Computer Fundamental and Problem Solving Techniques

BCA First Semester

BCA-1001
UNIT-V
Write short notes on the following:

(i) Control Panel

(ii) Paintbrush
(iii) Taskbar
(iv) Notepad
(v) Icons
(vi) Wordpad

Ans

Control Panel
The Control Panel is centralized configuration area in Windows.

Control Panel Used For

The Control Panel is used to make changes to nearly every aspect of Windows including keyboard and mouse function, passwords
and users, network settings, power management, desktop backgrounds, sounds, hardware, program installation and removal, speech
recognition, parental control, etc.
Think of Control Panel as the place to go in Windows if you want to change something about how it looks or works.

How To Access the Control Panel

Control Panel can be accessed in Windows 7 and Windows Vista by clicking Start and then Control Panel.
You may be able to access Control Panel in Windows XP in the same way or you may need to click onStart, then Settings, and
finally Control Panel.
The Control Panel itself is really just a collection of individual Control Panel applets so to use the Control Panel really means to use an
individual applet to change some part of how Windows works
Here are a few of the thousands of individual changes that are possible from within Control Panel:

Change Your Password

Change Another User's Password
Change AutoPlay Settings

Create a Password for Your Account

Adjust the Date and Time

Remove Your Password

Setup Windows Backup

Start Device Manager

Change Internet Explorer Settings

Configure Regional and Language Settings

Configure Text to Speech and Speech Recognition Settings

Install Windows Updates

Change Network Settings

Adjust Color Quality

Adjust Screen Resolution

Change Your Monitor's Refresh Rate

Adjust Keyboard and Mouse Settings

See the Windows Service Pack You Have Installed

Create a Password Reset Disk
Change Background, Screensaver, and Windows Sounds Settings

Show Hidden Files

Add a Printer

Configure the Start Menu and Taskbar

Configure Windows Firewall Settings

Hide Hidden Files
Change Your Product Key
Manage Windows Gadgets

Notepad is a generic text editor included with all versions of Microsoft Windows that allows you to open and read plaintext files. If
the file contains special formatting or is not a plaintext file, it will not be able to be read in Microsoft Notepad. In the image to the
right, is a small example of what the Microsoft Notepad may look like while running.

Features of Notepad:
1. Notepad has minimal editing features.
2. Notepad has word wrap which prevents text from running over into the margins and automatically moves text to the next line.
3. Used to create/save/open/edit file.
4. Can create time log.
5. Within Notepad – cut, copy, and paste text.
6. Copy data to Notepad from other files.
7. Copy Notepad text to other word processing text or database document.
How to open Windows Notepad

Users who are using Microsoft Windows can run Microsoft Notepad (notepad.exe) by following the steps below.
1. Click Start
2. In the Run box or on the Windows Start Screen type "notepad" and press Enter.

or
1. Click Start
2. Click Programs and then Accessories
3. Click the "Notepad" icon.
How to create a text file using notepad

Open Notepad and type your text you want in the file. Once done save the file by clicking File and then Save. When saving the file

make sure the file is saved with a .txt extension.

or

On the Windows Desktop or any folder right-click anywhere, from the menu select New and then Text Document. After this has been

done a file should appear named "New Text Document", double-click this file to open the text document or rename the file to the

name of your choice and then open the file.

Can you insert a picture in Notepad?

No. Notepad is a plaintext editor and does not support pictures. If you want to insert pictures consider using Word pad instead of

Notepad. Keep in mind that once the file has been saved with a picture it must be saved as a .RTF file and not a .TXT file.

Paint Brush A graphics program that enables you to draw pictures on thedisplay screen which are represented as bit maps (bit-
mapped graphics). In contrast, draw programs use vector graphics (object-oriented images), which scale better.
Most paint programs provide the tools shown below in the form oficons. By selecting an icon, you can perform functions associated
with the tool.
In addition to these tools, paint programs also provide easy ways to draw common shapes such as straight lines, rectangles, circles,
and ovals.
Microsoft Paint or 'MS Paint' is a basic graphics/painting utility that is included in all the Microsoft Windows versions.

• MS Paint can be used to draw, colour and edit pictures, including imported pictures from a digital camera for example.

• MS Paint is found in the Windows Start menu within the Accessories Folder.

• It can save creations in standard formats such as .jpg and .bmp

• Paint can enable ‘painting’ by dragging the mouse and using different types of artistic brushes or pens that can give for
example a watercolour or oil effect. The paint also ‘runs out’ on certain brushes after a period of time so that the brush needs
to be put back into the colour again, as if it was a real painting brush.

• More recent versions of Paint allow up to three colours to be picked at a time using the primary colour with left mouse click,
the secondary colour with right mouse click and the tertiary colour with the control key on the keyboard and any mouse click

• Features included in paint are pencil, brush and airbrush tool. The ability to add text, lines and shapes. Also included are an
eraser, magnifier, and fill colour tools.

• Many complex graphics software applications have concepts that are included in Microsoft Paint and the same principals can
be applied in these from learning within Microsoft Paint.

This is the window that you see when you open Paint.
 I like to use a big drawing area, probably because I'm a
messy worker! Yours may be just a small square. It makes
no difference to the operation of the program.

The dashed rectangle in this picture shows that a selection

has been made. When you first open the window it is quite
blank.

If, however, your Paint window doesn't have colors along

the bottom and a double line of grey squares (with various
small symbols on them) down the left side as this one does,
click View on the menu bar at the top of the window and
tick the items shown here.

Text Toolbar, which is dimmed in this picture, only

becomes available when you're working with text.

The items Zoom and View Bitmap offer different views of your work. The Zoom tool is dealt with under its own heading. View
Bitmap gives you a full-screen view. (On my computer it usually causes Paint to crash, but I suppose every machine has its little
ways.)
Sophisticated paint applications are often called image editing programs. These applications support many of the features of draw
programs, such as the ability to work with objects. Each object, however, is represented as a bit map rather than as a vector image.

TaskBar: When you start the computer system, then start and task bar appears on the bottom of the screen and by default remains
visible when Windows is running. Task bar indicates the number of programme/application running at a moment of time. Whenever a
program is run or a window is opened, an icon representing the program appears on the taskbar. To switch between windows or
program, click on the icon representing the window on the task bar. When the program or window is closed, the icon disappears from
the task bar.
ICON
(i) Icons: Icons can be further classified into five categories:
(ii) Folder Icons: When a folder icon is double clicked, a folder window is opened displaying the contents of the folder.
(iii) Program Icons: When a Program icon is double clicked, the corresponding program is loaded into the memory of
the computer and the application starts running in a Window.
(iv) Document Icons: When a document icon is double clicked, the document itself is opened. For e.g., (Word
processing program, spreadsheet, database etc.
(v) Shortcut Icons: Shortcut icons provide an alternate way to open programs, documents, and folders.
(vi) System Icons: System icons are mandatory programs or files that are located on your desktop. User is not allowed
to delete the system icon, since deleting the system icon would mean deleting the actual program from the hard drive
of the computer. Examples of System Icons are Recycle Bin, My Computer, and Network Neighborhood etc.

Explain the various components of windows desktop.

Ans THE DESKTOP: The most visible change in Windows 95 over earlier versions of Windows is the new user interface. The
full screen display you see when you boot your PC and from which you work with documents and applications.

Icon : An icon is a picture . Windows 95 uses small video icons that represents objects – documents, applications, folders , devices,
and computers. An icon has a text label that further describes the object.

Selection : Selecting an object is pointing to it without taking any further action. To select the object, move the mouse cursor onto the
icon and press the left mouse button once. If the currently selected object is in a group, you can change the selected object with arrow
keys. You can change groups with Tab and Shift- Tab keys and then use arrow keys to select an object in the selected group.
Drag and Drop : To drag and drop an object onto another object, move the mouse cursor onto the icon of the object to be dragged.
Press down the left mouse button and hold it down while you move mouse cursor to be destination object’s icon.

Release the button from that position to complete the drop.

The Right Mouse Button : If you move the mouse to almost anywhere or anything on the desktop or in a Window and click the right
mouse button, Windows 95 displays a menu with common commands for the object. To close the menu, click the left mouse button
anywhere else on the desktop or press the keyboard’s Esc key.

Icons on the Desktop : The upper left corner contain four icons. Those icons provides access to your files and documents. Four icons
are: My computer, Network Neighborhood, Recycle bin and briefcase.

My Computer : The "My Computer" icon on the desktops opens a view into the resources of the local computer . The contents of the
My computer Window depend on the disk drives on your PC and the network support that is installed.

Network Neighborhood : This icon displays the computers and shared printers connected on the windows network.

Recycle Bin : This icon receives all deleted objects like files, folders, documents, applications etc. This deleted objects can be
retrieved back by dragging it out of the recycle bin and dropping it onto the desktop or into a folder or they can be permanently
deleted from the disk by choosing EMPTY RECYCLE BIN selection on the file menu.
 MS WORD

MS WORD: Microsoft word is a word processor that operates under windows operating system. Almost all word processors share
some characteristics with their processor which is the typewriter. You have a page onto which you type characters. You have a ruler
that tells you where you are as you type across the page. You have a tab stops and margin settings.

WHAT IS WORD-PROCESSING?

Word Processor is a Software package that enables you to create, edit, print and save documents for future retrieval and reference.
Creating a document involves typing by using a keyboard and saving it. Editing a document involves correcting the spelling mistakes,
if any, deleting or moving words sentences or paragraphs.

(a) Advantages of Word Processing

One of the main advantages of a word processor over a conventional typewriter is that a word processor enables you to make changes
to a document without retyping the entire document.

