Convert your Access 2007 Application from Design to Runtime Mode by Changing its Extension

A useful tip from TechReplublic.com blogger, Mary Ann Richardson.

SQL Server Guides from SQL Server Magazine

Download these free pocket guides from SQL Server Magazine:

• SQL Server 2008 Memory and CPU Highlights
• The Top 10 things You Need to Know about Data Protection for SQL Server 2008
• 13 Things You Need to Know About SQL Server 2005

DreamSpark: Free MS Software for Students

Microsoft is offering free application development software to students world-wide. Go to Microsoft DreamSpark to get these applications free:

Access Data Projects Switchboards Triple-Pack


Click on image to zoom in...

Many Access developers have asked for ADP versions of my very popular Access Switchboards.

The wait is over.

I have just uploaded the Demos package for the Access ADP Switchboards with Access 2007 Black Theme Triple Pack. Source code is only US$49.95.

The three demo projects feature cutting edge application navigation:

• Native SideBar Switchboard Manager - uses only native Access controls
  
• SideBar Switchboard - flexible freeware 3rd-party OCX royalty-free
  
• TreeView Switchboard - uses the royalty-free mscomctl.ocx tree-view control
  

A SQL Server Connection is not required to run these demos: dummy forms and reports are used to demonstrate the operation of the Switchboards, which are populated by loading metadata from CSV text files at run-time.

When you purchase the source code ADPs, you also get the ADP SWB CSV Files Builder MDB Application, which is used to build the Switchboard Items table and automatically create the CSV files from that table’s records. The CSV files are then deployed with the ADP.


Click on image to zoom in...

Download the ADP Switchboard Demo.

Latest SQL Server 2005 FIXES

FIX: A stored procedure cannot finish its execution in SQL Server 2005.

FIX: Error message when you run a stored procedure that references a linked server that is linked to the local server itself in SQL Server 2005: "Transaction context in use by another session".

FIX: In SQL Server 2005 the "SQLMoreResults" function returns incorrect results when you use it to retrieve a result set.

NEW NATIVE SideBar MS Access Switchboard Demo
for Microsoft© 2000/2002/2003/2007


Screenshot from Access 2000 in Windows XP: click on the image to zoom in

I have just uploaded a new Access 2007 Black Themed Native SideBar Switchboard Demo, which features Outlook-style application navigation using only native Access controls.

There are now three themes:

• Windows XP
• Access2007 Vista Silver
• NEW Access 2007 Black

included in the package which is still only US$39.95.

Features include:

• Seamlessly use the native Switchboard Items table created by the Access Switchboard Manager
• Outlook-style navigation
• Custom Icons for each Switchboard Bar and Switchboard Item
• THREE Switchboards for the price of one!

You can use the demos as a Contacts Manager or buy the source code to use the GUI in your own Access applications. Native SideBar Switchboard Demos

NEW NOIR SideBar MS Access Switchboard and GUI Demo
for Microsoft© 2000/2002/2003/2007

Screenshot from Access 2000 in Windows XP: click on the image to zoom in

Get the cool Access 2007 Black Theme in old versions of Access!

I have just uploaded this new Access Demo Database featuring cutting edge application navigation. Maximize screen space by using these dynamic features:

• Uses the native Switchboard Items table created by the Access Switchboard Manager
• Outlook-style navigation
• Custom button graphics
• Users can hide the Switchboard to maximize form sizes
• Users can adjust the width of the Switchboard on the fly
• Access Menubar and Toolbars are optional
• Ribbon-style toolbar resides in a subform

You can use the demo as a Contacts Manager or buy the source code to use the GUI in your own Access applications. Ditch the tired and boring native MS Access Switchboard for only US$39.95!

NOIR SideBar Switchboard Demo (NOIRSideBarSWB_DEMO.zip- 500kb)

Latest SQL Server 2005 Fixes

FIX: Error message when you preview a SQL Server 2005 Reporting Services report that uses the Microsoft .NET Data Provider 1.0 for SAP NetWeaver Business Intelligence: "An error occurred during local report processing"

FIX: Error message when you run a maintenance plan that contains a Back Up Database task in SQL Server 2005: "Failed:(-1073548784) Executing the query 'BACKUP DATABASE"

What's New in SQL Server 2008

SQL Server 2008 Video Cast Series – Optimize Your SQL Server 2008 Randy Dyess, SQL Server MVP, discusses new features of SQL Server 2008 that help database administrators to optimize and tune their database environment, including a demo of Performance Studio, one of the new built-in automated features of SQL Server 2008 that allows performance auditing.

