International School of Stavanger

Access 2007 Handouts for Computer Studies

CONTENTS

What is a database made of? ................................................................................................................................. 3

Fields ................................................................................................................................................................... 3

Records ............................................................................................................................................................... 3

Files ..................................................................................................................................................................... 3

Key Fields ............................................................................................................................................................ 4

Data types ............................................................................................................................................................... 4

Logical/Boolean .................................................................................................................................................. 4

Alphanumeric/Text ............................................................................................................................................. 5

Numbers (Real and Integer) ............................................................................................................................... 5

Integers ........................................................................................................................................................... 5

Real ................................................................................................................................................................. 5

Date & Time ........................................................................................................................................................ 6

Selecting appropriate data types ........................................................................................................................ 6

Creating a report in Access ..................................................................................................................................... 8

Modifying reports, using layout view ................................................................................................................... 10

Opening layout view ......................................................................................................................................... 10

Understanding Layout view .............................................................................................................................. 10

Adjusting column width .................................................................................................................................... 10

Reorganising columns ....................................................................................................................................... 10

Deleting information ........................................................................................................................................ 10

Logos ................................................................................................................................................................. 10

Page Setup ........................................................................................................................................................ 10

Queries ................................................................................................................................................................. 11

Creating Queries ............................................................................................................................................... 11

Understanding Query Design view ................................................................................................................... 12

Query properties .............................................................................................................................................. 13

Criteria .............................................................................................................................................................. 14

<>, <, >, Between .. And .. ............................................................................................................................. 14

Nulls .............................................................................................................................................................. 14

OR and IN(.., .., ..) .......................................................................................................................................... 14

Importing csv files in Access ................................................................................................................................. 15

Wildcard Searches ............................................................................................................................................ 18

Summary in access ............................................................................................................................................... 19

Run time calculations in Access ............................................................................................................................ 21

WHAT IS A DATABASE MADE OF?

FIELDS

Each piece of information in a database is stored in a field; these individual data items have a data type and

can only hold information of that specific type.

EXAMPLE:

Name Harriet Johnson

RECORDS

Several fields grouped together are referred to as a record. Each record will hold several pieces of information

relating to one specific thing (i.e. a person)

EXAMPLE:

Name Harriet Johnson

Born 11. June 1974

Address 18 Elm Street

Phone 51554300

Married Yes

Education MBA

Occupation Accountant

FILES

A file is a collection of records; each record is structured in the same manner. This means that each record has

the same data fields, but stores information about different items (i.e. a person)

EXAMPLE:

Name Harriet Johnson Peter Parker Clark Kent

Born 11. June 1974 06. May 1978 01. February

Address 18 Elm Street 22 Elm Street 19 Smalville

Phone 51554300 51554301 51554302

Married Yes No Yes

Education MBA Photography Journalism

Occupation Accountant Photograph Journalist

KEY FIELDS

In order to separate the different records in a database we often use a key field. This field contains an ID or

something similar that is unique to that record.

EXAMPLE:

ID 11067565723 06067865542 01026556816

Name Harriet Johnson Peter Parker Clark Kent

Born 11. June 1974 06. May 1978 01. February 1965

Address 18 Elm Street 22 Elm Street 19 Smalville

Phone 51554300 51554301 51554302

Married Yes No Yes

Education MBA Photography Journalism

Occupation Accountant Photograph Journalist

DATA TYPES

All fields have a data type and can only hold information of that specific type.

We have four main data types: Logical/Boolean, Alphanumeric/Text, Numbers (Real and Integer) and Date

LOGICAL/BOOLEAN

Boolean, or logical data, can only hold either TRUE or FALSE. However this can also be expressed as yes, no, on,

off or with tick boxes

EXAMPLES

TRUE FALSE YES NO ON OFF

ALPHANUMERIC/TEXT

This data type can hold any character you can input, including symbols (¤, &, %, ”, @, etc.) spaces, normal text

and numbers

EXAMPLES

DOG “A little mouse” ABC123 enquiries@bbc.co.uk

NUMBERS (REAL AND INTEGER)

Numbers are, well, numbers. However we separate between two main types of numbers; Integer and Real

INTEGERS

An integer is a whole number, meaning that it cannot hold decimals. An integer can either be positive or

negative.

