Go to Tools|Options|Forms/Reports tab and enter the name of the form you
wish to use as a template. The help file has a good description on using the
template. Note, from the help file pasting below, that forms created using a
Wizard will not use the template.
From the help file:
"When you create a form or report without using a wizard, Microsoft Access
uses a template to define the default characteristics of the form or report.
The template determines which sections a form or report will have and
defines each section's dimensions. The template also contains all the
default property settings for the form or report and its sections and
controls (control: A graphical user interface object, such as a text box,
check box, scroll bar, or command button, that lets users control the
program. You use controls to display data or choices, perform an action, or
make the user interface easier to read.). However, a template doesn't create
controls on a new form or report.
The default templates for forms and reports are called Normal. However, you
can use any existing form or report as a template. You can also create a
form or report to use only as a template. Changing the template doesn't have
any effect on existing forms or reports.
Microsoft Access saves the settings for the Form Template and Report
Template options in your Microsoft Access workgroup information file
(workgroup information file: A file that Access reads at startup that
contains information about the users in a workgroup. This information
includes users' account names, their passwords, and the groups of which they
are members.), not in your Microsoft Access database (Microsoft Access
database: A collection of data and objects (such as tables, queries, or
forms) that is related to a particular topic or purpose. The Microsoft Jet
database engine manages the data.) (the .mdb file) or Microsoft Access
project (Microsoft Access project: An Access file that connects to a
Microsoft SQL Server database and is used to create client/server
applications. A project file doesn't contain any data or
data-definition-based objects such as tables and views.) (the .adp file).
When you change an option setting, the change applies to any Access database
or Access project you open or create.
If your templates are not in an Access database or Access project, Microsoft
Access uses the Normal template for any new forms and reports you create.
However, the names of your templates appear in the Form Template and Report
Template options in every Access database or Access project in your database
system, even if the templates are not in every Access database or Access
project"
Another option is to change the default for a control. You can set up a
control the way you want it then click "Set Control Defaults" on the Format
menu. This will apply to all new controls of that type that you add to that
form or report.
