Combo box in tbl...good idea or horrible?

[theKruser]

I have a db that I am revamping. My question is more along the lines of proper development procedures.

Generally speaking, is it better to include combo boxes programmatically in the tbl or should all combo boxes be incorporated in frms only?

Does having a combo box in a tbl cause problems in the future?

Explanation: suppose 2 tbls:

tblPERSONNEL
-Employee# (pk)
-LName
-FName
-EquipmentTypeID (fk)

tblEQUIPMENT
-EquipmentTypeID (pk)
-Name
-Description

When looking in tblPERSONNEL, is it better for EquipmentTypeID to simply be a text box? Right now it is a combo box:

Bound Column: 1
Row Source: SELECT tblEQUIPMENT.Equip ...
Column Count: 2
Column Width: 0";1"
etc, etc, etc

Please let me know how you do things. If I should do it a different way...now is the time to make the changes.

Thank you for your time and help! Have a great day!!

 

[pbaldy]

I assume you mean a table level lookup field, which most of us recommend against:

http://www.mvps.org/access/lookupfields.htm

 

[theKruser]

I suppose what I mean is when creating a field in a tbl, shld that field be bound to another tbl, or shld it just be a txt field? I know I want a fk in most of my tables to relaye records, but am not sure if I shld just bidn them thru relationships and/or queries or thru look up. I suppose you have already answered that, but just want to make sure I explain what I mean before I start changing my table properties.

Thanks for your help!!

 

[theKruser]

Perfect example:

In tblPERSONNEL I have a 'Suffix' field. Should that field be a Combo Box Value List with Jr;Sr;II;III;IV;V; etc or should it be a straight out text field with a combo box included in the data entry form and a table relationship established?

 

[Banana]

I'd side with PBaldy here. My view is that table is nothing more than a container, a bucker to dump data into, and thus should not have any "UI" function. That should be strictly the domain of forms. Because we do everything in forms and never directly to table, the benefits of lookup fields is quite diminished. Besides, we have datasheet which also gives us more control over how we can display the data than if we just opened up the table directly.

So for the suffix fields, they'd be just a simple textbox when we view the table but we can use combobox in a form.

 

[theKruser]

Thank you very much for your input. I am reconfiguring my tbls now. I think those lookup fields are the whole reason I am having to revamp my db in the first place. You have helped me immensely and I cannot thank you enough!!

 

[theKruser]

Another question. Staying with the suffix example, should something that mundane be in its own table with an AutoNumber as the PK and the suffix as a field or should it just be a Value List combo box in a form?

I lean toward a tbl of its own for ease of updates for a suffix I might not have in the list initially. Your thoughts?

 

[pbaldy]

I'd go with a table, for the reason you articulated. In my view, a properly designed database is fully maintainable by the users (operationally speaking). A new suffix should not require design changes to the db, which would be required without a table.

 

[theKruser]

Thank you. I will do just that. I truly appreciate your help.