EXAMPLES

12 45 1274 1000000 -3 -5735

Real Numbers

REAL

A real number can hold both integers and numbers that have decimals. A real number can either be positive or

negative

EXAMPlES

1 1.4534 946.5 -0.0003

3.142

DATE & TIME

A Date & Time field can hold a specific date and/or time. It is usually preformatted so that all dates within the

database appear similar.

DATE EXAMPLES

25/10/2007 12 Mar 2008 10-06-08

TIME EXAMPLES

11am 15:00 3:00pm 17:05:45

SELECTING APPROPRIATE DATA TYPES

In a database all fields must have a data type and it is important that we select one that is appropriate for the

information we wish to store in that specific field.

Different data types have different properties, it is for instance not possible to use text for a mathematical

function.

EXAMPLE:

Numeric (Integer) > ID 11067565723

Text > Name Harriet Johnson

Date > Born 11. June 1974

Text > Address 18 Elm Street

Numeric (Integer) > Phone 51554300

Boolean > Married Yes

Text > Education MBA

Text > Occupation Accountant

THE ACCESS INTERFACE

The interface is divided into three main areas:

A - Ribbon

This is common for the Office 2007 interface and gives

you access to the different tools available.

B - Objects in the database

This lists all the different objects in the database,

objects may include:

- Tables

- Queries

- Forms

- Reports

C - Currently open object

In this area the current object will be opened

D - Field properties

When you’re working on a table in design view you can

access the different field properties here.

A - Ribbon

B - Objects in database

C - Currently

open object

D - Field properties

(only available in form design view)

REATING A REPORT IN ACCESS

1. Select the table you want to create a report from

2. Start the report wizard under the create ribbon

3. Select the fields you want to include in your report and add them by clicking the ‘ > ‘ button

You can add all fields by clicking the ‘ >> ‘ button

4. Click ‘Next’

5. If you want to group the information by a field select it and click the ‘ > ‘ button

6. Click ‘Next’

7. Select how you want to sort the data in your report

8. Click ‘Next’

9. Select the layout of your report

10. Select if the report should be printed in portrait or landscape

11. Click ‘Next’

12. Select a style for your report

13. Click ‘Next’

14. Name your report appropriately

15. Click ‘Finish’

MODIFYING REPORTS, USING LAYOUT VIEW

You can make some basic adjustments to your reports, after you have created them, using layout view.

OPENING LAYOUT VIEW

You can access layout view by clicking the view button in the home ribbon, provided that you’ve opened the

report object

If you cannot find the home ribbon you’re probably in print preview and need to close it by clicking the ‘Close

Print Preview’ button in the Print Preview ribbon

UNDERSTANDING LAYOUT VIEW

In layout view you can select and modify the different elements of a report by clicking on them. Elements are

things like text boxes and column headings.

The dotted lines shows the margins and where the page breaks are.

ADJUSTING COLUMN WIDTH

If the information in a column only shows up as ##### it is because that column is to narrow, you can adjust it

by selecting the column heading and dragging the dividers between each column

If you double click on the dividers between each column it will adjust the column with to the heading

automatically.

Sometimes it might be necessary to adjust the columns so that they all fit on one page

Always make sure that all the information is showing in all the fields

REORGANISING COLUMNS

If you want the columns in a different order you can select the column heading and drag it to where you want

it.

DELETING INFORMATION

You can delete elements in your report by selecting them and clicking the delete button. If you delete a

column heading you will also delete the entire column of information.

LOGOS

You can insert a picture as a logo in your report by clicking the logo button, under the format ribbon.