(b) Features of Word Processing

Most Word Processor available today allows more than just creating and editing documents. They have wide range of other tools and
functions, which are used in formatting the documents. The following are the main features of a Word Processor

i. Text is typing into the computer, which allows alterations to be made easily.
ii. Words and sentences can be inserted, amended or deleted.
iii. Paragraphs or text can be copied /moved throughout the document.
iv. Margins and page length can be adjusted as desired.
v. Spelling can be checked and modified through the spell check facility.
vi. Multiple document/files can be merged.
vii. Multiple copies of letters can be generated with different addresses through the mail-merge facility.

IMPORTANT FEATURES OF MS-WORD

Ms-Word not only supports word processing features but also DTP features. Some of the important features of Ms-Word are listed
below:

i. Using word you can create the document and edit them later, as and when required, by adding more text, modifying the
existing text, deleting/moving some part of it.
ii. Changing the size of the margins can reformat complete document or part of text.
iii. Font size and type of fonts can also be changed. Page numbers and Header and Footer can be included.
iv. Spelling can be checked and correction can be made automatically in the entire document. Word count and other statistics
can be generated.
v. Text can be formatted in columnar style as we see in the newspaper. Text boxes can be made.
vi. Tables can be made and included in the text.
vii. Word also allows the user to mix the graphical pictures with the text. Graphical pictures can either be created in word itself or
can be imported from outside like from Clip Art Gallery.
viii. Word also provides the mail-merge facility.
ix. Word also has the facility of macros. Macros can be either attached to some function/special keys or to a tool bar or to a
menu.
x. It also provides online help of any option.

The important components of the screen.

(a) Title Bar

The title bar displays the name of the currently active word document. Like other WINDOWS applications, it can be used to alter the
size and location of the word window.

(b) Tool Bars

Word has a number of tool bars that help you perform task faster and with great ease. Two of the most commonly tool bars are the
formatting tool bar and the standard tool bar. These two toolbars are displayed just below the title bar. At any point of time any tool
bar can be made ON or OFF through the tool bar option of View Menu.

(c) Ruler Bar

The Ruler Bar allows you to format the vertical alignment of text in a document.

(d) Status Bar

The Status Bar displays information about the currently active document. This includes the page number that you are working, the
column and line number of the cursor position and so on.

(e) Scroll Bar

The Scroll Bar helps you scroll the content or body of document. You can do so by moving the elevator button along the scroll bar, or
by click in on the buttons with the arrow marked on them to move up and down and left and right of a page.

(f) Workspace

The Workspace is the area in the document window were you enter/type the text of your document.

(g) Main Menu

The Word main menu is displayed at the top of the screen as shown in the Fig. 9.1. The main menu further displays a sub menu. Some
of the options are highlighted options and some of them appear as faded options. At any time, only highlighted options can be
executed, faded options are not applicable. Infect if the option is faded you will not be able to choose it. You may not that any option
faded under present situation may become highlighted under different situations.

MAIN MENU OPTIONS

The overall functions of all the items of main menu are explained below.

(a) File

You can perform file management operations by using these options such as opening, closing, saving, printing, exiting etc. It displays
the following sub menu.

(b) Edit

Using this option you can perform editing functions such as cut, copy, paste, find and replace etc. It displays the following sub menu.
(c) View

Word document can be of many pages. The different pages may have different modes. Each mode has its limitations. For example in
normal mode the graphical picture cannot be displayed. They can only be displayed in page layout mode. Using the option “View”
you can switch over from one mode to other. It displays the following Sub menu.
(d) Insert

Using this menu, you can insert various objects such as page numbers, footnotes, picture frames etc. in your document. It displays the
following Sub menu.
(e) Format

Using this menu, you can perform various type of formatting operations, such as fonts can be changed, borders can be framed etc. It
displays the following Sub menu.
(f) Tools

Using this menu, you can have access to various utilities/tools of Word, such as spell check, macros, mail merge etc. It displays the
following Sub menu.
(g) Table

This menu deals with tables. Using this menu you can perform various types of operations on the table. It displays the following Sub
menu.
(h) Window

This menu allows you to work with two documents simultaneously. This would require two windows to be opened so that each one
can hold one document. Using this menu, you can switch over from one window to another. It displays the following Sub menu.
(i) Help

Using this menu, you can get on-line help for any function.

What is templates? How is it useful?

Templates: Before type the first word in a new document, a number of decisions must be made. The size and orientation of
the page, the margins, type face, font size, and line spacing all have to be specified. This collection of specifications that determine the
appearance of a document is known as a template. Every document created using Word, even the simplest, is based on a template.

Microsoft Word uses a default template, called the Normal template, when you create a new blank document. Unless it has been
modified, the Normal template specifies a letter-size page with the portrait orientation, and one-inch margins on all sides.

A template also supplies a set of styles for a new document. In the Normal template, the default style is the Normal style, which uses a
default type face, font size, and line spacing. However, there are many other styles to choose from, including the heading styles that
define the document’s structure, which we discussed in another module. If you want to change the appearance of what you type, you
can apply a different style, modify an existing style, or even create a new style.
There are template options, too. You may already have several special-purpose templates on your computer. In addition to the page
format and the styles, a template may supply standard text. Your organization may have created customized templates, such as a
letterhead for formal correspondence. Also, you can make or modify your own templates for documents you create often, and keep
them on your hard drive.

Creating a New Template: To create a new template, you can start with an existing template, or a new or existing document. If you
start with an existing template, open the template, make the changes you want, and save it with a new name. If you start from a
document, open the new or existing document, and make your changes to the page formatting and styles. You may include text that
appears each time a new document is based on the template, or it may be saved with no text. Next, when you save the template, select
Word Template from the Save as type pull-down list. Check that it has the correct extension:
• .dotx is the file extension used for templates in Word 2010 and 2007

Explain the Table creation method in MS word

CREATING AND MANAGING TABLES

Sometimes you are required to present data and information in a tabular form while preparing any reports along with the text. Ms-
Word provides a special feature called Table which helps you present the information in a tabular form.

(a) Creating a Table

You can create a table into your document using the Insert option from the Table menu. Place the insertion point where you want to
insert the table and then select Insert Table after clicking on Table from the menu bar. The following dialog box will appear.

From the box you can specify the number of columns and rows and then click on OK to insert the table. The following structure will
be displayed if you specify number of columns at 3 and number of rows at 3.

A table consists of vertical columns and horizontal rows as shown above. The intersection of a column and a row is called
a cell. Gridlines are displayed between the cells.

You can also create a table by clicking on Insert Table button from the formatting toolbar. In this case you need to drag on the Insert
Table button grid to specify the number of columns and rows.

(b) Entering text into Table

After creating a Table at the desired place, you can enter the text by clicking on any of the cell. The Tab key can be used to move to
the next cell. Within each cell, the text wraps just like it does in a given column. The cell expands vertically to fit the text entered.

(c) Modifying Table

After you have created your table or even after you have entered your data into the table, you can still perform various operations on
the table, which are described below:

Inserting Rows and Columns

To insert a row at the end of a table, bring the cursor to the last cell and Press the Tab key. To insert a row within a table, bring the
cursor to the row before which the new row has to appear and then select Insert Row option from Table menu bar. A new row will be
inserted before the selected row.

To insert a column, select the Column option from the Table menu and then select the Insert Column option. A new column will be
inserted to the left of the selected column.

Deleting Rows and Column

To delete one or more contiguous rows in a table, select the row(s) that you want to delete and then select Delete Rows from Table
menu.
To delete one or more contiguous columns, select the column(s) that you want to delete and then select Delete Columns option from
the Table menu.

To delete an entire table, select the table and then choose Delete Rows option from the Table menu.

Changing Column Width

To change column width, point the column boundary that you want to change, the mouse pointer will become a horizontal double
headed arrow. Then drag the column boundary to the desired width and then release the mouse button.

You can also change the column width by selecting the Column and then selecting the option Cell Height and Width from Table
menu. Enter the desired width in the Width of Column text box and click on OK to change the column width of the selected column.

Changing Row Height

To change height of a row, point the row boundary that you want to change, the mouse pointer will become a vertical down headed
arrow. Then drag the row boundary to the desired height and then release the mouse button. You can also change the column width by
selecting the Row and then selecting the option Cell Height and Width from Table menu. Enter the desired height in the Height of
Row text box and click on OK to change the row height of the selected row.

Explain the Picture insert method in MS word.

Ans: Insert an Image

While creating a document in Microsoft Word 2007, you may need to insert a picture into that document. Follow these steps to add an
image to your document.

1. Select the tab labeled Insert.

2. Under the Insert tab, click on the button labeled Picture.

3. Select the image that you wish to insert into the document.

The image will now appear in your document.

Explain the Chart creation method in MS word.

Ans: Creating a graph From the Insert tab click the chart symbol. • This will then insert a graph and display a small data table.
 • This data table can be edited or new data can be imported.
The data sheet is where you type in data to create a graph. It is made up of cells, in rows and columns; columns are labelled
alphabetically across the top of the data sheet.
rows are numbered down the left side. To move the data sheet: position the pointer in the datasheet’s blue title bar, hold down the left
mouse button and drag the datasheet to a new position
• Also note that the menu changes to give more options. From this menu you can change graph type, add axis and labels, and change
what data is displayed on the graph.

Resize •
The chart can be resized by clicking on any of its corners, then dragging this to the desired location.
Position
• It can also be positioned by using the Left, Centre or Right text options.
Deleting
• You can delete your graph by clicking on it and then pressing the delete key or backspace key.
Amend a graph
• In Word® 2007 you can amend any graph by simply double clicking on it. This will then display the menu above and load the data
for the graph.

What is Hyperlink? How would you insert hyperlink in MS word.

