Datasheet

Fortunately, there’s a good solution at hand in the guise of forms. Access
forms provide a much more convenient way for you to interact with your
database. Learning to create great forms is certainly going to be a lot easier
than packing up your stuff for that move to a desert island. The following
sections give you a look at some of the ways forms can help you.
Streamlining data input with forms
No database has much value until it contains information. You wouldn’t be
able to get any useful data from an empty database, so a very important task
in creating a database is inputting your data. Sure, you might have some exist-
ing data that you can import, but even that data required input at some point.
Entering data into a table in Datasheet view really isn’t much fun. You first
have to open the table and then locate the record where you want to enter
your data. Maybe you’re adding to an existing record, or perhaps you’re
adding a new record right after the last existing one in the datasheet. When
you’ve selected the correct record, you have to move the insertion point to
each field in turn and type in the information. It’s easy to accidentally start
typing into the wrong field — especially if the table layout doesn’t quite
match the layout of the information you’re entering (and how often do you
see data on paper that doesn’t match the layout of the table?).
Forms can make inputting data much easier in several ways:
 Forms typically have labels that make seeing exactly which field
you’re filling in far easier.
 Forms can have drop-down lists so that you simply choose the proper
information from the list without worrying about mistyping the data.
 Forms are usually laid out with plenty of room to see all the fields in a
record.
That makes keeping track of which record you’re entering a
much easier task.
 You can easily create forms for special purposes, such as entering data
in specific sets of fields.
In this case, the form might not need to include
all of the fields; when you use only what you need, you end up with a
simpler, less confusing form.
 Forms don’t have to be laid out using the same field order as the
table.
This is an especially handy feature if you’re inputting data that is
laid out quite differently than your table.
 You can set up forms to validate the data so that users can’t mess up
your database by entering bogus information.
Even if some of these form features seem a little bit beyond your interests or
immediate needs right now, don’t worry — you’ll find out about all of them
and get many more great ideas in the chapters that follow.
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Chapter 1: Getting to Know Forms and Reports
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