CHAPTER  17

Creating Wizards, Builders, and Menu Add-ins

Microsoft Access provides a powerful environment for database application development. Most of the tools you need are built into Microsoft Access. As you create applications, you may find areas of Microsoft Access that can be made easier by an automated tool that steps you through complex processes or supplies information that is not easily attainable. You can implement such a tool as an add-in.

Overview of Add-ins

Add-ins are tools written within the Microsoft Access environment that extend the functionality of the basic product. These tools make difficult tasks easier, automate repetitive operations, and add new functionality. Add-ins can increase productivity by focusing on a single task or function. You can design them to use yourself, to use within your organization, to distribute along with your application, or to sell separately.

Before developing an add-in, you need to be familiar with creating forms, writing the code behind forms, and writing and debugging Visual Basic code.

Note   In Microsoft Access versions 1.x and 2.0, you can call code in add-ins and libraries from the current database. To call code in an add-in from the current database in Microsoft Access 95 and Microsoft Access 97, you must first establish a reference to the add-in database by using the References dialog box (available through the Tools menu in the Module window). Alternatively, you can call code in an add-in or library database by using the Run method of the Application object. For more information on establishing references and using library databases, see Chapter 12, "Using Library Databases and Dynamic-Link Libraries." For more information on the Run method, search the Help index for "Run method."

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