Ans: Create a customized hyperlink to a document, file, or Web page

1. Select the text or picture that you want to display as the hyperlink.

2. On the Insert tab, click Hyperlink in the links section.

3. Once open do one of the following:

• To link to an existing file or Web page: Under Link to click Existing File or Web Page and then type the address that you want to
link to in the Address box. If you don't know the address for a file, click the arrow in the Look in list, and then navigate to the file
 that you want.

• To link to a file that you haven't created yet: Under Link to click Create New Document, type the name of the new file in
the Name of new document box, and then, under When to edit, click Edit the new document later or Edit the new document
now.

How would you put Header & Footer in MS word documents.

Ans: HEADER AND FOOTER

A Header is text that appears automatically at the top of every page in a document, and Footer is text that appears automatically at the
bottom of every page of the document. The Headers and Footers also get printed on every page of the document. It is a very powerful
tool of Ms-Word and is used extensively.

Headers and Footers can be invoked by clicking on View from the menu bar and then selecting the Headers and Footers option.

A dotted box is provided for entering the Headers to be appeared at the top of every page.

—–Header————————————————————————————–

Header Area

After typing the text for Header you can switch to the footer area by clicking on the Switch between Header and Footer tool from the
Header and Footer Toolbar as shown in the Fig.

—–Footer———————
——————————————————————

Footer Area
You can use the Header and Footer toolbar buttons to insert the page number, the current date, or the current time into your Header or
Footer.

To insert page numbers, click on the Page number tool in the Header and Footer toolbar

To insert the date, click on the Date tool in the Header and Footer toolbar.

To insert the time, click on the Time tool in the Header and Footer toolbar .

Work with Different Headers

To use these features, you should already know how to insert headers in a document.

To have a different header in odd and even pages:

1. Double click on the existing header.

2. A new “design” menu will appear.
3. Select the option “Different Odd & Even Pages”
4. Type or create the new header.
5. Click on Close Header and Footer.

To have a different header in odd and even pages:

1. Double click on the existing header.
2. A new “design” menu will appear.
3. Select the option “Different First Page”
4. Type the new header or delete the existing header.
5. Click on Close Header and Footer.

SPELL CHECKING THE DOCUMENT

When you are typing, you are bound to make mistakes. Spell check is a powerful feature of Word, which helps you correct spelling
mistakes. Ms-Word checks a document using its main dictionary, which contains most common words. You can also create your own
custom dictionary. You can invoke the Spell check by clicking on the Spell check tool from the Formatting toolbar.

ABC

You can also invoke Spellchecker by selecting the spelling option from the Tools menu. The spellchecker feature verifies the whole
document and displays a dialog box whenever it encounters an error.

Q.7 How would you put Bullets & Numbering in MS word documents.
Ans: Creating Your Own List

This article will show you how to add numbers to the headings in Word 2007.
1. On the Home tab, click the Multilevel List button.

2. From the drop down menu select Define New Multilevel List.

3. Select a level and heading style for your list you wish from the Define New Multilevel List.

4. Click OK when finished.

What is basic technique applied in mail merge operation in MS Word documents.

Mail Merge: In Ms-Word Mail Merge option is an important and every way for office set up. Many times we required sending the
same content of a letter to different individuals. By using Mail Merge you can send the same letter to a number of persons without
typing the content of the letter again and again.

In any working environment, there are situations when a similar type of letter or document is to be sent to many persons who reside at
different locations. The letters may contain the address of each recipient, in addition to the standard information contained in the
letter. One way of doing this is to print the letters by changing the address each time in the document after printing such letter. But
this would mean lot of effort and time and also results in bad organisation.

Such problems are taken care of by the Mail Merge facility. In word processing, Mail Merge is the process of transferring selected
information from one document to another document.

CONCEPT OF MAIL MERGING AND ITS COMPONENTS

Mail Merge is the facility which requires the following three information

· General body of the letter called main document

· Header Row, the record structure or the name of the fields, which will identify the data

· Data for all the individuals, for whom the letters are to be generated also called data source

Mail Merge option of Word reads this data and physically merges it with Main document to generate letters for all the persons or for
all records in the data file.
(a) Main Document

In Mail Merge, Main Document is the common letter, which contains the common information for each of the merged document. It
also contains the field names, which contain the instructions for carrying out the merge.

(b) Data Source

Data Source is also called the Data File. It stores information to be brought into the Main document. The data file table contains a
column for each category of information, or data field, in the data file. The Header Row is the first row of the table. It contains field
names, which indicate the type of information in each column. For example list of names and addresses.

Each field name must be unique and must begin with an alphabet/letter.

(c) Form Letter

Form letter is the resultant document of the mail merge operations, which contains the copy of the main document along with each
piece of information stored in the data file.

What is meant by editing a document? What is the difference between the Formatting & Editing?

EDITING OPERATIONS

When you enter your text, you are likely to make mistakes. Corrections of these mistakes are called editing. While editing the need
may arise to

· Delete a part of the text.

· Move a block of text from one place to another.

· Copy a block of text from one place to other place.

Word provides facilities for all those editing activities but the work rule is to select the text first and then perform the action. Text can
be selected using the mouse or the keyboard. The following table illustrates the methods, which basically follows click and drag rule.

To Select Action

Any variable length of Text Drag the mouse over the text to be selected.

A word Double click the mouse on the particular word.

A graphic Click the graphic.

A line of text Click in the selection bar to the left of the line.

Multiple lines of text Drag in the selection bar to the left of the lines.

A sentence Hold down CTRL and click anywhere

in the sentence.

A paragraph Double click in the selection bar next

to the paragraph.
 Multiple paragraph Drag in the selection bar

INSERTING, REPLACING AND DELETING CHARACTER

Ms-Word usually inserts characters at the insertion point.

(a) Inserting Character

To insert characters, position the cursor at the required point and type them. Word automatically reformats the paragraph and moves
words that do not fit on the current line to the next line or form the current page to the next page, as the case may be.

(b) Replacing Character

Suppose you have typed some text. Now you want to replace it with some other. What you have to do is to highlight the text by
dragging the mouse. Next type in the new material. Ms-Word will overwrite the existing material with the new material.

(c) Deleting Characters

By pressing either the backspace or the Del key, a character is removed from the document. The Del key deletes a character in the
current cursor position while backspace deletes the character to the left of the current cursor position and moves the cursor one
position to the left.

(d) Deleting a block of Text

Select the block of text to be deleted by dragging through the mouse. Then you can press Del key. Another method is to
select Edit from the menu bar and then select clear.

(e) Moving Text

If you want to shift the text from one place to another in the document, you can do so by moving the text. Select the block of the text
you want to shift. You can move the text using the toolbar, the menu bar or the drag function.

(f) Using the Toolbar

After you select the text, click on the Cutbutton in the standard toolbar (the icon with a scissors) and then bring the cursor to the new
location where the text has to appear and click on the Paste button in the standard toolbar

(g) Using the Menu Bar

Select the text to be shifted. Choose the Cut option from the Edit menu. Bring the cursor to the new location where the text has to
appear and then choose the Paste option from the Edit menu.

(h) Using the Click and Drag Function

Select the text to be shifted. Click anywhere in the selected text and then drag it to the desired new location and leave it there.

COPYING TEXT

If you want to copy the text from one place to another in the document, you need to highlight the block of the text first. Select the
block of the text you want to copy. You can copy the text using the toolbar, the menu bar or the drag function.

USING THE TOOLBAR

After you select the text, click on the Copy button in the standard toolbar and then bring the cursor to the new location where the text
has to appear again and click on the Paste button in the standard toolbar
Formatting :The first steps is the process of entering text into a document and editing it for mistakes. The next step is to design the
document in a proper format so that it is presentable. The setting of margins, spacing between lines, size of letters, etc. are some of the
basic requirements of a good presentation.

DEFAULT AND CUSTOMIZED FORMAT

There are two ways of formatting a document. One way is to use the MS-WORD Auto format where MS-WORD analyzes the
selected texts and it applies the relevant formats. Alternatively you can also format each and every element such as character, margins,
etc. yourself by choosing customized formatting.

(a) Auto Formatting

After typing a document, you can choose the Autoformatoption from the format menu to make the Ms-Word format the text in a
default style. Perform the following steps for Auto formatting of text:

– Select the text that is to be formatted by dragging the mouse.

– Choose Autoformat from the format menu.

– Ms-Word analyses the text and applies the relevant formats

A dialog box appears after choosing Autoformat where one has to click OK button for default formatting.

CHARACTER FORMATTING

You should note that formatting the character means changing the font, size and colour of the text. It also includes the appearance of
character by changing the font styles. Characters can be formatted by

· Pressing the Shortcut keys

· By choosing the Font command from the Format menu

· Clicking the desired button on the Formatting toolbar

Select the text where you want to change the font. On selecting the Font from the Format menu bar, the following dialog box will be
appeared

Changing Font, Size and Color of the Text :You can choose the appropriate font from the list box. Some of the examples of
different fonts are given below

National Open School is in Times New Roman font

National Open School is in Courier New

National Open School is in Britanica Bold

You can also select a font size from the size list box. Some of the examples of different font point size are given below:

National Open School is in point size 12.

National Open School is in point size 18.

National Open School is in point size 24.

You can select a color for the text from the colour list box. Some of these functions can also be achieved through clicking at the
appropriate icon in the Formatting toolbar. You know that when you place the mouse over an icon, the name of the icon comes out. So
choosing the appropriate icon from the Formatting tool bar should not be a problem for you.
(a) Boldface

Select the text you want to have boldface and click on the Boldface button from the Formatting toolbar.

(b) Italics

Select the text you want to have italics and click on the Italics button from the Formatting toolbar.

