Creating a data entry form with hierarchy... PLEASE HELP!!!

[neilarmour]

I am tasked with creating a scientific database of fish catches at various different sampling stations. I envisage the entry form having a hierarchy, ie year, season, date, sample station, species caught, and then the specific associated data with each species (weight, abundance, length etc) will be a distinct record.

As fas as data entry is concerned, I would like the user to not have to re-enter the same information over and over when entering multiple species entries at the same sampling station, on the same date and so on up the hierarchy.

Can anyone please help me with advice as to how to create this hierarchy as I am very new to Access, and I can't find specific help on this matter online.:banghead:

I appreciate any help I can get here!!!

 

[spikepl]

1. Use ! sparingly - they make you look like the beginner you seemingly are
2. "Please help", "problem", "issue" are redundant in titles - 99% of posts concern help on issues. Write the specifics of the issue as title netx time , so that they are easy to find for posterity
3. From your tale it is not obvious what your "hierarchy" actually is supposed to be -attach a picture, or excel file or some doc with an example.

 

[neilarmour]

In each year there are 2 sampling seasons. In each sampling season there are up to 20 dates on which samples are taken. On each date there are up to 50 sample stations recorded. And at each station up to 20 species can be recorded.

In order to enter each species caught in a survey, the end user will potentially have to fill the season box with an entry 40,000 times. For each season there will be 20,000 date entries to be made. For each date, 1,000 station code entries, and 20 species entries for each station. What I would like to happen is this. When the end user is entering the data, he or she will be working through the hierarchy from the ground up. Ie., they will enter a particular species' data (abundance, weight, length etc) at a particular station on a particular date during a particular sampling season. The next entry will be a different species at the same station on the same date during the same season. I would like the information from the previous record to be copied across onto the new one so that all the end user has to do is enter the species name, abundance weight and length data.

Once they have finished entering all the species data for that particular site, they can move onto the next site which they would fill in the data themselves for the station code. So, in the hierarchy, the first button would copy all the previous data except the species name and associated weight length abundance data. The next button would do the same, except leave the station code blank. The next button would leave the species name, station code and date blank. And so on up the hierarchy. The end user would be able to selectively choose which data is copied over by using these buttons, saving lots of potential extra work doing repetitive entries.

I cannot share excel files or pictures as the data I am working from is restricted so I can't just post it online. I thought I had made the hierarchy idea pretty clear, but as I am indeed a novice all I can do is explain what I want out of the project and hope that someone more savvy than myself can help. I was hoping to avoid having to post an essay to explain but alas I couldn't.