How can I disable Access 2007 table column drop down arrows?

[John Partyka]

Please help! There's been almost no response to this question, so I'll try
again:

Is there a way to disable those new Access 2007 table column heading drop
down arrows (for the filter menu list boxes) that automatically appear over
each field when a table is opened in datasheet mode?

This is about tables in their "raw" datasheet view... I know how it can be
done on a form, but I need to be able to disable it for tables in certain
shared databases (where I use relationships to provide a simple but very
powerful hierachical data grid with up to 7 table "levels"). The arrows are
hogging too much header space on small columns and temporarily lock the
tables when users accidentally click on them... spoiling a once elegant and
useful feature from prior Access versions.

Doesn't anyone else have problems with these... or those silly "Add New
Field" columns?

 

[Clifford Bass]

Hi John,

I do not know about the first issue, but the second is easily solved.
Office button, Access Options, Current Database, Application Options section,
uncheck "Enable design changes for tables in Datasheet view (for this
database)".

Clifford Bass

 

[John Partyka]

Thanks Clifford... that disables the "Add New Field" column. (I notice you
have to close and reopen the database for it to kick in.)

To all other gurus or MS reps out there, my main problem remains:

Is there any way to disable the drop down arrows in table datasheet view?

 

[Clifford Bass]

Hi John,

You are welcome. And good luck on the other issue.

Clifford Bass

 

[Albert D. Kallal]

Please help! There's been almost no response to this question, so I'll
try
again:

Is there a way to disable those new Access 2007 table column heading drop
down arrows (for the filter menu list boxes) that automatically appear
over
each field when a table is opened in datasheet mode?

Not that I know of.

The arrows are
hogging too much header space on small columns

Doesn't anyone else have problems with these... or those silly "Add New
Field" columns?

I guess most are not having a problem with this..and that's likely why you
are such alone on this problem. As the other poster mentioned, you can turn
off tee add column feature.

Users can re-size the columns in datasheet view, so you can never really
control the layout here...it much up to the user...

I do think perhaps an option to turn off the arrows should be available, but
at the end of the day the arrows don't take up that much room, and the user
can re-size the columns (you can't really control this).

If you base the table on a query, (or change the captions in the fields),
then you can free up additional space. When things are that tight...you are
starting to micro-manage the interface, and that just takes up too much
developer time. just increase the size of the form a bit. Throw in that most
of use don't use direct table views or datasheet views, then throw in most
of us don't have the columns so tight in terms of formatting, and then
throw in the fact that most of us don't use sub-datasheets because of
performance issues, and then throw in (20 more issues), then that much
explains the lack of response here....

 

[John Partyka]

Thanks, Albert. I appreciate your response... especially the part we agree
on ("an option to turn off the arrows should be available"). As for the
parts we don't, I'm sure we're both too busy to debate something this
trivial. However valid I think your general perspective is, your
micro-manage comment and sub-datasheet concerns don't really apply in this
case.

For other developers out there, sub-datasheets can provide a very quick and
powerful interface tool for users that need to access aggregated statistics
at various summary levels. You simple design tables keyed to the appropriate
summary level, define their relationships, populate them with aggregated
data, and voila... your users have a data grid that allows them drill-down to
any summary level by simply opening the top-level table!

In spite of the apparent popularity of these unnecessary, space-wasting
column header arrows, can anyone out there please confirm that there is
indeed no way to disable them?

 

[Dirk Goldgar]

In spite of the apparent popularity of these unnecessary, space-wasting
column header arrows, can anyone out there please confirm that there is
indeed no way to disable them?

Unfortunately, it's hard to prove a negative. I can say that *I* don't know
any way to disable them, but I haven't studied the matter for more than an
hour. I suppose maybe it could be done by very low-level Windows
programming, getting handles to the windows representing the captions and
manipulating them. That would be decidedly non-trivial, and might not even
be possible.