(c) Underline

Select the text you want to have underline and click on the Underline button from the Formatting toolbar.

Boldface, Italics and Underline button toggle between on and off. When you want to remove boldface, italics or underline, you can
select the text again and click on Boldface, Italics or Underline button to remove it.

(d) Subscripts and Superscripts

You can add subscripts and superscripts to your typed text. First, highlight the text to be shown as subscript or superscript. Second,
click at format, font and subscript/superscript.

Examples: Superscript 40th

Subscript Bt,

(e) Drop Caps

Ms-Word offers a lot of options to design your text. In addition to ‘All caps’ and ‘small caps’ options from the ‘Font’ dialog box, you
can also use ‘Drop caps’ to decorate your text.

LINE SPACING

Once the characters have been formatted as per your desire, you can adjust the spacing between the lines according to your
requirement. Click on Format and select Paragraph option from the menu bar. A dialog will be displayed.

Line Spacing

You can select Single or Double line spacing as per requirement. A sample text of different line spacing is given below.

Single Line Spacing

Double Line Spacing

ALIGNMENT

By default, Ms-Word aligns all the text as left aligned. However, you can make the text aligned at right or centre aligned also.

(a) Left-aligning Text

First select the paragraph you want to align and then click on the Left Align Tool from the Formatting toolbar

Left Align Tool

You can also select the Format from the menu bar and then select the paragraph option. From the Alignment drop-down line you can
choose the Left option to get the desired effect of left-justified paragraph.
(b) Right-aligning Text

First select the paragraph you want to align and then click on the Right Align Tool from the Formatting toolbar

Right Align Tool

You can also select the Format from the menu bar and then select the paragraph option. From the Alignment drop-down line you can
choose the Right option to get the desired effect of right-justified paragraph.

(c) Centre-aligning Text

First select the paragraph you want to align and then click on the Centre Align Tool from the Formatting toolbar

Centre Align Tool

You can also select the Format from the menu bar and then select the paragraph option. From the Alignment drop-down line you can
choose the Centre option to get the desired effect of right-justified paragraph.

(d) Justification

After aligning the text, you may like to justify the whole paragraph. For justifying the text, select the paragraph of the text and click
the Justification Tool from the Formatting toolbar as shown below

FIND AND REPLACE TEXT Tool

It is a very standard and powerful feature of any word processor. Ms-Word gives a facility using which any word or text can be
searched throughout the document and it can be replaced with the required word or text. To find and replace text, click on Edit from
the menu bar. A dialog box as shown in the Fig. 10.5 will be displayed.

Following steps are to be followed to execute Find and Replace command.

· Type the text to be searched. For example, we type NOS if we have to find it.

· Click on Find Next. (This will allow you only to find a text, not to replace it with something else.)

· Click at Replace on the top left hand corner. (You will find another box where you can type the text which will replace the
existing text)

· Type the text, which will replace the text.

· Click on Replace or Replace All, as per the requirement.

· Click on close to resume editing.

Watermarks
To create watermarks:
1. In the main menu select Page Layout.
2. In the Page Layout menu select Watermark.
3. In the drop down menu select Custom Watermark.
4. A new options window will open.
5. Select the type of Watermark.
6. If text, type the text for the Watermark.
7. Select the font and the size.
8. Select color, layout and transparency
9. Click OK.
INSERTING SYMBOLS
Word provides many symbols for use in documents. These symbols are associated with individual character sets. The available
character sets are listed in the Font list in the Symbol dialog box.
If you use a symbol often, you can assign a shortcut key to it. To assign a shortcut key, select the desired symbol in the Symbol dialog
box and then select the Shortcut Key button. Press the desired key combination for the symbol, select Assign, and then select Close.
Procedures
1. Position the insertion point where you want the symbol to appear.
2. Select the Insert tab.
3. Select the Symbol button in the Symbols group.
4. Select the More Symbols option.
5. Select the Symbols tab.
6. Select the Font list .
7. Select the desired character set.
8. Select the desired symbol.
9. Select Insert.
10. When you have finished inserting symbols, select Close.

Insert Text from a File

If a piece of information in one document needs to be included in another or if many files need to be compiled, Word provides a utility
to insert text from separate files. Using this utility is a more streamlined alternative to directly copying and pasting.

1. Click the location in the document where the text should be inserted.

2. Switch to the Insert tab.

3. Click Object | Text from File in the Text section of the Insert Tab.

4. Locate and double click the desired file.

What are Macros?
A macro is a series of commands and instructions that you group together as a single command to accomplish a task automatically.
To save time on tasks you do often, bundle the steps into a macro. First, you record the macro. Then you can run the macro by clicking
a button on the Quick Access Toolbar or pressing a combination of keys. It depends on how you set it up.

Creating Macros

There are a couple of different ways to create Word macros: The first and easiest way is to use the macro recorder.

There are more than 950 commands in Word, most of which are on menus and toolbars and have shortcut keys assigned to them.
Some of these commands, however, are not assigned to menus or toolbars by default. Before you create your own Word macro, you
should check to see if it already exists and can be assigned to a toolbar. To see the commands available in Word, follow these steps:
1. Select the Tools menu and choose Macro.
2. First, select the Tools menu and choose Record New Macro... to open the Record Macro dialog box.
3. Type a unique name in the box beneath Macro Name and enter a description of the actions the macro performs in
the Description box.

4. Select whether you want the macro to be available in all documents or only in the current document. If you choose to limit the
availability of the command, highlight the document name in the Store Macro in drop-down box.
5. When you have entered the information for the macro, select OK. The Record Macro Toolbar will appear in the upper left corner
of the screen.

Test Your Macro

The purpose behind creating macros in Word is to speed up your work by putting repetitive tasks and complex sequences of
commands at your fingertips. What could take literally hours to do manually only takes a few seconds with the click of a button.

1. To run your macro, use the Alt + F8 shortcut key to bring up the Macros dialog box.
2. Highlight your macro in the list and then select Run.
3. If you don’t see your macro, make sure the correct location is in the Macros in box.

If the command you wish to create already exists, you should not duplicate it with your own Word macro. If it doesn't exist,
proceed with creating your Word macro.
 MS Power Point

Inserting Hyperlink
PowerPoint gives users the flexible option to add action links to their presentation that will open on demand without
distracting the audience. By incorporating action links, time can be saved while improving the flow of the entire presentation.
Action links can be set up to open another presentation, files, programs, URLs, or to reference another slide within the current
presentation.

To Add an Action Link:

1. Select the text to add a link to.

2. Click on the Insert tab located on the ribbon.

3. Click on the Action icon under the links heading.

4. A window should appear and give the option for the link to open by Mouse Click or Mouse Over (moving the mouse
over the link without clicking). Click on the preferred tab.

5. Once the tab is selected, the option is provided to select Hyperlink or Run Program. Click on Hyperlink or Run
Program and follow the information provided below.

NOTE: Select Hyperlink to link a slide, presentation, file, or URL.

NOTE: Sound is also available and can be chosen from the list provided. If Other Sound is chosen, find the sound within the
directory and then click OK.

If Hyperlink:
1. Choose one of the options available from the drop down menu.

2. If file is chosen, find the file in the directory and press OK.

3. If URL is chosen, enter the URL directly into the box in proper format (ex. www.lsu.edu). Then press OK.

4. If a slide is chosen, click the slide title in the box provided and press OK.

5. If another presentation is chosen, find the file that contains the presentation in the directory and press OK.

Inserting a Sound File on a Slide

Inserting sound files can add excitement and information to a PowerPoint presentation. Sound can draw attention, as well as
provide humor for the audience. This article will teach Microsoft PowerPoint 2007 users how to insert a sound file into their
slides.

1. Find and select the Insert tab and choose the Sound button.
2. Next, select Sound from File and choose which sound file to insert into the presentation.
3. Then select the audio file that you wish to use from your computer.

4. Finally, users have the option to select when they want the sound to start in the slide show. Users can
select Automatically or When Clicked in the dialog box. By choosing Automatically, the sound will begin as soon as the slide
shows up in the presentation. On the other hand, choosing When Clicked allows users to specifically time when they want
their sounds to start playing.

Inserting a Video File on a Slide

Inserting video files can add excitement and information to a PowerPoint presentation. Videos can attract attention and show
vast amounts of information. This article will teach Microsoft PowerPoint 2007 users how to insert a video file into their slides.

1. Find and select the Insert tab | Movie | Movie from File.

2. The Insert Movie dialog box should then appear. You should then choose which video file to insert into the presentation.

3. Now, users have the option to select when they want the video to start in the slide show. Users can
select Automatically or When Clicked in the dialog box.

Note: By choosing Automatically, the video will begin as soon as the slide shows up in the presentation. On the other hand,
choosing When Clicked allows users to specifically time when they want their videos to start playing.
 Add a Movie to your Presentation
Note: To prevent possible problems with links, it is a good idea to copy the movies into the same folder as your presentation
before you add the movies to your presentation.

1. With PowerPoint in normal view, click the slide to which you want to add a movie or animation.

2. On the Insert tab, in the Media clips group, click the arrow under Movie.

3. Choose one of the following:

• Click Movie from File, locate the folder that contains the file, and then double-click the file that you want to add.

• Click Movie from Clip Organizer, scroll to find the clip that you want in the Clip Art task pane, and then click it to add it to
the slide.

• Applying a transition to a slide In PowerPoint, transitions are the visual effects of moving
from one slide to the next. Sound can also be incorporated into the transition to give an audio effect to the presentation as
well.

