Creating scientific data collection form

[JGVT]

Is access right for me?
I am a natural resource and environment management specialist and I would
like to create a data collection sheet for an ecological survey. I have used
access in the past for data management, however, I am still a beginner. I
understand that I can use access to create forms that can be used to collect
and enter data. But I am not sure how to do this as it has been a while since
I have used access. Are there tutorials available for this?
I wish to collect scientific data on a number of ecological characteristics.
Are there examples of forms that have been used for this purpose available
somewhere?

Thanks you for any information you can provide me. It will be greatly
appreciated.

 

[Al Campagna]

JGVT,
Sounds like you're collecting data, so Access would be the appropriate
vehicle for that.
Any reasonably good Access book should do the trick. I'd look for one
geared towrads "begginner to intermediate" to start. Also, Amazon buyers
rate these books, so that would be a good guide.
There may be a technical/community college in your area, and taking a
beginner Access course, if available, would be effective.

As far as any ready-made "templates"... I can only suggest a Google
search... using search terms appropriate to your specific task.

Suggestion... if a "paper" form already exists to collect the data
you're
looking for, that would be an excellent model for your table/s and your
input form/s.
--
hth
Al Campagna
Microsoft Access MVP
http://home.comcast.net/~cccsolutions/index.html

"Find a job that you love... and you'll never work a day in your life."

 

[Steve]

Hello JGVT,

I'dike to offer to build the database for you. I provide fee-based help for
Access, Excel and Word applications. My fee would be very modest for this
project. If you would like my help, contact me.

Steve
(e-mail address removed)

 

[Tom]

Is access right for me?
I am a natural resource and environment management specialist and I would
like to create a data collection sheet for an ecological survey. I have used
access in the past for data management, however, I am still a beginner. I
understand that I can use access to create forms that can be used to collect
and enter data. But I am not sure how to do this as it has been a while since
I have used access. Are there tutorials available for this?  
I wish to collect scientific data on a number of ecological characteristics.
Are there examples of forms that have been used for this purpose available
somewhere?

Thanks you for any information you can provide me. It will be greatly
appreciated.

Yes it will work, and work quite nicely as long as you plan ahead.
However, keep in mind that while it is *easy* to make one field in
your data table for each parameter you want to collect, it will lead
you to much grief later. Resist the temptation. It will get really
ugly later on down the line when you want to add a new parameter and
you have to redesign your db because of it. If you are collecting
lots of parameters you will also run into limitations on the number of
fields in a table and the number of controls on a form.

A better format is to have a child table with with a field for the
parameter name and the value. This will also lead you to grief if you
are collecting both numerical values and text, but not nearly as much
grief and can be overcome with some good planning.

Bottom line - do yourself a favor and read about normalizing data
before you start down this path.

Good luck - you are starting where I did about 12 years ago (albeit in
air quality). Its been an interesting and rewarding journey.

Tom

 

[Mark Andrews]

Access sounds like the good choice, or a web based application that uses a
database of some sort.

- Access Books are always a good idea if you want to learn.
- Understanding database design is a good idea.
- I have some templates on my site (http://www.rptsoftware.com).
- Microsoft has some templates (see links at
http://www.rptsoftware.com/help/microsoft_access_links/)

If you have the survey in an electronic form (word document etc...). You
could send it to me, I'll take a look and give you my recommendation on
table design (no charge).

The bigger question is what do you do with all the data you collect and how
can Access help you in that regard?

HTH,
Mark Andrews
RPT Software
http://www.rptsoftware.com

 

[John... Visio MVP]

Hello JGVT,

I'dike to offer to build the database for you. I provide fee-based help
for Access, Excel and Word applications. My fee would be very modest for
this project. If you would like my help, contact me.

Steve

These newsgroups are provided by Microsoft for FREE peer to peer support.
There are many highly qualified individuals who gladly help for free. Stevie
is not one of them, but he is the only one who just does not get the idea of
"FREE" support. He offers questionable results at unreasonable prices. If he
was any good, the "thousands" of people he claims to have helped would be
flooding him with work, but there appears to be a continuous drought and he
needs to constantly grovel for work.

A few gems gleaned from the Word New User newsgroup over the past Christmas
period and a few gems from the Access newsgroups to show Stevie's
"expertise".


Dec 17, 2008 7:47 pm

Word 2007 ..........
In older versions of Word you could highlght some text then go to Format -
Change Case and change the case of the hoghloghted text. Is this still
available in Word 2007? Where?
Thanks! Steve


Dec 22, 2008 8:22 pm

I am designing a series of paystubs for a client. I start in landscape and
draw a table then add columns and rows to setup labels and their
corresponding value. This all works fine. After a landscape version is
completed, I next need to design a portrait version. Rather than strating
from scratch, I'd like to be able to cut and paste from the landscape
version and design the portrait version.
Steve


Dec 24, 2008, 1:12 PM

How do you protect the document for filling in forms?
Steve


One of my favourites:
Dec 30, 2008 8:07 PM - a reply to stevie
(The original poster asked how to sort a list and stevie offered to create
the OP an Access database)

Yes, you are right but a database is the correct tool to use not a
spreadsheet.

Not at all. If it's just a simple list then a spreadsheet is perfectly
adequate...


Sept 10, 2009
(In respose to a perfectly adequate GENERIC solution stevie wrote)

This function is specific to the example but not generic for any amount paid
out.

Steve



Sept 9, 2009

you can then return all the characters in front of it with the Left()
fumction. Would look like:
Left("YourString",Instr("YourString","VbCr" Or "VbLf") - 1)

Steve

No, it would not look like

Left("YourString",Instr("YourString","VbCr" Or "VbLf") - 1)

First of all, the constants are vbCr and vbLf: no quotes around them. With
the quotes, you're looking for the literal strings.

Second, you can't Or together character constants like that. Even if you
could, Or'ing them together in the InStr function like that makes no sense
at all.



Sept 22,2009
Sorry Steve, even I can see that this is a useless answer. I made it pretty
clear that "CW259" is just ONE possible value for the control.

Hello David,

Open your report in design view and select txtOrderID. Open properties and
go to the Data tab. Put the following expression in the Control Source
property:

=IIF([chkActive],"CW259","(CW259)")

Steve

John... Visio MVP

 

[JGVT]

Thanks for the tips. I took two courses on Access in '05 but have had little
use for the skills until now. I am working on a biodiversity assessment and
monitoring program in West Africa. The government institutions here have poor
data managment standards, so I am essentially starting from scratch. I have
been doing a lot a research online and have found some tutorials and such. I
should be off to a good start re-learning the program.

Cheers!

James

 

[JGVT]

Thanks for the tips. Appreciate it.

JGVT,
Sounds like you're collecting data, so Access would be the appropriate
vehicle for that.
Any reasonably good Access book should do the trick. I'd look for one
geared towrads "begginner to intermediate" to start. Also, Amazon buyers
rate these books, so that would be a good guide.
There may be a technical/community college in your area, and taking a
beginner Access course, if available, would be effective.

As far as any ready-made "templates"... I can only suggest a Google
search... using search terms appropriate to your specific task.

Suggestion... if a "paper" form already exists to collect the data
you're
looking for, that would be an excellent model for your table/s and your
input form/s.
--
hth
Al Campagna
Microsoft Access MVP
http://home.comcast.net/~cccsolutions/index.html

"Find a job that you love... and you'll never work a day in your life."





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