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Ok, In this video, I want to talk about something that's called the switchboard
manager.
The switchboard manager allows you to make
a really nice menu for yourself or
for the end user and it's actually pretty easy to do.
So what we're going to do is click on database tools,
and then you come over here to pick on the switchboar manager.
In the previous versions of Access by the way the it wouldn't say database tools, it
was just called tools.
Now the first time that you run, its going to say
the switchboard manager was unable to find a valid switchboard,
would you like to create one. Yes we would, so a pick on yes.
Now just imagine the switchboard is just the menu of choices.
So it already makes the main switchboard for you which is the main menu so
you gonna pick in the main switchboard and then over here you gonna pick on
edit.
You can I build each choice individually so we'll pick on new here.
Ok. Let's say the text is going to be adding a new order.
You can put anything in that text obviously.
Now for the command I'm going to click onthe pulldown,
and these are the different things that the switchboard can do.
I click on open for addmode which means that it's gonna open up that form an automatically add
a new record.
Open a form in edit mode means it is gonna go to the form
and show an existing record and its going to bring you to record number one
but then you can change your existing records. Open report means is
going to run a report.
We can also run macros and modules from the switchboard so
let's go ahead and we're gonna say open for add mode and what that means is going
to open up the order form
and add a new record. So than for the form , I will pick on orders.
Alright, so the Text says add a new order
that command is open form in addmode, and the form says orders. Then I click on
OK.
and that'll be the first choice on our menu.
Lets have another choice so I click on again. Now I'm gonna say look up
existing orders for the text, The command
is going to be open form in editmode, This means I want to go to the existing
orders.
and the form is still going to be orders. The text says,look up existing
orders.
the command is open form in edit mode and the form says
orders. I click ok. Now, let's say I want to be able to run that
report
from them menus so now I pick on new. I'm gonna say
run order report, the command is gonna say open
open report and then notice how the bottom one changes to report and I click on the pulldown,
and it'll show the List the reports. We will use the orders report.
The text says run order report, the command says open report,
and the report name is orders. I click on ok. And now let's say we want to run our
labels from that main menu as well so I have another new choice and pick on new.
I will say Run lablels for the text,
the command is going to be open report
and then the report will be the labels report .
So I click on OK and now you can see we have our choices.
On the main menu , you can have as many as you want to .
Actually I think each switchboard can have 8 choices.
I you have more than then that, you could set up aadditional switchboards.
I wanna click close here and this is where you would go if you needed to add additional switchboards.
You can do that over here.
Right now I just need the main switchboard. Wwe're gonna close
and now the switchboard
is actually another form so I'm gonna come down here
In the forms sections, and I have a new form that's called swithboard. This was
was not there before.
So I'm gonna double click on that. Notice
how it made a really nice menu and jusr in a few minutes
so let's try this out I pick on at a new order.
Notice how to open up an order screen they remade in a different video and
adds a new record
automatically so let's put a new record in here.
but said to gonna pick on the calendar open to the still
and the required the maybe hasn't shipped yet so we'll leave that blank a
movie from the mountains said I was a three and a half hours
so just like that we added a new order. I close that window
and now it goes right back to main menu. And now
the reason it does because we said open form in addmode.
On the switchboard manager, I pick Lookup existing orders.
Notice how it opens up the orders forms and it brings you to the first record.
Ten we can go through the records or we can search the records to find a
specific ones. We are gonna close that.
Now over here it says run the orders report .
and now when I closed report it goes right back to main menu.
I'm gonna run our labels by the way these two choices
are working because he said ok and report and when I run the labels
every tire on the lame also well here's the labels and then we're just friends
as such
we're close that window and just like that
we have a great l main menu for our users. We did that with the switchboard
manager.
if you ever want to change the switch where manager you can do that.
I'll you pick on database tools then pick on switchboard manager.
now you see the main menu is there
in-system very very powerful tool it's called the switch where manager.