To add a transition to a single slide:

1. Go to the sidebar that contains the Slides and Outline tabs. Select the slide in which to add a transition.

2. Click on the Animations tab at the top of the page on the ribbon.
 3. Under the heading Transitions to This Slide, select the transition from the scroll menu to apply to the slide.

4. Go to the Transition Speed scroll menu to select the desired speed of the transition.

5. Sound can also be added during every transition, if desired, by selecting the drop down menu Transition Sound and
selecting a sound byte.

6. Click the Preview button on the ribbon to preview the slide.

Note: To add a single transition to all slides, repeat the above steps and click the Apply to All button.

•
• Clearing the Screen During a Presentation
Blanking out the screen can be an excellent technique to use for diverting the audience's attention from the screen to the
speaker during a PowerPoint presentation.

There are two different ways to do this:

• Press the "B" key on the keyboard at any time during a presentation to make the screen go completely black.
• Press the "W" key to make the screen go completely white.

To resume the presentation after blacking out or whiting out the screen, press any key or left click on the mouse.

Rehearsing and Timing Presentations

Rehearsing a PowerPoint presentation gives users an idea of how long their presentation will last. Users can also approximate
how long they want more important and informative slides to stay on-screen. Rehearsing PowerPoint presentations also
makes users more comfortable and confidence in giving their presentation. This article will teach Microsoft PowerPoint 2007
users how to rehearse and time their presentations.

1. Click the first slide in the PowerPoint presentation.

2. Select the Slide Show tab and press the Rehearse Timings button.

1. Perform the presentation, slide by slide. Select the Next button on the Rehearsal tool bar to move from slide to slide.

2. A dialog box will appear informing users of the length of their PowerPoint presentation. Select Yes to view the
duration of time each slide stayed on-screen during the presentation rehearsal.

3. PowerPoint will display the individual timings of each slide as displayed in the rehearsal.
Marking a Presentation as Final
Within PowerPoint, there is the option to mark a presentation as final. By doing this, the presentation becomes read only and
is not accessible for editing by the viewer.

To Mark a presentation as Final:

1. Select Microsoft Office | Prepare from the top left-hand corner of the screen.

2. Click Mark as Final from the list of options presented.

3. A prompt will then appear for you to save the document.

Note: Once the document is marked as final it becomes read-only and cannot be edited. To make the presentation
writeable, simply repeat the steps and the presentation will unlock.
 MS EXCEL

Exploring the Excel environment

The tabbed Ribbon menu system is how you navigate Excel and access its various commands. If you
have used previous versions of Excel, the Ribbon system replaces the traditional menus. Above the
Ribbon in the upper-left corner is the Microsoft Office button. From here, you can access important
options such as New, Save, Save As, and Print. By default, the Quick Access toolbar is pinned next to the
Microsoft Office button and includes commands such as Undo and Redo.

At the bottom-left area of the spreadsheet, you will find worksheet tabs. By default, three worksheet
tabs appear each time you create a new workbook. On the bottom-right area of the spreadsheet you
will find page view commands, the zoom tool, and the horizontal scrolling bar.

To zoom in and out:

• Locate the zoom bar in the bottom-right corner.
• Left-click the slider, and drag it to the left to zoom out and to the right to zoom in.

To scroll horizontally in a worksheet:

• Locate the horizontal scroll bar in the bottom-right corner.
 • Left-click the bar, and move it from left to right

To change page views:

• Locate the Page View options in the bottom-right corner. Options are Normal, Page Layout, and Page
Break.
• Left-click an option to select it.

The default is Normal View.

The Microsoft Office button: The Microsoft Office button appears at the top of the
Excel window. When you left-click the button, a menu appears. From this menu, you can create a
new spreadsheet, open existing files, save files in a variety of ways, and print. You can also add
security features, send, publish, and close files.

How to Create a Table

1. Located the Insert tab on the top toolbar, and then select Tables | Table

2. A window entitled "Create Table" will appear and prompt you to select the data for your table. Drag the
dashed-line box around the information you wish to appear in the table. If your table has headers check the
box that says "My table has headers" and then select OK.
 3. The data will then be transformed into a table.

Note: A new tool bar will appear at the top of the Excel window labeled Design, you can go into this tool bar
to edit the appearance of your new table.

Inserting a Chart
1. Select the columns and rows of information you wish to make a chart of.

2. Click Insert tab at the top of the Excel Window.

 3. Decide which type of chart would best represent your information. Click an icon in the Charts tab, and a
drop down menu will appear with different styles of the chart. Select the style of your preference and click it.

4. A chart will automatically be inserted into the spreadsheet.

Note: You can move the chart by clicking and dragging it.

Sorting Data
Sorting data is an important part of data analysis. In order to list names in alphabetical order, create a list of product inventory
levels, or order rows by icons or colors, you might want to explore the data sorting option. Sorting data allows you to quickly
visualize, understand, and interpret your data better, organize and locate your data, and ultimately allow you to make more
effective decisions.

Sort Numbers
The Sort & Filter feature can be used to sort numerical data. Use the following steps to sort numbers.
1. Select a column of data in a range of cells.

2. Go to the Home tab > Editing group > Sort & Filter.

3. Select either Sort Smallest to Largest or Sort Largest to Smallest.

Note: Check the results to make sure they look correct. If the columns look different from what you expected, make sure the
column does not contain any numbers stored as text.

Transpose Data from Rows to Columns

If you want to rearrange data that has already been entered, without rekeying everything follow these steps to transpose
the data.

1. Select and copy your entire data range.

2. Choose a new location in your sheet.

3. On the Home tab, open the drop down menu for Paste and select Transpose.
 4. Excel will transpose the column and row labels and data.

Methods for Copying Formulas

It is often necessary when working in Excel to repeat the same formula across many different cells. Unless absolute cell
referencing is used in a particular formula, (i.e. cells are described as $A$1 instead of A1), cell information is pasted relative to
the position into which it is copied. As an example, consider the figure below.

Here, the data displayed in column D simply shows the formula information that was entered into the cells next to them in
column C. In this simple example, we have numerical data in columns A and B that we would like to add and display in column
C. For columns that are only a few rows long, it is easy to simply type the appropriate formula into each cell of column C.
However, manually typing this formula information in becomes tedious when we need to total large amounts of data.
Fortunately, Excel has time-saving features built in that allow for this information to be duplicated much more quickly.

Copying and Pasting

One available method involves the familiar copy and paste mechanic. To duplicate formula information in this manner, follow
these steps:

1. Select the cell that contains the formula information you would like to copy. Press Ctrl+C to copy this data to the clipboard.
Alternatively, you may click the copy button located in the Home section of the Ribbon as shown below.
2. Select the cell to which you would like to copy the formula data and press Ctrl+V to paste the data from the clipboard.
Alternatively, you may click the paste button located in the Home section of the Ribbon, as shown above. This step may be
repeated as many times as necessary to paste the chosen formula into new cells. It is not necessary to copy the data to the
clipboard before pasting again; the data copied to the clipboard will remain there until it is replaced by copying different
information.

The process detailed above was used on our beginning example, and now appears as follows.

Conditional Formatting
Conditional formatting makes it easier to notice changes in a cell by allowing you to apply different formatting options, such
as color, to a cell or cells based on the data in the cell(s). We will apply this to Inventory.

Note: Below is what our graph looks like before conditional formatting.

To Highlight Current Inventory:

1. Select a cell or column of cells thart you would like to be formatted [For this example we will use column B].

2. On the Home tab, select Conditional Formatting | Highlight Cells Rules and then choose your desired effect. Since we are
looking for current inventory that is less than the reorder level, for this example click Less Than.
3. Type how you would like to format cells into the dialog box .

4. The cells you selected should now be highlighted.

How to Format Cells

Formatting All Cells

1. Click the tab in the top left corner of the workbook, doing so will select all of the cells in the workbook.
2. Once you have selected all of the cells click Format in the Cells tab of the Home tool bar.

3. From the drop down menu select Format Cells.

4. From this new window you can format the cells to any configuration you wish. When you have finished formatting the cells
simply click OK and the new setting will be put in.

Single Cell Formatting

1. Select the cell you wish to format and follow the above steps, starting from step two.

Row Formatting

1. Select the row you wish to format and follow steps 2-4 from the above Formatting All Cells.

Column Formatting

1. Select the column you wish to format and follow steps 2-4 from the above Formatting All Cells.
FORMATTING TABLE
Once you have entered information into a spreadsheet, you may want to format it. Formatting your
spreadsheet can not only make it look nicer but also easier to use. In a previous lesson, we discussed
manual formatting options such as bold and italics. In this lesson, you will learn how to use
the predefined tables styles in Excel 2007 and some of the Table Tools on the Design tab.

Formatting tables
To format information as a table:
• Select any cell that contains information.
• Click the Format as Table command in the Styles group on the Home tab. A list of predefined tables will
appear.

• Left-click a table style to select it.

• A dialog box will appear. Excel has automatically selected the cells for your table. The cells will appear
selected in the spreadsheet, and the range will appear in the dialog box.

• Change the range listed in the field if necessary.

• Verify that the box is selected to indicate your table has headings, if it does. Deselect this box if your
table does not have column headings.
• Click OK. The table will appear formatted in the style you chose.
 By default, the table will be set up with the drop-down arrows in the header so you can filter the
table if you wish.

In addition to using the Format as Table command, you can select the Insert tab and click
the Table command to insert a table.

To modify a table:
• Select any cell in the table. The Table Tools Design tab will become active. From here, you can modify the
table in several ways.

You can:

• Select a different table in the Table Styles Options group. Click the More drop-down arrow to see more
table styles.
• Delete or add a Header Row in the Table Styles Options group.
• Insert a Total Row in the Table Styles Options group.
• Remove or add banded rows or columns.
• Make the first and last columns bold.
• Name your table in the Properties group.
• Change the cells that make up the table by clicking Resize Table.

