What you should know about

REPORTS


how to print data from a table or a select query | how to make a report: with no grouping, with grouping | objects on the report | how do I type my name and tutor group in the report

How to print data from a table or a select query:

Press the Print icon when the table/query is open or selected. The sad thing is that you can not get your name, tutor group, task and question number on the printout.

Export the table/query to a rich text file and print it from Word after you have added your name, tutor group, task and question number in a header or footer. Using this method you can delay printing till a later stage (which is essential in an exam), but the layout is limited to a simple grid with few possibilities for formatting and calculations.

Create a report and print it from Access. In a report you can easily add your name, tutor group, task and question number. A report can easily be formatted and calculations can be performed.

How to make a report:

A report is based on a table or a query:

The first step is to make the query the report is based on.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Case 1: A report with no grouping:

  1. go to the database window
  2. click the Reports tab
  3. click the New tab
  4. click Report Wizard
  5. click the down arrow to choose the table/query the report will be based on
  6. click OK
  7. click >> if you want all the fields, otherwise select one field at a time with >
  8. click Next
  9. click Next since we do not want any grouping levels at the moment
  10. choose the field you should sort on first and if it should be ascending or descending
  11. choose up to three more fields to sort on
  12. click Next
  13. for most reports the layout should be Tabular
  14. if you have many fields choose Landscape orientation, otherwise use Portrait
  15. the box Adjust the field width so all fields fit on one page should be checked
  16. click Next
  17. choose Corporate style (some of the other styles do not print well on our printers)
  18. click Next
  19. type an appropriate title
  20. click Finish

Case 2: A report with grouping:

If you want to group the data, click Sorting and Grouping on the View menu. Often you will want to put summary functions in a group footer band.

To find the total number of employees in each job group, for example, click the text icon and click in the group footer band. Type =count([Surname]).

Other functions are sum, avg, max and min.
Examples: =sum([Salary]), =avg([Profit]), =max([Income]) and =min([Loss]).

Objects on the report:

Report Header: What you put here will appear at the top of the report.

Page Header: What you put here will appear at the top of every page.

Detail Section: What you put here will be repeated for every record in your table/query.

Example: if you have a field called PHONENO in the detail section, every phone no in your table or query will appear in your report.

Page Footer: Is repeated at the bottom of every page.

Report Footer: Is printed at the end of the report.

What is a label? A label is a box with text. In the Page Header there are labels (namely the field names from the table/query). The title in the Report Header is also a label. You can of course edit the labels and resize them.What is a Text Box? A text box can contain fields, like the three text boxes in the detail section. A text box can also contain formulae.

How do I type my name and tutor group in the report? Click the Toolbox button if you can’t see the toolbox. Then click the A button (the label button), drag a box in the Page Footer section and type your name and tutor group.

Please report bugs and suggest improvements.
© 2004 Jan Nordgreen