Post by The Mad Plumber on Oct 9, 2009 21:24:59 GMT -5
I've had no formal training in Microsoft Access. I've encountered it every once in a while throughout my college career, but I never really used it and it looked pretty intimidating to me. Instead, I've used Microsoft Excel for many of my complex projects, and, in retrospect, I've abused the software to the point that it would have been beneficial to have learned Access.
My most recent job was quality control inspection for a chemicals factory; I measured the specifications of our bottles versus the ideal tolerances and recorded my findings. It was my supervisor's satisfaction that I write my findings out on xeroxed datasheets, but seeing that I had a computer terminal right in front of me, I decided to make my work easier by making out a system through Microsoft Excel. Eventually, I discovered I also had Microsoft Access at my disposal and I began transitioning my work from Excel to Access. Through the databases I was building to record my inspection findings as well as computerizing the materials records, I began to acquaint myself with the intricacies of Microsoft Access.
Realizing the benefits of such a software, I eventually bought a copy of Access 2007 for myself. One of the various areas I sought to improve through the application of the software was my "Projects" folder, where I was storing the various files for my digital drawings, pencil illustrations, game scripts, and other creative efforts.
I built my Projects database from scratch. It existed very primitive for a while, being little more than tables containing the name and descriptions of my projects, and maybe even a boolean indicating if the project was completed. It has been of fair recentness that I have been making major improvements to the appearance and function of the database to fit my needs and desires. So far, I've reached a satisfactory point in my construction and I felt like sharing my progress with you.
Please understand and forgive the watermarks on the images.
I was first introduced to the concept of databases when I was but a child. Our family computer, the Apple IIe, came equipped with the office suite AppleWorks, which allowed users to create text documents, spreadsheets, and databases. Databases have become much more complex since then. For example, when I interviewed for an office position at some point around 2007 (rejected), the man interviewing me gave me a glimpse of the database that was being used for their business; the database very much resembled a Windows application.
In this first image, you can see the impression that the interview left on me with this main menu form I constructed. I set the database file's properties to automatically open this form when the database itself is opened, showing the operating user the options he or she has available. You'll also see that the navigation pane on the left is hidden now. Ideally, it should be through the menus and GUIs that I will be making modifications to the data within the database, and not by directly manipulating the tables myself. Data remains encapsulated.
On this opening form, only two buttons work right now: "View projects" and "Exit menu for maintenance". "View projects" allows me to view existing projects and perform other operations that I will discuss later. "Exit menu for maintenance" closes the menu, allowing me to render further modifications and improvements on the database as needed. At this point, I can still right-click on forms to close them informally. I could change their settings to not allow right-click manipulations, but I'll worry about such a thing later on (especially since I'm the database's only user).
This is the meat of my Projects database: the Projects form. This is my main form for navigating through the projects that I have opened.
Part of my inspiration for this database stems from a scene in Iron Man where Robert Downey Jr.'s character tells his computer to create a new project file. Originally, there wasn't much organization to my projects; there was no overall database to list my projects and my folders were typically named directly for the project. This roughly left projects in danger of being forgotten. When I incorporated the database at first, I renamed the folders to an amalgam of both the project number and project name; for example, the folder containing the project above might have been named "1 Marty Feldman in Graphites". It wasn't much better, but it did partially save project data from the danger of being forgotten forever. However, once I learned how to open the folders directly from my Access GUI, I renamed all my project folders after only their project number. Thus, double-clicking on the raster image opens the folder for that project. The raster image file itself is contained in its respective folder and is loaded when the database navigates to its associated project record.
The buttons on the upper-right navigate about the project records; the fifth button returns to the main menu. The window below the project description indicates the project completion status, reflected by a boolean in the record table. Double-clicking on it changes the status between complete and incomplete.
"Entry Modified" is a field that I've included in many data tables that I've been writing recently and I find it to be a very useful field. An "Entry Modified" field protects data from slipping into a forgotten realm by enforcing the idea that the oldest records demand the most attention. When I render modifications to a record, the "Entry Modified" date is updated to when the modification was rendered.