When you apply a table style, filtering arrows automatically appear. To turn off filtering, select the
Home tab, click the Sort& Filter command, and select Filter from the list.

Pivot table
A PivotTable is an extremely powerful tool that you can use to slice and dice data. You can track and analyze hundreds of
thousands of data points with a compact table that can be changed dynamically to enable you to find the different
perspectives of the data. It is a simple tool to use, yet powerful.
The major features of a PivotTable are as follows-
• Creating a PivotTable is extremely simple and fast
• Enabling churning of data instantly by simple dragging of fields, sorting and filtering and different calculations on the
data.
• • Arriving at the suitable representation for your data as you gain insights into it.
• • Ability to create reports on the fly.
• • Producing multiple reports from the same PivotTable in a matter of seconds.
• • Providing interactive reports to synchronize with the audience
Creating Pivot table
 MS ACCESS
Access 2007 is a program that allows you to create and manage databases. A database is a place where you can store
information related to a specific topic. How you intend to use the information will determine whether you need an
Access database or a different program to create and manage your data.

A database allows you to store information related to a specific topic in an organized way. In addition to
storing data, you can sort, extract, and summarize information related to the data. One of the software
programs that allows you to do this is Microsoft Office Access 2007, which is a database creation and
management program.

Why not use Excel?

There are many types of data you may need to store and manage—text and numbers, for example.
Depending on what you want your data to do for you, you may or may not need to use a database. You
might be able to use a spreadsheet program like Microsoft Excel.

If you work for a bookstore business, you might have to keep track of your customers and their orders.
You could use Microsoft Excel to store and manage this type of data; however, Excel is a spreadsheet
software program that is traditionally used to manage numerical information, like totaling up all
purchases by one customer. While it can do an adequate job of storing some types of text-based data—

Data entry in Excel

If you use an Excel spreadsheet to track your orders, each time a customer places an order you would
have to enter a new row of information in the spreadsheet. This would likely include the customer's
name and address. If that customer orders from your company more than once, information would
have to be entered each time. Your spreadsheet would contain redundant information.
 As you can see in the image above, customers Tonya Bullock and McKenzie Grant each placed several
orders on different days and for different books. Their customer contact information was entered every
time they placed an order. This is the limitation of spreadsheet software such as Excel because it is a
single, flat file.

Getting started with Access

When you start Access 2007, you will see the Getting Started window.

In the left pane, the template categories—including the featured local templates—are listed, as well as
the categories on Office Online. Templates are prebuilt databases focused on a specific task that you
can download and use immediately.

In the example below, the featured templates are selected, and the template options are displayed in
the center area of the screen. Featured templates include database template options that are available
online, as well as templates that are available as part of the local version of Access.
Opening a database
You have three main options on the Getting Started page. You can open a template database stored
locally or online, an existing database, or a blank database.

To view templates included with Access:

• Click Local Templates in the left pane. The center of the screen will change to display icons for the
templates.
• Select an icon in the center of the screen. Details about the database template will appear on the right.
 In the left pane of the Getting Started window, you will see a list of categories for the templates
available on Office Online. You must have an Internet connection to download these database
templates.

The Blank Database command allows you to create a database from scratch.

To open an existing database:

• In the Open Recent Database section, double-click the file name of the database you want to open. It
will appear in the window.

OR

• Click the More link. A dialog box will appear.

• Select the database you want to open.

• Click Open. The database will appear.

The Access window
Before you can begin to use a database, you need to become familiar with the Access window.

The Ribbon
Like other software in the Microsoft Office 2007 suite, Access 2007 has a tabbed Ribbon system you
use to navigate the database. The Ribbon is organized into tabs. Each tab
contains groups of commands you use to perform tasks in Access.

For example, on the Home tab you'll see that there is a Font group that contains font formatting
commands such as font type, size, color, and alignment. Unless you use keyboard shortcuts for
everything, the Ribbon is how you get work done in Access.

The Quick Access toolbar

Once you are familiar with Access, you may find that there are commands you use more often than
others. To make it easier to use these commands, you can add them to the Quick Access toolbar. By
default, the toolbar appears above the Ribbon on the left side of the Access window and includes the
Save, Undo, and Redo commands.
The Microsoft Office button
The Microsoft Office button is located in the upper-left corner of the Access window and includes key
menu options such asNew, Save, and Print. From this menu, you can also change your Access Options.

The navigation pane

The main control center of each Access database is the navigation pane. It shows you what is in the
database and makes the information accessible to you. You can choose to close the navigation pane if
you need more of the Access window to complete specific tasks.
To open and close the navigation pane:
• Click the Shutter Bar button on the right side of the navigation pane.

• The navigation pane appears as a single column when it is collapsed.

Parts of a database
A Microsoft Access database is made up of several components, including tables, forms, queries,
and reports. These components are called database objects. One or more of these objects is formed
when a database is created, and all of the objects appear in the navigation pane. To make the database
easier to navigate, beginner Access users may want to reorder objects in the navigation pane.

To change how objects are ordered in the navigation pane:

• Click the drop-down arrow at the top of the navigation pane to see ordering options.
 • Select a menu option. The navigation pane will appear reordered based on your selection.
If you are new to databases, arranging the objects by type in the navigation pane is usually a good idea.
This will group tables, forms, queries, and reports into individual groups in the pane.

To expand or collapse a group:

• Click any downward-pointing double arrow to expand a group so all objects are displayed.
• Click any upward-pointing double arrow to collapse a group and hide all objects.

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Parts of a database
A database is made up of several components, or objects. These objects include:

• Tables
• Queries
 • Forms
• Reports
We'll look at each of these objects in more detail in later lessons, but you can access them from
the navigation pane like you can with tables.

Tables
A table is the database object that contains the basic information you want to store. A blue and white
icon represents the table in the navigation pane.

In the Customer Info table below, there are columns—or fields—of information, including title and
author. Each row is a recordcontaining the information specific to the fields listed.
Queries
Another database object is called a query. A query allows you to retrieve information from one or more
tables based on a set ofsearch conditions you define using the table fields.

For example, if you want to know the name of the books that have sold in Colorado and Kansas, you
could create a query that would retrieve information from multiple tables to determine the answer. In
this example, you would retrieve information from the Order Info table and Books table. Queries are
covered in more detail in later lessons.

Forms
A third database object is the form. Forms are an Access tool you can create to make data entry in
database tables easier.

Entering data directly into a table can be difficult if there's a lot of information to enter. Similar to an
Excel spreadsheet, an Access table is essentially a screen filled with blank rows where you enter
records. Forms, however, give you an easy-to-read interface where you can enter table data. Forms are
especially useful for Access users who aren't comfortable working with databases.

Reports
The final database object is the report. A report is an effective way to analyze and present data using a
specific layout. The text can be formatted in an Access report, just like it can be in Word documents.

To close an object:
• Select the tab for the object you want to close. (The highlighted tab is the active tab).
• Right-click the tab, and select Close from the menu.
 The best way to learn about designing a database is to jump right in to the process. Let's pretend we
work for the Ready-2-Read bookstore, and we need to build a database for the store to use. Let's think
about what we might need the database to do for us.

The following diagram shows that we have customers and sell books via orders, both in the store and
online.

The store needs a way to keep track of these things.

Determine the purpose of the database

The first step of designing a database is to determine the purpose of the database. What do we need it
to do?

At Ready-2-Read, our customers will place orders for books. At the very least, we will want our
database to track the books we sell, the customers we sell them to, and the date of each of the orders.

The database will also be able to tell us where our customers live when we need to send them books or
coupons. Additionally, we can use it to track our sales or to make a bestseller list to post in the store.

Plan database tables

Once we've established its purpose, we can begin brainstorming about how to break up the information
into the tables the database will need to store data. Recall that a table is a collection of records, and
each record is broken up into the smallest pieces of needed information, called fields.

Because we're planning a database to track our customers, the books we have, and the orders our
customers place, we will need a table for each one of these.
TIP: Keep your database usable to others by giving your tables simple, easy-to-understand names.

Plan table fields

Once you know what tables you need, the next step is deciding what fields belong in each table.
Remember that fields are the smallest chunk of information in any record.

Let's look at our Ready-2-Read bookstore example again. There will be several fields in
our Customers table. We'll obviously want each customer's first name and last name. We'll also need
an address if we need to send a customer his order. Email will be necessary if we need to contact the
customer if there is an issue with the order.

We will also need several fields in the Books table. Title and Author make sense for books. We'll need
a Price for each book.Category will help us know what type of books sell the best so we can order more
books that fit into this category.
Don't worry if your plan doesn't include every possible field you may need. Access lets you add fields to tables whenever
you need another one!

Creating a new database with Access

When you launch Access 2007, you will see the Getting Started window.

In the left pane, the template categories—including the featured local templates—are listed, as well as
the categories on Office Online. Templates are prebuilt databases focused on a specific task that you
can download and use immediately.

You will also see the New Blank Database option, which allows you to build your own database from
scratch.

When you choose the New Blank Database option at the top of the window, you will be prompted to
rename the database from the default name, which is Database1.accdb. Rename the database
whatever you want. In the example below, we named the database Ready2Read because it's the name
of the store in our scenario.

Click Create to finish naming the database.

Setting up tables
The new database opens with one table showing as a default. It also defaults to naming this
table Table1 in both the navigation pane and the Table tab itself. You will want to name your tables
based on your database design plan.
Naming a table
To give the table a unique name, you must first click on the Microsoft Office button in the upper-left
corner of the application.

Next, select Save from the menu. The Save As dialog box will appear to let you save the table whatever
name you want.

