User manual

Chapter 3 | Creating databases 61
Creating and changing fields in Table View
Important Changing the field type can permanently and irretrievably erase data.
1. With the database open, in Browse mode, click Table View in the layout bar.
2. Create new fields or change existing fields.
For information on working with records in Table View (for example, adding, deleting, and sorting
records), see
“Working with records in Table View” on page 29. For information about displaying
data in Table View (for example, reordering columns and setting column widths), see “Displaying
data in Table View” on page 28.
Creating calculation fields
1. To create a calculation field, follow steps 1–5 in “Creating and changing fields in the Manage
Database dialog box” on page 59.
2. Choose Calculation as the field’s type, then click Create.
3. In the Specify Calculation dialog box, if necessary, for Evaluate this calculation from the
context of, choose a table from the list.
Setting the context for a calculation is only necessary when you’re creating a calculation field in
a source table that has two or more occurrences in the relationships graph. The source table is
the table defined in the Tables tab of the Manage Database dialog box. The choice you make
may affect the calculation results, particularly if your calculation will include fields in related tables.
To Do this in Table View
Create a field To create the first field, click Create Field in the first column heading. To create
additional fields, click + in the column heading, or click in the right margin.
Change a field name Double-click the column heading for the field you want to rename, then type
the new name. For more information, see “About naming fields” on page 56.
Choose a field type Right-click the column heading, choose Field > Field Type, and choose a
field type. For more information about field types, see
“About choosing a field
type” on page 57.
Set field options Right-click the column heading, then choose Field > Field Options. For more
information, see
“Setting options for fields” on page 65.
Delete a field Right-click the column heading, then choose Field > Delete Field.
Important Before you delete a field, confirm that you don’t need any of the
data it contains.
Display more fields or hide fields Click Modify in the layout bar and use the options in the Modify Table View
dialog box. Or, right-click a column heading, then choose Field
> Hide Field
to hide the selected field.
To display a hidden field in Table View, right-click the + column heading, then
choose a field from the list of existing fields.