The last field displays a sum of the total hours spent on a particular project. The recording of work hours is performed with the form displayed in the next image.
Clicking on "Log in labor time" on the Projects form opens up this form. I created a table called "Labor" which records the log in and log out times for a particular project. When I click "Log Out" on this particular form, the form closes after having added my log in and log out times to the table. Whenever I view a project's data in the Project form, it performs an operation that sums up all of the time spent on one project; I have to multiply the sum by 24 in order to display it as hours. Clicking the button labeled "Calculate" gives me a current reading of my current time without manipulating any of the table data.
On the Projects form, the only data from the Projects table that can be manipulated are the project's status and the project's modification date; the modification date is automatically updated when the status is modified. To modify the project's title or description, I created this form. It works successfully at changing the record data, though I've yet to figure out how to make the change appear immediately on the Project form itself when the focus returns to it. Right now, it's a flaw I can live with.
Finally, we have the form for adding new projects to the database. When a new project is created, it also creates its respective subfolder in the Projects folder and also gives it a generic image for its profile; I personally modify the profile images in Adobe Photoshop. Again, a slight flaw in regards to this is that, in order to navigate to the recently-created project record, I would have to return to the main menu and then return to the Projects form for the new project to show up in navigation.
Ideally, the usage of this database should keep me from having to navigate through the Projects folder via Windows. In time, I am going to find data related to retired projects I completed before the incorporation of the database and retroactively give them project numbers as well.
Modifications I am considering making to the database in the future include:
Microsoft Access does offer templates databases to its users, and one of those templates was in fact a projects database. However, the saying goes, "If you want something done right, do it yourself." I want a database that fits my specific needs. Furthermore, I would like to think that such a database constructed from scratch would reflect positively on my skills.
Thank you for visiting.
My most recent job was quality control inspection for a chemicals factory; I measured the specifications of our bottles versus the ideal tolerances and recorded my findings. It was my supervisor's satisfaction that I write my findings out on xeroxed datasheets, but seeing that I had a computer terminal right in front of me, I decided to make my work easier by making out a system through Microsoft Excel. Eventually, I discovered I also had Microsoft Access at my disposal and I began transitioning my work from Excel to Access. Through the databases I was building to record my inspection findings as well as computerizing the materials records, I began to acquaint myself with the intricacies of Microsoft Access.
Realizing the benefits of such a software, I eventually bought a copy of Access 2007 for myself. One of the various areas I sought to improve through the application of the software was my "Projects" folder, where I was storing the various files for my digital drawings, pencil illustrations, game scripts, and other creative efforts.
I built my Projects database from scratch. It existed very primitive for a while, being little more than tables containing the name and descriptions of my projects, and maybe even a boolean indicating if the project was completed. It has been of fair recentness that I have been making major improvements to the appearance and function of the database to fit my needs and desires. So far, I've reached a satisfactory point in my construction and I felt like sharing my progress with you.
Please understand and forgive the watermarks on the images.
I was first introduced to the concept of databases when I was but a child. Our family computer, the Apple IIe, came equipped with the office suite AppleWorks, which allowed users to create text documents, spreadsheets, and databases. Databases have become much more complex since then. For example, when I interviewed for an office position at some point around 2007 (rejected), the man interviewing me gave me a glimpse of the database that was being used for their business; the database very much resembled a Windows application.
In this first image, you can see the impression that the interview left on me with this main menu form I constructed. I set the database file's properties to automatically open this form when the database itself is opened, showing the operating user the options he or she has available. You'll also see that the navigation pane on the left is hidden now. Ideally, it should be through the menus and GUIs that I will be making modifications to the data within the database, and not by directly manipulating the tables myself. Data remains encapsulated.
On this opening form, only two buttons work right now: "View projects" and "Exit menu for maintenance". "View projects" allows me to view existing projects and perform other operations that I will discuss later. "Exit menu for maintenance" closes the menu, allowing me to render further modifications and improvements on the database as needed. At this point, I can still right-click on forms to close them informally. I could change their settings to not allow right-click manipulations, but I'll worry about such a thing later on (especially since I'm the database's only user).