The new table names appear in both the navigation pane and the Table tab itself, as you can see in the
picture below.

TIP: Give your tables logical, easy-to-understand names.

To rename a table:
 With the table closed, right-click the Table you want to rename in the navigation pane. Select
the Rename option that appears in the menu.

The table name will be highlighted and a cursor will appear, which means you can now type the new
name right there. Left-clickanywhere outside of the table name to make the change.

To close a table:
There are several ways to close an active table. You can right-click the Table tab and choose Close from
the menu.

A more common method is to click the X that appears in the top-right corner of the active database
object window.
To open a table:
To open a table, right-click the Table name of the table you want to open in the navigation pane, then
choose Open from the menu.

A more common method is to double-click the table name in the navigation pane. The selected table
will open in the active database object window.

Adding more tables to the database

By default, Access 2007 starts out with one table. To add more tables to the database, click
the Create tab on the Ribbon.

Next, select Table from the Tables command group. A new table will open in the active database object
window. You must name your table using the Save command from Microsoft Office menu.

TIP: You can tell which table you are currently in by seeing which table tab is highlighted.
Adding fields to a table
Access 2007 allows you to add fields to tables when you are:

• Working in Datasheet view, which looks like a spreadsheet

• Working in Design view, where you are able to set more controls for your fields
Either way, you need to know how to switch between the two views.

To switch views:
Select the Views command group from either the Home tab (seen below) or the Datasheet tab on
the Ribbon. Select the view option you want from the menu.

Adding fields in Datasheet view

By default, Access 2007 creates one field in each new table: the ID field. This field auto-numbers to give
each record in the table a unique number identifier. Recall that records are the rows in a table.

TIP: You may want to rename the ID field with a unique name because the ID field appears
automatically in every table you create. While this is not necessary, it may help avoid confusion
when setting up table relationships.
 To add more fields to a table in Datasheet view, double-click the Add New Field header.

The Add New Field text will disappear from the header. Name the field by typing the name directly into
the header. Press theTab key on your keyboard to move to the next field.

Adding fields in Design view

In Design view, the field names are along the lefthand column instead of across the top like in
Datasheet view, as seen below.

To add a new field to a table in Design view, click in the cell where you want the new field and type the
field name. When you switch back to Datasheet view, your new field appears as its own column, as
seen below.
 In Design view, you have several field property options you can set to ensure data can only be
entered in certain formats. Setting these options is a good idea if you want to make sure the data
you have in your database is good, strong data.

Moving fields
If you want to rearrange the order in which your fields appear in a table, Access 2007 lets you easily
move them around. To move a field in Datasheet view, drag and drop the field to the location you
want. To do this:

• Click the field header for the field you want to move.
• Move the mouse in the area of the header.
• When the cross with arrows appears, hold down your left mouse button.
• With the left mouse button still held down, move the cursor to where you want the field to appear.
• Release the mouse button, and the field appears in its new location.

Deleting fields
To delete a field in Datasheet view, click the field header, then select Delete from the Field &
Column command group. This is found on the Datasheet tab on the Ribbon.

WARNING: You should not delete any field in a table without first knowing what impact the
deletion may have on the rest of the database!

Page 7

Setting the data type for a field

Access 2007 lets you control how data can be entered in each table field within your database. This is
done using Data Type. The default data type is text for every field after the ID field, which was set to
auto-number. You can change the Data Type setting in two ways:
 • From the Data Type & Formatting command group on the Ribbon
• From the Data Type column in Design view

To change data type from the Ribbon:

Click the field header, then select the data type you want from the drop-down menu next to the Date
Type command.

To change data type in Design view:

Click the field name, then press the Tab key on your keyboard. From the drop-down menu under
the Data Type column, select the format you want.

The data type is more noticeable when the database is being populated with records. It will cause data
to be formatted for currency, text, number, and date and time just like it does in Microsoft Excel.

To establish a relationship between tables:

• Click the Relationships command in the Show/Hide group on the Database Tools tab in the Ribbon.
 NOTE: Tables must be closed in order to establish relationships.

• When the Show Table dialog box appears:

o Select each table name, then click Add for the tables you want to relate.
o When you're done, close the Show Table dialog box.

• You should now see a relationship map that contains all of the tables that were selected.

To move a table that appears in the relationship map:

• Place your mouse over the table you want to move.
• Hold down the left mouse button, then drag the table to a new location.
• Release the mouse button to drop the table in its new place.
Understanding the relationship map
The relationship map lists all of the tables that were selected to relate, as well as all of the fields that
were previously set up for that table. Notice that the first field has a key icon next to it. This is
the primary key for the table.

Primary and foreign keys

A primary key is the first field in each table of the database. You may recall that this field auto-numbers
by default, so every record in the table has its own unique number to identify it. Access uses this
number to quickly pull information together when you run queries or reports, which are covered later.

In the example above, the primary key for the Customers table is Customer ID, the primary key for the
Orders table is Order ID, and the primary key for the Books table is Book ID.

A foreign key is a field that is the primary field in its own table but that shows up in another table. If you
look closely at the Orders table, the fields Customer ID and Book ID appear there, as well as in their
own respective tables. These fields are the primary key in their own tables, but in the Orders table, they
are considered foreign keys.

Page 4

Relating tables
There are a few ways to establish relationships between tables:

• Using the Edit Relationships command located on the Design tab of the Ribbon
• Using the drag-and-drop method
 Both methods give you the same end result, but the drag-and-drop method is much easier and saves
you several steps.

To relate tables with the drag-and-drop method:

• Select a field name from one table by holding down the left mouse button.

• Drag the field name from one table to the other table in the desired relationship.
• Drop the first field name onto the field name you want to relate by releasing the left mouse button.
In the example above, we selected the Book ID field from the Books table and dragged and dropped it on
the Book IDfield in the Orders table.
• The Edit Relationships dialog box appears.

• Select the Enforce Referential Integrity option. This option is explained in detail below.
• Click Create.

Data validation
Data validation is an important database concept. It is the process by which Access tests the data that
is being entered into the database to make sure it is in an acceptable—or valid—format.
 Let's say one of your database users has entered an order date of January 4, 2008, in the
month/date/year format as 01/04/2008. Another user has entered an order placed on that same date
in the day/month/year format as 04/01/2008. If the database is tracking all sales for the month of
January 2008, it may not show both orders as placed in January, even though both were placed on the
same date.

Access 2007 allows you to set field properties and data validation rules to force the person entering
data to follow a specific format.

Data types and validation rules

Data validation begins when data types are set during the process of building tables and fields. For
example, if a field data type had been set to Currency and a text value is entered in that table field
during data entry, Access will not accept an invalid format and will display a validation error, like the
one below.

Data validation is accomplished by setting data validation rules and other field properties for various
fields.

To set data validation rules:

• In Design view, highlight the field that requires a validation rule.
• In the Field Properties section at the bottom half of the window, set your validation rule using
the Expression Builder. The Expression Builder offers common syntax to set up a data validation rule.
 Validation rules work most easily with numerical fields. Rules for text fields require you to enclose
each acceptable value inside its own quotation marks, separating them with Or, as seen above.

Validation text
Validation text is a specialized error message you can set to have Access tell the user entering data the
specific way you want that person to enter it.
 To set the validation text, enter the error message exactly as you want it to appear to users in the row
directly beneath theValidation Rule row in the Field Properties section of Design view. For the
validation rule we set for Category, you'd set the validation text like this:

The image below shows the resulting error message users would see when the Category validation rule
has been broken.

Using field properties to ensure data integrity

Another way to ensure data integrity is by setting field properties such as Field Size, Format,
and Required.

• Field Size can be set to hold a specific number of characters, up to as many as 255 for text fields. If you
were using a text field to hold the two-letter state postal abbreviation, the field size could be set to 2 to
ensure no one enters a full state name into this field.
• The Format field property can be set to display text or numbers in a standardized way. For example, text
can be set to show as all uppercase, and numbers can be set to show scientific numbers, percentages, or
decimals.
• Set the Required property to Yes if you want users entering data to be required to enter something in
the field. Choose Noif users are allowed to leave the field blank.
These are just some ways Access helps you ensure data being entered into your database is valid.
Why use forms?
In real life, a form is piece of paper you fill out so someone can collect and keep track of specific
information about you. Only one record—your record—is captured with any given paper form.

Access 2007 forms work in a similar way.

In previous lessons, you saw that you can populate a database by entering records into the tables
themselves. If the database has hundreds of records and many fields to populate for any given record, a
table can be overwhelming to a user entering data. An Access form lets you enter data one record at a
time, without having to see the entire table.

An Access 2007 form also lets you know exactly what information to enter and can even tell you what
that information should look like. Adding certain control components to a form—like a drop-down
menu—can dramatically increase the integrity of the datathat is held in a database.

A database owner wants to control the levels of access other database users have to the data; the
fewer the amount of people who are interacting with the data, the lower the chances are of the data
becoming compromised. Forms are one more way a database owner can limit the actions of other
users. Form properties can be set so users can only enter records or just view records.

Creating a form
 Access 2007 has several automatic tools for creating forms. These tools are located in the Forms group
on the Create tab in theRibbon, as seen below:

Access 2007 forms tools include:

• The Form command makes a basic form, showing a single record at a time.
• The Split Form command creates a form showing one record on top and includes the Datasheet view of
the entire source table on the bottom.
• The Multiple Items command creates a form that shows all records at once, which looks similar to the
source table in Datasheet view.
• The Form Wizard is hidden under the More Forms command. It walks you through the process of
creating more customized forms.

To create a form using the Form command:

The basic Form command is the one we suggest because it allows you to see just one record at a time. It
also includes all of the fields in your source table for you, and you can modify the layout of the basic
form to hide fields or add controls:

• Begin by highlighting the table you want to use as a source table.

