Mastering Data Manipulation in Microsoft Access

1. INTRODUCTORY MICROSOFT ACCESSLesson 2 – Manipulating Data

2. Objectives • Edit a record and undo a change. • Select records and fields. • Delete a record. • Cut, copy, and paste data. • Change the layout of a datasheet.

3. Terms Used in This Lesson • Field properties • Field selectors • Record pointer • Record selectors

4. See Figure 2-1 in student book, Navigation buttons Editing a Record • Use the Navigation buttons to make editing easier. • Use the Record Pointer to keep track of the current record.

5. See Figure 2-2 in the book, Record and field selectors Selecting Records and Fields • Field selectors are at the top of a table and contain the field name. • Record selectors are to the left of a record’s first field.

6. See Figure 2-4 in student book, Message warning you that you are about to delete a record Deleting a Record • Select the record. • Choose Delete Record on the Edit menu, or press the Delete key. • A message box appears. Click Yes to permanently delete the record or No to cancel the deletion.

7. Cutting, Copying, and Pasting Data • Select the record. • Choose Cut or Copy on the Edit menu, or click the Cut or Copy buttons on the toolbar. • Choose Paste on the Edit menu, or click the Paste button on the toolbar.

8. Changing the Layout of a Datasheet • Change row height – position the pointer, click and drag to adjust the row height. • Change column width – position the pointer, click and drag to adjust the column width. • Rearrange fields/columns – click and drag the field selector to the new location. • Freeze columns – select the columns to freeze, choose Freeze Columns on the Format menu. • Unfreeze columns – choose Unfreeze All Columns on the Format menu.

9. See Figure 2-10 in student book, Field properties in Design view Changing Field Properties • Field properties allow you to further customize a field beyond choosing a data type. • You can view and change field properties in Design view.

10. Summary • The navigation buttons are used to move around the datasheet. • To undo changes to cells while keying, click the Undo button; if you have already moved to the next cell, press Esc; to reverse all changes to the previous record, choose Undo Saved Record on the Edit menu. • To delete a record, use the Delete Record command or press the Delete key.

11. Summary • Cut, Copy, and Paste are available in Datasheet view to move and copy data. • You can make many changes to a datasheet by adjusting the row height and column width. You can also rearrange and freeze columns. • Field properties allow you to further customize a field beyond merely choosing a data type.