Interactive time line - any help greatly appreciated...

[ac512]

Hello

I am using Access 2000, and am wondering if it is possible to create an
interactive timeline.
Basically, users input changes with an effective date (and other
information), and I would like to plot these changes on a time line with a
link (button or the like) to additional information regarding that specific
change.

Is this possible? I presume it would need to be a form (as opposed to a
report)?

Any help would be greatly appreciated

kind regards
AC

 

[Wayne-I-M]

Hi

It would take quite a while to set up - but if it's important thats not a
problem. I'm not sure what you mean by interactive".

This is just one method (the simplest I can think of - not tested) there
will be others. All this wuld do is record the changes to a form, by who and
when.

You could create a report showing what - who - when

Create a new table.
ChangeID
Date
User
* (thats all the contros that are on the form as fields)

Create another table (if you don't already have one)
UserID
UserName

Use the forms field's events, not the form' s events - eg. AfterUpdate,
OnChange, etc, to write the data from the the control to the new table field.


The user would have to "log-in" somehow to the form (this could be OnLoad
Open Activate etc). Best bet would be a simple combo sourced from tblUser -
you can force this to be changed prior to anything being changed on the form

The datetamp would be a setvalue OnChange of the form

It's not complex (the best answer never are) and it would work but it would
need setting up and testing

Good luck

 

[James A. Fortune]

Hello

I am using Access 2000, and am wondering if it is possible to create an
interactive timeline.
Basically, users input changes with an effective date (and other
information), and I would like to plot these changes on a time line with a
link (button or the like) to additional information regarding that specific
change.

Is this possible? I presume it would need to be a form (as opposed to a
report)?

Any help would be greatly appreciated

kind regards
AC

Mostly random thoughts:

For true graphical interactivity you might be better off using the
Microsoft Presentation Foundation (MPF). For example, see:

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa970268.aspx

It may be possible to integrate a .Net application that handles the
graphic interactivity with an existing Access database. I have been
looking at other ways to add interactive graphics functionality into
Access, but at present the WPF seems to be the most powerful and
forward-looking method.

For an Access-only method perhaps look at the gdi+ API functions:

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms536380.aspx

The creation of a PDF file containing hyperlinks along the timeline is a
possibility if your timeline creation speed demands are modest. Also,
with a PDF file you can have a long, miniature timeline that users can
zoom in on.

James A. Fortune
(e-mail address removed)

 

[xiaojun]

Hi

It would take quite a while to set up - but if it's important thats not a
problem. I'm not sure what you mean by interactive".

This is just one method (the simplest I can think of - not tested) there
will be others. All this wuld do is record the changes to a form, by who
and
when.

You could create a report showing what - who - when

Create a new table.
ChangeID
Date
User
* (thats all the contros that are on the form as fields)

Create another table (if you don't already have one)
UserID
UserName

Use the forms field's events, not the form' s events - eg. AfterUpdate,
OnChange, etc, to write the data from the the control to the new table
field.


The user would have to "log-in" somehow to the form (this could be OnLoad
Open Activate etc). Best bet would be a simple combo sourced from
tblUser -
you can force this to be changed prior to anything being changed on the
form

The datetamp would be a setvalue OnChange of the form

It's not complex (the best answer never are) and it would work but it
would
need setting up and testing

Good luck