• With the source table highlighted, select the Form command from the Forms command group in
the Create tab on theRibbon.
• The new form is created and opens in the object pane.

The newly created form has the same name as the source table by default. You can give the form a
new name by saving the form. You will be prompted to give the form a name.

Using forms to enter data

Populating a database is easy once you have a basic form in place. Record navigation works the same
way for forms as it does for tables. The navigation bar is located in the bottom-left of the object pane.
The navigation buttons work the same way as they do for tables. The picture below shows the
navigation buttons for a form.
To add a record using a form:
• Navigate to a new record, either by using the New Record navigation button or by using
the New command in the Recordsgroup on the Ribbon.
• Add the new data.
• Save the record.

Your data must be entered using an acceptable format. The acceptable formats were established
when the field properties were set.

Save by using either the Save command on the Ribbon or by progressing to another record using
the New (Blank) Record navigation button. Moving to a new record saves the most recently
entered record. However, it may be necessary to refresh the table in Datasheet view to see the
newest record.

To edit records using a form:

Just like in a table, database users can edit records from a form using the Find and Replace command.
This command works exactly the same way in a form as it does in a table.

Creating a drop-down list

 Using a drop-down list on a form can increase the integrity of the data in the database because drop-
down lists force form users to select one of the preset options in the list to populate the field. These
types of form controls are relatively easy to set up using the Combo Box.

To create a drop-down list using a Combo Box control:

• With the form opened in Design view, select the Combo Box command in the Controls group on
the Design tab in theRibbon.

• Drag and drop the combo box sizing tool to create the combo box where you want it to be on the form.

• The Combo Box Wizard appears.

• Choose the desired option from the wizard, and click Next.
• Because the middle option was selected in the example above, the wizard progresses to the next step,
which asks for the values to be typed into a small table.

• Next, the wizard asks what to do with the entered values. Access can either remember the values for
later use, or it can populate a field with the entered values. Use the drop-down list to select which field
Access should use to store the values.

• Once the desired option has been selected, click Next.

• Finally, the wizard gives the combo box a generic name, which can be meaningful to you later if there's
ever a need to adjust the properties of this or another combo box. If you want, give the combo box a
name, then click Finish.

Whatever name is entered will appear as a label on the form. This label can be deleted if you want.

Switch to Form view to see how the combo box works. The Category drop-down list appears on the
Books form, as seen in the image below.
Using queries
The real power of an Access 2007 database lies in its ability to pull data for quick analysis, which is what
happens when you run a query. Queries allow you to retrieve information from one or more tables based on a
set of search conditions you define. Access 2007 will display your results in their own table, which you can
then further analyze and manipulate.

Using queries
Queries retrieve information from one or more tables based on a set of search conditions you set up and
then combine that information in a way that's easy for you to analyze. If you've used an Advanced Filter
in Access 2007, then you've already run a basic query on only one table. If you want to pull data from
more than one table, though, you'll need to use either the Query Design command or the Query Wizard.

Before using the Access 2007 query tools, it's important to plan out the query using a logical process.
Otherwise, you may not get the results you expect.

Planning a query
There are three questions you need to answer when planning a query:

• What do you want the results to look like? Identify every bit of information—or field—you want
included in the results.
 • Where is the information stored in the database? List which tables—and/or queries—hold the
information you want to see.
• What conditions do you want the data to meet? This helps determine how to set the criteria so Access
can search the records properly.

Planning: Which customers ordered technology books?

Let's think about this process for our bookstore database scenario. We have a new technology series
coming out soon, and we want to send coupons to customers who have ordered technology books from
us in the past. A query can help us answer the question, Which customers have ordered technology
books from us already? Let's use the three-question process to plan this query.

• What fields do we want to see in the results? We need a list of customer names and addresses in order to
mail the coupons to our customers, so we'll need the results to show the categories below:

• In which tables is the information stored? For this query, we'll need:
o The Customers table to get customers' names and addresses
o The Books table to know which books are technology books
o The Orders table to know which customers ordered those books
• What is the condition we want the data to meet? We want Access to look for only the books where the
book's category is technology.
Using the Query Design command
Once you've planned out your query, you can build and run it using Access 2007's query tools.

To build a query using the Query Design command:

• Select the Query Design command from the Create tab on the Ribbon.

• Use the Show Table dialog box to select which tables and/or queries to include in the query. Our plan
called for all three tables.

• Drag and drop the fields you want to see in your results to the bottom portion of the query design screen.
• Enter the condition in the Criteria row for the condition field. For our query, we typed Technology in the
cell labeledCriteria for the Category field. As seen above, Access 2007 puts quotation marks around the
term to show that it is looking for exactly that term within the designated field.

• Once the condition is set, click Run! in the Results group on the Ribbon.

• View your results to determine if they match your desired results.

Hiding fields or other information in the
results
Sometimes the results of a query will include information that is seemingly unnecessary to you. Access
2007 allows you to easily hide these fields.

To hide part of the query result:

• In the query design window, deselect the Show option by clicking it.

• When you run your results, the field you chose will be hidden, as seen below.
Saving the query
Sometimes you will not need to save your results or your query design, and other times you may want to
keep it to run again later or to modify it slightly. Saving a query is easy to do.

To save a query:
• Right-click the Query tab.
• When the Save As dialog box opens, give your query a meaningful name.

• Click OK.
• The query will now be listed in the object list on the left side of the Access window.

Using totals in a query

Sometimes you may want to see your query results grouped or counted in some way. Access 2007 offers
several options to make these functions possible. Perhaps the easiest of these is the Totals command,
whose optional functions are similar to the functions used in Microsoft Excel. These functions include:

• Sum, which is used to add a column of numbers

• Average, which is used to find the average of a column of numbers
• Maximum, which returns the highest value in a field
• Minimum, which returns the lowest value in a field
• Count, which is used to count the number of same values in a query
One of the most useful totals functions to use in queries is the Count function

Using Count and Group By functions in a

query
 When you use the Totals command in a query, Access will automatically group every field by the values
in each field. This means it will look for repeating values and group like values together so they appear
as one record rather than as many records. This is called the Group By function.

Let's use our bookstore database as an example. If we run a query to see the information for every book
that has been ordered, we'd get a list that looks like this:

Notice that we get a record back for every order of each book that has been ordered.

In our bookstore example query, we want to see these titles grouped together so we see each ordered title
only one time. To do this, we use the Count and Group By options.

To use the Count and Group By options in a query:

• Click Totals in the Show/Hide group on the Ribbon.

The Total row will instantly appear in the bottom portion of the query design screen.
• Click in the Totals row for the field you want to count. We want to count the number of times the
same Book ID appears in the Orders table.
• From the list of optional Totals functions, select Count.

• Click Run! to see your results. Notice that each title, author, price, and category is now listed only one
time for each book, with an extra column that indicates the number of times the Book ID appeared in the
Orders table.
Sorting and filtering query results
Once you have the results looking how you want them, you can sort and filter them to further narrow
your results. This can be done using the methods of sorting and filtering covered in earlier lessons, or by
applying a sort and filter in the query design itself.

To sort via the query design:

• Click the Sort row for the field you want to sort. A drop-down list will appear:

• Choose one of the options:

o Ascending will show the results sorted with the lowest numerical value or the text value closest to A
first.
o Descending will show the results with the highest numerical value or the text value farthest from A
first.
o (not sorted) will keep your records grouped but will not sort them.
• Click Run! to see the results.

To filter via the query design:

• Click the Criteria row in the query design.
• Add your filter criteria by typing the value in the cell, as in the example below:

• Click Run! to see the results.

Using reports to make data meaningful to others

Now that you know how to use queries to analyze the data in a database, it's time to find out how to create a
report that will make the data meaningful to someone else.
 As you know, queries make the data in a database meaningful to you. Sometimes, though, you need to
share that data with someone else. A report is an effective way to present your data using an attractive
layout. The text can be formatted in an Access report similar to how it can be done in Word documents.

Access 2007 offers tools that allow you to create and format a report. The Report Wizard walks you
through the steps of creating a report. The Report command, however, is much easier to use, and all of
the formatting options are still available to you in Layout view once the report is created. With these
tools, you can create a report based on a table or query.

Creating a report based on a table

One of the easiest ways to create a report is by using a table as the source of the report. For example, in
our bookstore scenario we have a table that lists all of the books in our inventory. We want to create a
Book Price List report that lists all of the details for each book in our store's inventory.
The Report command makes this incredibly easy because it automatically includes every field in the
source table in the report.

To create a report based on a table using the Report

command:
• Choose the table you want to use as the source of your report. To do this, you can either open the table or
highlight the table name in the navigation pane. In our example, we used the open Books table to create
the report.

• Select the Report command on the Create tab on the Ribbon, as seen above.
• The report is automatically generated and includes every field in the table in order of their appearance in the
table. This can be seen in the example below, which was created from the table above.
• The layout and formatting of the report can be manipulated in Layout view

Creating a report based on a query

Access 2007 can also create a report using a query as the source. The process for creating a report based
on a query is identical to the process for creating a report based on a table, which was outlined on the
previous page. And just like when making a report from a table, every field and record that appears in the
query results will appear on the report.
 It's possible to limit the number of records in a report, but only if the report was based on a query. The
limit is set in the query itself, using the query design screen.

To limit the number of records in a report:

• Open the query in Design view.
• Use the Return option in the Query Setup command group to set the number of records you want to see
in the query results and in the final report.

• Click Run! to make sure the query results look like you want the report to look.
• Create the report using the Report command on the Create tab.
• Format the report as desired.