Question

• How can knowing how to create forms and reports in Microsoft Access benefit you?
  • Give an example of information that you could use to create a form and report as it relates to your career.
  • In what ways would a business use these features?

Answer 1

Hi  

By Knowing how to create forms and reports in Microsoft access benifits you in many ways. Forms are used for entering, modifying, and viewing records. You likely have had to fill out forms on many occasions, like when visiting a doctor's office, applying for a job, or registering for school. The reason forms are used so often is that they're an easy way to guide people toward entering data correctly. When you enter information into a form in Access, the data goes exactly where the database designer wants it to go: in one or more related tables.Forms make entering data easier. Working with extensive tables can be confusing, and when you have connected tables you might need to work with more than one at a time to enter a set of data. However, with forms it's possible to enter data into multiple tables at once, all in one place. Database designers can even set restrictions on individual form components to ensure all of the needed data is entered in the correct format. All in all, forms help keep data consistent and organized, which is essential for an accurate and powerful database. Whereas Reports offer you the ability to presentyour data in print. If you've ever received a computer printout of a class schedule or a printed invoice of a purchase, you've seen a database report. Reports are useful because they allow you to present components of your database in an easy-to-read format. You can even customize a report's appearance to make it visually appealing. Access offers you the ability to create a report from any table or query.

Creating a form and report

When you need to make a good form and report, you need two things:

1. Simple best practices, like where to put field labels and how to stack fields, decide the structure of the reports etc
2. The principles that govern how to make a good form and reports.

So. Here are the fast, specific tips that help you deal with form and how this is useful in buisness

• Put labels above your fields, not as text that disappears within the field. Otherwise, when someone starts typing, they might forget which info you asked for.
• Stack fields vertically when there are more than two. Vertical fields are easier to scan than horizontal ones.
• Make it obvious which fields are required. Asterisks are common (or you can specifically call out optional fields).
• If there are more than 6 options for a form, use a drop down menu. Ever hear of the Rule of 7? People can remember about 7 items, so if you have that number or more, don’t show them all at once as radio buttons.
• Use multi-step forms if you have a high number of fields—it can reduce friction
• Make your form fields different sizes based on the length of answer you expect. A form for zip code should be shorter than once for phone number.
• If you have error messages, it might be a good idea to add inline validation
• Don’t make your submit button say “submit.” Make it visually distinctive with compelling microcopy

Information on how to create better reports

• Design reports around your decisions, not the other way around.
• Make sure you can act on the information in a report.
• Keep information in reports to a realistic minimum.
• Use high-quality data.
• Present information in the right way.
• Don’t try to make one report do everything.
• Decide how frequently you’re going to report.

In buisness these features are useful in many ways. Forms and reports are valuable and essential tools for any enterprise regardless of size or industry. They provide a means to track and analyse the performance and overall health of the business while identifying areas for improvement and opportunities for growth

Business reports and forms provide useful insights for management such as information on spending, profits and growth. Reports will provide important detail that can be used to help develop future forecasts, marketing plans, guide budget planning and improve decision-making.

Managers also use business reports to track progress and growth, identify trends or any irregularities that may need further investigation. In addition to helping guide important decisions, business reports help to build an audit trail of business activities including reports that document annual budgets, sales, meetings and planning initiatives.

Business reporting promotes transparency and for many public companies, an annual report is a legal requirement to provide shareholders, the government and others with financial data and ownership information about the business. Additionally, regular reporting throughout the business year enables businesses within the same sector to measure and compare their performances against others.