| Lesson 9 | Customizing sections on a form |
| Objective | Modify the various form sections (headers, footers, and detail). |
Customizing Sections on Access Form
There are a total of five sections possible to use on a Microsoft Access form, of which one (the Detail section) is the only required one.
Explanation: In Microsoft Access, a form can have up to five sections, and the "Detail section" is the only one that is "required" to display data. The five sections are:
Key Point: The "Detail section: is the only mandatory section because it is where the data from the form's record source (table or query) is displayed. All other sections are optional and can be included or excluded based on the form's design needs.
Explanation: In Microsoft Access, a form can have up to five sections, and the "Detail section" is the only one that is "required" to display data. The five sections are:
-
Form Header:
- Used for displaying a title, instructions, or any information that applies to the entire form.
- Optional.
-
Page Header:
- Appears at the top of each printed page of the form.
- Optional.
-
Detail:
- This section contains the actual data from the underlying table or query.
- Required. Without this section, the form cannot display or manage data.
-
Page Footer:
- Appears at the bottom of each printed page.
- Optional.
-
Form Footer:
- Used for summaries, navigation buttons, or other controls that apply to the entire form.
- Optional.
Key Point: The "Detail section: is the only mandatory section because it is where the data from the form's record source (table or query) is displayed. All other sections are optional and can be included or excluded based on the form's design needs.
Access Section Display
1. Labels on the Microsoft Access Form The labels on the form are organized into the following sections:
Form Header
- Company Name
- Contact
- Phone
Page Header
- Customer Phone List
- Company Name
- Contact
- Phone
Detail Section This section does not contain labels but includes text boxes:
- CompanyName (bound to a field)
- ContactName (bound to a field)
- Phone (bound to a field)
Page Footer
- Contains a formula: `=Format(Date(), "Medium Date")` (likely displays the current date in medium format when the form is run).
Form Footer
- A set of alphabet navigation buttons labeled with letters A through Z, likely used for navigating to specific records based on alphabetic order.
Summary The form uses:
- Header and Footer labels for titles and data categorization.
- Alphabetic buttons in the footer for navigation.
- A page footer for dynamically displaying the current date.
- Used for displaying information or controls that remain the same for all records.
- Used for column headings when printing a form.
- Displays record information.
- Used for summarizing page information when printing a form.
- Used for displaying information or controls that remain the same for all records. Also used for summarizing information for all records.
You can see the Five Sections by clicking on the View Mouseover button to the left, or by using the Customer Phone List form from
By default, when you create a form from scratch, the Detail section is displayed. To display and use the other sections, you need to use either Page Header/Footer or Form Header/Footer from the View menu.
Once you have displayed a section, you can then customize it as you like. Just as with the form as a whole and controls, you can modify different aspects of the form by double-clicking on a section, thereby displaying the property sheet.
Here are a few tips to help you use the various sections to their best advantage:
Northwind.mdb, a sample database that comes with Access.By default, when you create a form from scratch, the Detail section is displayed. To display and use the other sections, you need to use either Page Header/Footer or Form Header/Footer from the View menu.
Once you have displayed a section, you can then customize it as you like. Just as with the form as a whole and controls, you can modify different aspects of the form by double-clicking on a section, thereby displaying the property sheet.
Here are a few tips to help you use the various sections to their best advantage:
- Use page headers and footers only when you are printing a form.
- Use form headers and footers for displaying controls and information that you want displayed regardless of what record you are on. Notice in the MouseOver that the buttons at the bottom of the form remain in place.
- When you want something to reflect for each record, put it in the Detail section.