Emmanuel Katto Dubai : How to Create Professional Form Styles in Access (1 Viewer)

[emmanuelkatto24]

Hello everyone,

I’m Emmanuel Katto from Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE) quite comfortable with designing databases, tables, and writing code, but I feel that my forms tend to look basic and outdated. I’d like to improve my form styling and learn how to use Access’s design tools to create more professional-looking forms.

I’ve searched for courses, but I haven’t found much information specifically on form styling. Can anyone point me to resources or references that can help me enhance the visual design of my forms?

Thanks in advance for your help!

Best regards,
Emmanuel Katto

 

[Edgar_]

I believe the answer is going to be in what you consider a professional form style. The example you provide is going to tell you what you have to do. We could assist in letting you know how hard it can be.

 

[CarlettoFed]

To make a judgment first you should see a file that you have recently made.
Often we care more about aesthetics than content and this is serious.

 

[arnelgp]

I’d like to improve my form styling and learn how to use Access’s design tools to create more professional-looking forms.

i suggest you first improve your interaction to this forum.

 

[Cotswold]

Have you looked at Sample Databases in this forum?

Pick up some books on Access, 900 pages plus. Most Access books are fairly basic (no pun intended) and for new users. Work by Litwin, Getz & Gunderlay tend to be technically better but not sure about their form appearance. A book like Access 2010 Inside Out may help Conrad & Viescas may help a little but all the useful stuff is on the CD as the book ends at page 1387. Look at as many as you can even though you may only pick up one or two useful ideas from each. I dropped on one design idea in Access97 Power Programming by Barker maybe 20 years ago that I will sometimes use here and there to make the best use of a screen area in certain cases.

I would advise that you get as much as you can onto one screen without it being a mess. So that the user can see everything connected with the subject. Avoid adding/editing by opening one form then another and so on. After six or seven everyone will forget what was on the first. Many users will forget what was on the first by the time they get to screen three. An extreme example are many online logon forms, banks are one. They will often have two or three logon forms, when one would do the job. Many, including Google will have one form for the name and another for the password. Why create two forms when one would do? Keep to one font and colour, avoid bold type. Think about the colour blind. During over 30 years of writing software, until Pat mentioned it on the forum I'd never given them a thought. Reds and greens are one. Avoid text just a shade darker that the background. Most of the IDEs I've used are guilty of that. Ensure your screens are clear and easy to read.

But of course you could do what everyone else does. Find a design pattern that you like, then adapt it to suit yourself. It may take a year or so before you drop on one. None of us here have the faintest idea as to which design would suit you. Which is pretty much why there isn't just one design of car.

 

[Minty]

@emmanuelkatto , @emmanuelkatto23 , @emmanuelkatto24

You are going on my ignore list as you have failed to respond to any of the answers provided in any of your myriad questions.
This tends to make me think you are either a bot, or a wind up, or simply here to waste peoples time.

 

[arnelgp]

ou are going on my ignore list

i think mr.katto is really mr.roboto?
domo arigato..

 

[AHeyne]

Now we know where the AIs get their knowledge from...

 

[The_Doc_Man]

@emmanuelkatto , @emmanuelkatto23 , @emmanuelkatto24

Two comments:

1. (Speaking as an Access app creator): "Professional form styles" is a chimera. You can make FANCY form styles or FLASHY form styles or... you get the idea. "Professional form style" is an idea in the eye of the beholder. It is an OPINION rather than an easily described thing to do. What you REALLY want is a CONSISTENT form style.

The way I used to build apps isn't the only possible way, but it worked for me. I built a "template" form where it had no data links but it had some controls pre-defined that I knew would be on most if not all of my forms - command buttons like SAVE and UNDO and CLOSE and CREATE and REMOVE and other actions. It had code that would test the user ID and look up what would be permitted on that form, disabling and making invisible all of the buttons that would exceed the user's authority. I had HELP and REPORT PROBLEM buttons as well. I had error handling and various tests for closing a "dirty" form. I had non-specific auditing built in. THEN whenever I needed to build a bound form, I copied the template and just filled in the details. Doing it that way had two major effects: (a) I saved having to manually retype that code for all forms, which saved me on the average between 40% and 50% of the total work on the form, and (b) all the forms were consistent in design, appearance, and behavior.

2. (Speaking as a moderator): You appear to have three different usernames. If you are one person, tell us which name you want to use and we will leave that one alone, but might change the states of the other accounts. If this is actually a situation where multiple people are using the accounts, let us know and we can rename the accounts for each person. However, having multiple instances of the same name for the same person is stretching our policy limits. You have been asked to cooperate with us to resolve this issue. Per the quoted paragraph below, taken from the "Terms and Rules" linked at the bottom of each page, we have the right to terminate your accounts if we feel that something fraudulent is occurring.

We may remove or modify any Content submitted at any time, with or without cause, with or without notice. Requests for Content to be removed or modified will be undertaken only at our discretion. We may terminate your access to all or any part of the Service at any time, with or without cause, with or without notice.

 

[DickyP]

@emmanuelkatto , @emmanuelkatto23 , @emmanuelkatto24
1. (Speaking as an Access app creator): "Professional form styles" is a chimera. You can make FANCY form styles or FLASHY form styles or... you get the idea. "Professional form style" is an idea in the eye of the beholder.

I like 'chimera' - better than my simple dismissal 'Profersional stye' as fashion.