PAGE SETUP

You can modify the page setup for a report in layout view by selecting the Page Setup ribbon

Use this to change between portrait and landscape without having to recreate the report.

QUERIES

In access you can create queries to search and filter data for reports

CREATING QUERIES

1. Select the table you want to base you query on

2. Start the Query Wizard under the Create ribbon

3. Select the Simple Query Wizard and click ‘OK’

4. Add the fields you want to use in your query and click ‘Next’

5. You now get two options:

a. Detail (shows every field of every record

In most cases this is the option you need to use, we will modify the query to fit our needs

later.

b. Summary

This option will allow you to make summary queries, for instance calculate the average of a

number, grouped by department

Select the type of query you need and click ‘Next’

6. Name your query appropriately and click ‘Finish’

UNDERSTANDING QUERY DESIGN VIEW

You can adapt the basic query, created with the wizard, to your needs by opening it in Design view.

Query design view is divided into two parts, Tables and Properties.

Tables

Properties

Tables shows the different tables associated with this query

Properties lists the different fields in use and the properties/criteria set for each of them

You can add fields to your query by dragging them from the tables and dropping them in the properties area.

QUERY PROPERTIES

Under the properties tab each column contains one field and the different properties for it are listed in the

separate rows.

The different rows are:

- Field

The name of the field

- Table

Table the field is from

- Sort

Will the query sort records based on information in this field?

Information can be sorted both ascending and descending

- Show

If checked this field will show up in result table, if unchecked it will not.

- Criteria

Records are selected based on the criteria set in this field.

- or

Additional criteria’s

If a record meets the criteria in either the Criteria field or the or field it will be displayed, you can add

more criteria’s by using the unlabeled rows below or.

CRITERIA

There are several criteria’s that you can use to select records from a table

The simplest criteria is the exact match. Just enter the value desired in the field's criteria section. Remember

that by using the Show option to eliminate the field from the display, you can specify criteria in fields the user

never sees.

<>, <, >, BETWEEN .. AND ..

You can also retrieve records where a field does not have a particular value by using "< >" followed by the

value you don't want. You can also use Not to exclude specific data.

Similarly, you can use >, <, >=, or <= for ranges. To select records with values between two values, use the

BETWEEN .. AND .. syntax.

NULLS

To select records with Null values, enter Is Null. The opposite is Is Not Null. For text fields, remember that zero

length strings ("") are not nulls.

OR AND IN(.., .., .. )

To select records where a field can have one of several values, use the OR command. You can simply say: "MD"

or "DC" or "VA".

IMPORTING CSV FILES IN ACCESS

1. Open the database you want to import the data into, or create a new blank one

2. Select the ‘External Data’ ribbon

3. Click the Text ‘file’ button under the import group

4. Select the data source by clicking the ‘browse’ button

The data source is the .csv file

5. Choose where to import the data

Make sure you select the appropriate import option:

a. Import the source data into a new table in the current database

This will create a new table where the data is stored,

this is the option you will use the most

b. Append a copy of the records to the table:

This will add the data you’re importing to an existing table in the database

c. Link to the data source by creating a linked table

This will create a table that is just referencing the external data,

We will never use this feature in class, DO NOT SELECT IT

6. Click ‘ok’ to open the Import text wizard

7. Select Delimited in the first screen and click next

When importing a .csv file the data are separated (delimited) by character, usually commas

8. Select the delimiter

Usually this will be a comma.

The data should show up in separate columns.

9. If the first row contains the field name, check this box

At this point your wizard should look something like this:

10. Click next

11. Make sure to select the correct data type for each field

Do this by:

a. Selecting the field (each column represents a different field)

b. Checking the field options above the table

12. Check that access will handle the different data correctly

Do this by:

a. Clicking the ‘Advanced’ button

b. Select the correct date order (DMY = Date Month Year, MDY = Month Day Year)

c. Select the correct decimal symbol (usually period as comma is used to separate fields

d. Click ‘OK’

Select date order

Select decimal symbol

13. Choose whether you want to add a primary key or not and click ‘next’

You can let access add a new one, define a field as one or choose to create table without it.

