open and look like this:
Note that Tom Gumman and Tina Gumman are currently

employees.
2. Click File, then Close to return to the FoodStore1 database

window.

5. When the Show Table window appears, click Employees.
7. On the Menu Bar, click Query, then Delete Query.

The query window should now look like this:

Add fields
1. In the field list of the Employees table, click-and-drag the * field

to the first column of the design grid.

3. In the field list of the Employees table, double-click the Last
Name field.
The query design grid should now look like this:

Add criteria
1. In the Last Name column of the design grid, click in the Criteria
row.
2. Type:
Gumman

3. On the Menu Bar, click the icon.
When the alert window appears, click the button.
Tip: Be careful when designing Delete queries. Once a record is

deleted, the deletion cannot be undone.
You may want to run the query as a regular query first, to verify
its choosing the correct records, and then switch the type to a
Delete query.
4. Click File, then Save.
Delete Old Employees
7. Click File, then Close to return to the database window.

Verify results
2. Double-click the Employees table.
Note that Tom Gumman and Tina Gumman are no longer listed
as employees.

Practice:
Working with Queries
2. Open the Music Library 2 database.
3. Create a new query in Design view based on the Artists table.
4. Add all the fields to the design grid.
5. Sort Artist Names in Ascending order.
6. Add the criteria True to the Good Artist field.
7. Run the query.
Its results should look like this:
8. Close the query, saving it as Good Artists.

9. Create a new query in Design view based on the Artists table.
10. Add the Good Artist? field to the design grid area.
11. Add the criteria False to the Good Artist field.
12. Change the query type to an Update query.
13. Update all artists to designate them as Good artists.
Tip: Set the Update To value to True.
14. Run the query.
15. Close the query, saving it as Make All Artists Good.

Working with Reports
Format reports
Create mailing labels
WORKING WITH REPORTS 207

Format reports
2. Right-click the FoodStore2.mdb link and save that database in

the Practice Access Files folder.
3. Close the web browser and start Access.
208 WORKING WITH REPORTS

5. Navigate to the Practice Access Files folder, then click
FoodStore2.mdb.

7. Click the button in the database window.
The FoodStore2 database should look like this:
8. In the Objects list, click Reports.

9. Double-click Customer Orders.
The Customer Orders report should look like this:

10. Click the icon.
The reports Design View should look like this:

Edit label captions
1. Click the label with the caption Orders.
2. Click the label again.
Now the label can be edited.

3. Edit the label to read Customer Orders.
Then press ENTER.
4. Click the CustomerID label in the Customer ID Header section.
5. Click it again.

6. Edit the label to read Customer Name:
Then press ENTER.

7. Click the icon.
The report should look like this:

8. Click on the report.
The view should zoom in:

Change font size
1. Click the icon.
2. Place the cursor in the vertical ruler bar beside the Customer
Name label.

3. Click the mouse button, then drag the cursor to just above the
Order ID Header section.
Release the mouse button.
Everything in the Customer ID Header section should be

selected:

4. On the Formatting toolbar, click the down arrow next to the Font
Size box.
When the list appears, click 10.
The report should now look like this:

5. Click the icon, then click on the report to zoom out.

Set page margins
1. On the Menu Bar, click File, then Page Setup.

2. When the Page Setup window appears, type:
0.5
in the Top box, and
0.5
in the Bottom box.


Create mailing labels
1. On the toolbar, click the icon.
2. When the New Report window appears, click Label Wizard.

3. In the drop down list, click the Customers table.

4. In the Filter by manufacturer box, click Avery.
5. In the list of labels, under Product number, click Avery USA

5160.

7. Click the button again.

8. In the Available Fields list, double-click First Name.
9. Press the SPACE bar on the keyboard.
10. Double-click Last Name, then press the ENTER key.
The label window should look like this:

11. Double-click Company Name, then press ENTER.
12. Double-click Street Address, then press the ENTER key.
13. Double-click City, then type a comma and a space on the

keyboard.
14. Double-click State, then type two spaces.
15. Double-click Zip, then press ENTER.
The label window should look like this:

17. When the next screen appears, double-click Last Name.

18. When the next screen appears, type:
Shipping Labels
in the box.

The shipping labels should look like this:
Tip: If you receive a warning box saying Some data may not be
displayed, you can click the OK button and ignore it. Your labels
should still look like the picture above.

