Renaming forms tables and reports

[mbaycura]

Is choosing "save as" and making a copy and removing the original the only
way to rename a report, table, or form? I started with the Issues template
but I want to change the names of the objects. I can right click and rename
the shortcuts in the navigator window, but the name doesn't change and the
references are still under the old name. I do not want my shortcut to be a
different name than the reference name because then there will be confusion
for database maintenance.

I've also tried renaming the objects in their properties window, but I
couldn't find a name or caption property on the main form properties window.

 

[Arvin Meyer [MVP]]

We need to get our references correct to understand one another. The
information I'm going to give will apply to Access 2003 and earlier. I do
not have Access 2007 on this machine yet.

The Objects window is called the Database window. It has several subwindows,
Tables, Queries, Forms, Reports, Pages, Macros, and Modules. We won't
concern ourselves with the Pages window, since it is only used rarely for
Data Access Pages.

If you right-click on any object in any window, one of the menu items is
Rename. Using that, you can rename any of the above objects. They are not
shortcuts to a named object, they are the named object direct references,
and that's where you change the name. You can do it as many times as you
want, but remember, each object has dependencies. Queries, Forms, and
Reports all use Tables. If you rename a table, you will break anything that
depends upon it. There is a name auto-correct feature, but it doesn't work
in every case. I use Speed Ferret:

http://www.speedferret.com

to change object names and I've never had a problem. For 1 time use, it's a
bit pricey, but if you're a professional developer, it pays for itself
quickly. Standard naming conventions are in several webpages. I use these:

http://www.dhdurso.org/articles/ms-access-naming.html

 

[mbaycura]

I found my problem. I had my navigation window organized by "mydatabasename
navigation" instead of listed by "object type" and when listed by navigation
they are all shortcuts, but organized by another way they are the direct
objects and right click rename will work...Thanks!