14. Name your table and click ‘Finish’

If there are Boolean (Yes/No)fields

Once imported Access will display boolean field information as 0 and -1, to change this:

a. Open the table

b. Go to design view

c. Select the Boolean field

d. Under the field properties change the format to: Yes/No

WILDCARD SEARCHES

Sometimes, you need to search for a particular letter or digit. Combined with the Like command, wildcards let

you specify such criteria. These are the wildcard characters Microsoft Access uses:

? Single Character

* Any number of Characters

# Single Digit

[..] Character List

[!..] not in Character List

EXAMPLE

- If you are interested in a text field where the second letter is "a", the criteria would be:

Like "?a*".

- If you were seeking values where the second letter could be an "a" or "e", the criteria

would be: Like "?[ae]*".

- The opposite of this (all values that do not have "a" or "e" as the second letter) is

performed by adding an "!": Like "?[!ae]*".

- Finally, to select a range of letters (say "a" through "e"), add a dash between the

letters: Like "?[a-e]*".

- To search for a wildcard character, enclose the value in brackets. For instance, to find

values that end in a question mark, use this: Like "*[?]"

SUMMARY IN ACCESS

The summary function in access can be used to do simple calculations on numeric fields, grouped by another

field in the table.

To create summaries in access we use queries:

1. Create a query, containing only the field you want to group by and the one you want to make a

summary of

2. In the Query design click the Totals button under the design ribbon

3. This will make another row, called Total, between the Table and Sort rows visible

4. Under the field you want to do your calculation, select an appropriate option from the dropdown:

Sum – Calculates the total of the values in each group

Avg – Calculates the average of the values in each group

Min – Finds the lowest value in each group

Max – Finds the highest value in each group

Count – Shows how many records there are in each group

First – Shows the first record in each group

Last – Shoes the last record in each group

5. Make sure the field you want to group by says Group By in the totals row

6. Run the query

Example

Consider the following data table:

Name Department Sales

John Shoes 39 000 NOK

Bob Jackets 15 000 NOK

Spencer Jackets 16 000 NOK

Laura Shoes 21 000 NOK

Mary Shoes 24 000 NOK

Jane Jackets 45 000 NOK

We want to find out, what the average sale, per department is, a summary query can tell us this. By telling

access that you want the average sale, the program will group people by department, add together their total

sales and divide it by the number of people:

To do this we need the following query:

And it gives us the table:

Department Sales

Jackets 25 333,33 NOK

Shoes 28 000 NOK

RUN TIME CALCULATIONS IN ACCESS

When creating queries we can ask access to perform some calculations each time we run the query, and show

the results in a separate column.

1. Create a query with the fields that you want to include

2. In an empty column, enter the name of the new field, followed by the calculation

Name: Number / 3

Name of the new field

A field used in the calculation A number used in the calulation

Operator for the calculation (divide)

The colon ( : )

signifies the end of

the field name

3. Each time you run the query it will perform the calculation for each record and display the result

EXAMPLE

Consider the following data table:

Name Department Sales

John Shoes 39 000 NOK

Bob Jackets 15 000 NOK

Spencer Jackets 16 000 NOK

Laura Shoes 21 000 NOK

Mary Shoes 24 000 NOK

Jane Jackets 45 000 NOK

Each employee gets 1 bonus point for each 175 NOK they sell for and can use these to buy things in the store.

We want to create a query that calculates this and displays the results in a column called Bonus.

To do this we need to use the following formulae:

To do this we need the following query:

And it gives us the table:

Name Sales Bonus

John 39 000 NOK 222,85

Bob 15 000 NOK 85,71

Spencer 16 000 NOK 91,42

Laura 21 000 NOK 120

Mary 24 000 NOK 137,14

Jane 45 000 NOK 257,14