This is the meat of my Projects database: the Projects form. This is my main form for navigating through the projects that I have opened.
Part of my inspiration for this database stems from a scene in Iron Man where Robert Downey Jr.'s character tells his computer to create a new project file. Originally, there wasn't much organization to my projects; there was no overall database to list my projects and my folders were typically named directly for the project. This roughly left projects in danger of being forgotten. When I incorporated the database at first, I renamed the folders to an amalgam of both the project number and project name; for example, the folder containing the project above might have been named "1 Marty Feldman in Graphites". It wasn't much better, but it did partially save project data from the danger of being forgotten forever. However, once I learned how to open the folders directly from my Access GUI, I renamed all my project folders after only their project number. Thus, double-clicking on the raster image opens the folder for that project. The raster image file itself is contained in its respective folder and is loaded when the database navigates to its associated project record.
The buttons on the upper-right navigate about the project records; the fifth button returns to the main menu. The window below the project description indicates the project completion status, reflected by a boolean in the record table. Double-clicking on it changes the status between complete and incomplete.
"Entry Modified" is a field that I've included in many data tables that I've been writing recently and I find it to be a very useful field. An "Entry Modified" field protects data from slipping into a forgotten realm by enforcing the idea that the oldest records demand the most attention. When I render modifications to a record, the "Entry Modified" date is updated to when the modification was rendered.
The last field displays a sum of the total hours spent on a particular project. The recording of work hours is performed with the form displayed in the next image.
Clicking on "Log in labor time" on the Projects form opens up this form. I created a table called "Labor" which records the log in and log out times for a particular project. When I click "Log Out" on this particular form, the form closes after having added my log in and log out times to the table. Whenever I view a project's data in the Project form, it performs an operation that sums up all of the time spent on one project; I have to multiply the sum by 24 in order to display it as hours. Clicking the button labeled "Calculate" gives me a current reading of my current time without manipulating any of the table data.
On the Projects form, the only data from the Projects table that can be manipulated are the project's status and the project's modification date; the modification date is automatically updated when the status is modified. To modify the project's title or description, I created this form. It works successfully at changing the record data, though I've yet to figure out how to make the change appear immediately on the Project form itself when the focus returns to it. Right now, it's a flaw I can live with.
Finally, we have the form for adding new projects to the database. When a new project is created, it also creates its respective subfolder in the Projects folder and also gives it a generic image for its profile; I personally modify the profile images in Adobe Photoshop. Again, a slight flaw in regards to this is that, in order to navigate to the recently-created project record, I would have to return to the main menu and then return to the Projects form for the new project to show up in navigation.
Ideally, the usage of this database should keep me from having to navigate through the Projects folder via Windows. In time, I am going to find data related to retired projects I completed before the incorporation of the database and retroactively give them project numbers as well.
Modifications I am considering making to the database in the future include:
- Work last performed field - This is something I want to include on the Projects form once I start actually recording some labor logs. It will relay the date of my last log out in regards to a particular project.
- Expenditures - This would require creating a table called "Expenses" where I could record two-digit-precision values related to expenditures and purchases related to a project.
- Budget - I am unsure exactly how I would budget a project, considering that I don't have much experience and that I've never been commissioned.
- Deadline - A deadline is probably a very important field that should consider including in my project data.
- Priority - Highly inspired by my experience working with the college maintenance staff, I can give projects a 1 to 5-star rating in regards to its priority.
- Revenues - Again, this is very dubious and is dependent on actual commissions.
- Contacts - A list of contacts might be an entirely-separate database.
Microsoft Access does offer templates databases to its users, and one of those templates was in fact a projects database. However, the saying goes, "If you want something done right, do it yourself." I want a database that fits my specific needs. Furthermore, I would like to think that such a database constructed from scratch would reflect positively on my skills.
Thank you for visiting.