Help Urgently needed, greatly appreciated! (about OLE datatype)

[youjine]

Hi,
I am re-posting my question is: is it possible to insert more than one file
(say, Office documents) into the same and single OLE datatype field in a
table ? I am using Access 2007.
Thank you.
youjine.

 

[Danny J. Lesandrini]

I just read about this over the weekend. Haven't spent much time
with Access 2007 yet, but yes, you can create a field of type Attachment
that allows multiple attachments.

When querying this field, you have the option to select file name and
I think, file size, as columns.

Just add a new field from the field templates of type Attachment.

 

[Fred]

I saw your original post .....here's what I was thiking of writing, but
didn't in case someone came along with what you think that you want.

By "more than one ....in a field, I assume you mean in the same record in
that field. Such violates database normalization design practices. Modify
the following for your actual data, but an example of a solution would be to
make a second DocumentsTable with a FK the same as the PK of your main table,
put the OLE field into that new table, and enter one record for each
document, (more precisely, one record for each instance of linking a
document to a record in your main table. Link the PK in your main table to
the FK in that new table.

Entry of a record in the new table would be entering one document into the
OLE field of the new table plus entering the PK value of the record of the
main table loading the OLE field plus recording the PK of your main table
into the FK of that record in your new table (a form would handle that
automatically, and display it nicely)

 

[Danny J. Lesandrini]

Fred:

This seems to violate normalization, but something goes on behind the scenes in
Access 2007 with multi-value fields where the multiple values are actually saved in
a seperate table. The Attachment field type simply obfuscates the complexity.

What you wrote is correct and necessary for Access 2003 and before, but the poster
said they have Access 2007.

 

[Fred]

That seems like doing the same thing that I wrote except in a more obscure
and version-dependent way. But whatever works best for the OP is what's
best.