Relationship question?

[Randy]

In Lotus Approach I have always been able to use a case number or ssn
number as an ID to link databases. You could enter the case number in
the Main database and if you had a field named case number in the
Detail database it would automatically put that number in the Detail
database if they were linked. It was very simple as the fields only
had to be linked for it to do that.

I would appreciate someone explaining this process in Microsoft Access
to accomplish the same purpose. Is it different? What steps do you
have to take to make it happen?

Thanks again for everyone's help with me learning Access.

 

[Steve Schapel]

Randy,

The most common way this is achieved in Access is via the use, for data
entry, of a form based on the Main table, and a subform based on the
Detail table, with the Link Master Fields and Link Child Fields
properties of the subform set to the linking field. That way, any new
record entered via the subform will have the case number of the current
main form record automatically assigned. In Access, Relationships do
not "do" anything in this way... although if you use the Relationship to
enforce Referential Integrity, this will prevent a case number being
entered in a Detail record without a corresponding Main table record.