Practice:
Working with Reports
1. Start Microsoft Access and open the MusicLibrary2 database.
2. Create a new report based on the CDs table using the Report
Wizard.
3. Use all the fields except the ID field.
4. Group the CDs by Genre.
5. Sort by Title.
6. Choose the Stepped layout, and the Soft Gray style.
7. Title the report My CD Collection.
8. Switch to the Report Design view.
9. Change the font for the heading of the report to Arial Black.
Tip: You may need to resize the label afterwards.

10. Preview the changes.
The report should look like this:
11. Close the report and exit Microsoft Access.

Glossary
Boolean Operators
Boolean logic is a system of logical thought developed by George Boole.
Boolean operators allow you to construct complex queries which can be
understood by computers. The most common Boolean operators are AND
and OR.
Data
A series of facts. When data is organized, it becomes useful information,
which can be processed and used to draw conclusions.
Database
A collection of information organized into tables of data.
Field
A single unit of data stored as part of a database record.
Form
A database object primarily used to enter or display data.
Key Field
A field in a table that can contain no duplicates. The key field is each
records unique identifier.
Query
A set of questions presented to a database to retrieve specific information.
Record
One row in a given table. In a relational database, records correspond to
rows in each table.
Relationship
An association established between common fields in two tables.
236 GLOSSARY
Report
Presents information retrieved from a table or query in a preformatted,
easy-to-read way.
Select Query
A query that asks a question about the data stored in tables, and provides a
result in the form of a datasheet.
Table
A collection of rows and columns that organize data.
Update Query
A query that changes a set of records according to specified criteria.
GLOSSARY 237
238 GLOSSARY
Where to Get Visibooks
If you liked using this book, and would like to use more like it, visit:
www.visibooks.com
Visibooks offers more than 30 titles on subjects such as:
Computer Basics
Microsoft Office
Desktop Linux
OpenOffice.org
Web Site Layout
Web Graphics
Web Programming
Visibooks: the simplest way to learn

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Table of Contents

Database Basics ............................................. 1

Working with Tables ..................................... 63

Working with Queries ..................................161

Working with Reports..................................207

Create a new database

Your screen should look like this:

Tip: To create a new folder, double-click the My Documents

Then click the icon.

It should appear in the Save in box.

Tip: The file extension for Access databases is .mdb.

MDB stands for Microsoft DataBase.

The window for the Friends database should open:

A database stores information in an organized way, and makes it easy

Tables store data within the database.

Forms make it easy to put data into tables.

Queries pull out specific data.

Reports put data in an easily-read format.

6. Click the button.

The Friends database window should expand to fill the screen:

A blank table should open:

1. Double-click the Field 1 column header.

3. Press the ENTER key on your keyboard.

The column header should look like this:

It should look like this:

6. Press the ENTER key on your keyboard.

7. Double-click the Field3 column header, type:

then press ENTER.

then press ENTER.

9. Double-click the Field5 column header, type:

then press ENTER.

The table should now look like this:

1. Right-click the Field6 column header.

2. When the menu appears, click Delete Column.

4. Right-click the Field7 column header.

When the menu appears, click Delete Column.

When the alert window appears, click the button.

The table should now look like this:

7. When the Save As window appears, type:

in the Table Name box.

8. Click the button.

Access will insert an ID fieldthe Key fieldin the table:

The key field

Every table should have a key field.

For example, if a hospital keeps a database, each patient can have a

3. Press the TAB key on your keyboard.

The table should now look like this:

then press the TAB key.

then press TAB.

then press TAB.

then press TAB.

The table should now look like this:

1. Right-click the Zip column heading.

2. When the menu appears, click Insert Column.

3. Double-click the column heading and type:

4. Press the ENTER key.

7. Press TAB until the cursor moves down to a new record.

Record number 1 is saved and complete.

1. Click the Phone Number column heading.

The entire column should be selected.

2. Place the cursor on the Phone Number column heading.

2. Double-click Create form by using wizard.