Business Solutions: Learn More in 2005-Access 2003

        by James D. Duncan, CPA    January 2005

 

            When you make your 2005 resolutions, add self improvement in your Access skills.  You don’t have to buy books or go to classes, even though those are not bad ideas.  Your software has built-in help and many areas you can investigate to improve your skills. 

            First let’s look into Access’s online help. Click on the Help icon and you get the Office Online help.

 

 

 

Just below the Assistance section is an information icon labeled Table of Contents. Click on it and a world of information appears.

 

 

 

Just for example, click on Access for Your Job.  This will open up that category to display 9 more sections.  Now click on the first item, “Looking for a better job? Add Access to your resume!” and you will be taken to Microsoft’s Web site that has a tremendous amount of information on just this one subject.

           Scroll down this page and there are sections on “Getting started with Access 2003” and “Office training courses on Access”.  If you have Office 2003 installed, there are free online courses on many areas of Access.  Just read this page and you will see that Microsoft has so much information online that buying books might just be outdated.

            Back on the help page with the heading Assistance on the top, click on the Connect to Microsoft Online and you will be taken to Microsoft’s page with links to all the office products.  Select Access on the left side under Products and you will be taken to the Access page.  This main page is the front door to a library dedicated to the Access product.

            Scroll down this page and select any of the plethora of subjects and you will be taken into the depths of Access that you never knew existed.  There is sample code and further explanations that will explain all the underlying theory principles of database programming and beyond.  As you can see, buying the books may not be necessary.

            The way to learn Access 2003 is to use it.  Set up the database, try to make the tables, queries, forms and reports.  When you get stuck, copy it to a disk or CD and bring it to the study group and we will make it work for you.  Happy New Year!

 

James is a member of the CCOKC and an expert in Access and Excel. Click here to reach James.