I wonder if there's an Access-compatible grid control out there that might
serve your specialized need. There is, or was, an MSHFlexGrid control --
"Hierarchical FlexGrid" -- that seems on the face of it to be similar in
concept. But I don't know anything about it.

 

[Albert D. Kallal]

Thanks, Albert. I appreciate your response... especially the part we
agree
on ("an option to turn off the arrows should be available"). As for the
parts we don't, I'm sure we're both too busy to debate something this
trivial. However valid I think your general perspective is, your
micro-manage comment and sub-datasheet concerns don't really apply in this
case.

You simply asked why there was no response are answers to this question, and
I gave you what I thought was the answer.

This is kind of one of those things where if you don't like the answer, then
you probably should not ask the question the first place.

I was not really answering as to a solution here, as I don't have one. I was
simply explaining why I thought there was lack of a response here.

I am in 100% agreement with you that I think their should be an option to
remove the arrow dropdowns. In fact I think if there's one axiom of
developers, it's that we always are running out of space on the screen no
matter what size it is.

So, yes, we should be able to disable those arrow keys. On other hand that
wasn't your question, your question was how come nobody else is having this
problem and how come you're not getting a response, that is a mount
Everest's, grand canyon of a different question.

It is pretty darn logical to assume that if everybody else is having this
problem and it's a really big deal, then you should have received a bunch of
responses. Unless you can come up with an intellectual or intellectually
driven intelligent answer as to why you are not getting responses here, I'm
open to other reasons as to why this is not the case....

Like I said, I'm in total agreement with you on this issue. I think the
access team overlooked this issue, and I think they missed the mark on this
one. Next time I see and talk to the access team, I will bring this issue
up...

However, that issue is 100% different issue then that of why you not
receiving any responses here.

 

[John Partyka]

Hi Albert,

I'm sorry if I left the wrong impression. My primary goal is to disable the
arrows. The rest was attitude. I really did appreciate your response... but
yes, it wasn't exactly what I hoped to hear. Thank you for offering to bring
this issue up next time you meet the access team... and your continued
support for fellow access developers like me... even when we don't enjoy the
message!

John

 

[John Partyka]

Good suggestion, Dirk. I'll definately look into the "Hierarchical FlexGrid"
control you mentioned... and failing that, I suppose I could pursue an
alternate solution using excel pivot tables, or something of that ilk. (I
think it's safe to assume the negative on a disabling approach now.)

Thanks!

 

[mattward]

Hi John,

Not sure if you ever found an answer to this one.. but there is one!

I've been trying to solve this for most of today and by trial and error finally found my answer, but I came across this post shortly before I managed to solve it and thought I'd share my findings.

You need to go into Design View on your Datasheet, look at the properties and under the "Other" tab there is an option called "Shortcut Menu" which needs to be set to No.

That will disable all shortcuts on this form, though because it's a datasheet shouldn't pose too much of a problem.

Thanks,


Matt.

 

[CLIN]

Thank you!!!! This is exactly what I was looking for, and the solution is so simple! I also want to thank those who originally posted the question. Certainly there are more than a handful of people who would love to remove those little triangles!

 

[Nato]

The Access database I inherited has about 205 forms so instead of going through and making changes to each I went ahead and automated it.
Figured I would go ahead and share the two functions I used... took about 5 seconds for it run through them all.

Public Function setShortcutMenuAll(bValue As Boolean)
Dim sFormName As String
Dim forx As Long
For forx = 0 To CurrentProject.AllForms.Count - 1
sFormName = CurrentProject.AllForms(forx).Name
setShortcutMenu sFormName, bValue
Next forx
End Function
Public Function setShortcutMenu(sFormName As String, bValue As Boolean)
DoCmd.Close acForm, sFormName, acSaveNo
DoCmd.OpenForm sFormName, acDesign
Forms(sFormName).ShortcutMenu = False
DoCmd.Close acForm, sFormName, acSaveYes
End Function

I hope it helps someone out