Directive too loose

[E.Q.]

I've received a directive from my boss's boss. He'd like to see a database
to record "key" process events. He'd like something with "key words we could
use to identify the event and search for the item we're looking for." I'm
considering setting up something so each department has their own "key"
words, though they wouldn't be unique (for example, both operations &
maintenance would have "Primary", "secondary", and "tertiary" as potential
"key" words.)
I would guess this is not an uncommon application for Access. Does anyone
know of some examples I can find on-line?
Also, any suggestions regarding such a loosely defined database. I'm a bit
concerned about the "key" words list growing out of control if I set up
something to let the users add key words; yet I don't want something so
narrow that a "key event" is not recorded because it doesn't fit. So any
reference to a database where the users assign "key words" or "categories"
would be appreciated. (I'm wondering if there's something similar to how
Outlook allows tasks to be assigned to different categories)
Peace
EQC

 

[Steve]

This is a very common application for Access. I have created many
applications of this type for customers. Consider the following tables:
TblDepartment
DepartmentID
Department
<Other Department Fields>

TblKeyword
KeywordID
Keyword

TblDepartmentKeyword
DepartmentKeywordID
DepartmentID
KeywordID

As you can see, you have one table of keywords in TblKeyword but in
TblDepartmentKeyword you associate only certain keywords for each
department. In TblDepartmentKeyword you can have more than one department
sharing the same keyword.

For data entry, you would have a form/subform. The main form would be based
on TblDepartment and the subform would be based on TblDepartmentKeyword. The
Linkmaster/Linkchild properties would be set as DepartmentID. In the
subform, Keyword would be entered using a combobox with a row source of
TblKeyword. Everytime you made an entry of Keyword in the subform,
DepartmentID would be automatically entered.

To record key process events you would need a different table containing
DepartmentKeywordID along with your process events fields. Data entry for
this table would be with a different form containing two comboboxes to enter
DepartmentKeywordID. The comboboxes would be set up as cascading comboboxes
(see mvps.org/access). You would select DepartmentID in the first combobox
and the the second combobox would then give you a list of keywords only
associated with the selected DepartmentID.

If you need help with this database, I can help you. I provide help with
Access, Excel and Word applications for a small fee. You can contact me if
you want my help.

Steve
(e-mail address removed)

 

[John... Visio MVP]

If you need help with this database, I can help you. I provide help with
Access, Excel and Word applications for a small fee. You can contact me if
you want my help.

Steve
(e-mail address removed)

These newsgroups are provided by Microsoft for FREE peer to peer support.
There are many highly qualified individuals who gladly help for free. Stevie
is not one of them, but he is the only one who just does not get the idea of
"FREE" support. He offers questionable results at unreasonable prices. If he
was any good, the "thousands" of people he claims to have helped would be
flooding him with work, but there appears to be a continuous drought and he
needs to constantly grovel for work.

A few gems gleaned from the Word New User newsgroup over the Christmas
holidays to show Stevie's "expertise" in Word.


Dec 17, 2008 7:47 pm

Word 2007 ..........
In older versions of Word you could highlght some text then go to Format -
Change Case and change the case of the hoghloghted text. Is this still
available in Word 2007? Where?
Thanks! Steve


Dec 22, 2008 8:22 pm

I am designing a series of paystubs for a client. I start in landscape and
draw a table then add columns and rows to setup labels and their
corresponding value. This all works fine. After a landscape version is
completed, I next need to design a portrait version. Rather than strating
from scratch, I'd like to be able to cut and paste from the landscape
version and design the portrait version.
Steve


Dec 24, 2008, 1:12 PM

How do you protect the document for filling in forms?
Steve


One of my favourites:
Dec 30, 2008 8:07 PM - a reply to stevie
(The original poster asked how to sort a list and stevie offered to create
the OP an Access database)

Yes, you are right but a database is the correct tool to use not a
spreadsheet.

Not at all. If it's just a simple list then a spreadsheet is perfectly
adequate...




John... Visio MVP

 

[Jeff Boyce]

One of the considerations you'll want to keep in mind is that allowing users
to add "keywords" could result in something like:

Fruit
Friut
Furit
Apples

and even more confusing:

Fruit
Fruit
Fruit
Fruit

(which one is the RIGHT one?!)

Another approach might be to take this incrementally. If you start off with
a limited list of valid keywords, and provide an "OTHER" keyword that
requires the user to enter the new/other search term, you, or whoever
maintains the database, can periodically review what's cropping up as OTHER
and add reasonable (and mutually-exclusive) keywords.

That "mutually-exclusive" is important ... in the first example, an apple is
an example of a fruit. So if you pick "apple" for one record and "fruit"
for another, how many "fruits" do you have?!

Just a thought ... if you checked out the template Microsoft offers for
DVD/CD collections, it might have a mechanism for 'tagging' things to make
searching easier.

Good luck!

Regards

Jeff Boyce
Microsoft Office/Access MVP

 

[E.Q.]

Thanks Jeff,
You're approach addresses one of my chief cocerns. I've maintained an Excel
file as a shift log and I'm always being asked to add words to the
validation list I use to keep keywords. At one time I let the other
supervisors know where the list was, but they kept adding items that I didn't
think merit a separate key word. (In this type of application, my philosophy
is to "lump" not "split"; in your example, I would normally limit the key
word to "Fruit" and let the comments elsewhere denote that we're talking
about "Apples" unless I were convinced that the split is needed. A report
based on one or two entries tagged with "apples" probably wouldn't be very
meaningful.)
Your suggestion to provide an "Other" would allow someone the opportunity to
expand the list in a more contorlled fashion.
I'm not familiar with the collections database you mentioned, where can I
find that?
Peace
EQC

 

[Jeff Boyce]

Check at the Microsoft.com website, look for "templates".

Regards

Jeff Boyce
Microsoft Office/Access MVP