The video also covers other new features like:

• Dynamic Management Views
• Dynamic Management Functions
• Resource Governor

Using Access Menu Add-Ins Without The Windows Registry

Access menu add-ins require a registry entry to be available from the Access Add-Ins Menubar menu item.

In many corporate environments Access developers and users are unable to use 3rd-party Access add-ins, as users are not given permission to add entries to the Windows registry.

There is a way round this limitation, by referencing the add-in file in the database you want the add-in to be available in.

To illustrate this technique, I will use my free add-in Access SideBar Add-In for Access 2000/2002/2003, which provides an easy way to navigate objects in your Access MDB.

These are the steps to get the tool working as a library database in Access 97 or later, without the need for any changes to the Windows registry:

1. Copy the file sidebr2k.mda to a folder on your PC.
   
   
2. Open your MDB in Access and hit F11 to open the VBA Editor (VBE) window.
   
   
3. In the VBE, from the Menubar select Tools|References...
   
   
4. In the References dialog, click the Browse... button, and in the Add Reference dialog, select Add-ins(*.mda) in the Files of type drop-list, locate and select the file sidebr2k.mda, and click Open.
   
   
5. The MDA file will now appear as a reference in the References dialog:
   
   
   
   
6. Note the name of the library file in the Available references listbox, as you need the library name to call functions from the library. In my example the library name is: The Access SideBar.
   
   
7. Create a new VBA module and insert this public function:
   
   Option Compare Database
   Option Explicit
   
   Public Function pfnRunSIDEBAR()
   Call [The Access SideBar].aad_OpenLibraryDB
   End Function
   
   This code calls the function in the library database that invokes the add-in from the Access Add-Ins menu item: the syntax is [LibraryName].[FunctionName].
   
   To find out the name of the invoking function, open the add-in file in Access using the SHIFT key. From the Access Menubar select Tools|Options..., and in the Show section of the View tab of the Options dialog, ensure that the check-boxes for System objects and Hidden objects are both checked. In the Access Database Window open the USysRegInfo table. The invoking function will be the text after the = sign in the Value column for the record where the value "Expression" appears in the ValName column.
   
   
8. Save the module and call the function pfnRunSIDEBAR from anywhere in your MDB. In my work I create a custom toolbar for my development coding functions, and add a custom button to this toolbar to call a function.
   
   
   

New Free Access Database Templates

Over the past month I have made available a number of new free open-code Access databases:

1. Two of my new Access 2007 database templates , Advanced Issues Tracker and Meeting Tracker, are featured on the Official US Office 2007 Templates Site. Both these templates have 4-star user-ratings and are holding their own against the official Microsoft templates.
   
   
2. From my web-site, aadconsulting.com, you can also download:

• By popular demand an Access 2003 version of the Advanced Issues Tracker database,
  
• A new Case (Project) Manager Access 2003 database, and
• A new Donations database for Access 2000 or later.

All these databases have modern GUI's and enhanced functionality. All except the Donations MDB use only embedded macros and are aimed at introducing new users to the code-free capabilities of Access.

VB6 Security Update

Microsoft has today released Visual Basic 6.0 Service Pack 6 oleaut32.DLL Security Update to fix a security issue that could allow an attacker to compromise a computer running Microsoft Visual Basic 6.0 Service Pack 6.

Finding Dependencies in SQL Server 2005

Tim Chapman from TechRepublic.com shows you how to write a procedure that will look up all of the objects that are dependent upon other objects in a SQL Server database.

Latest SQL Server 2005 Fixes

FIX: Error message when you run a complex query after you install Cumulative Update 3 or Cumulative Update 4 for SQL Server 2005 Service Pack 2: 'The query processor ran out of internal resources and could not produce a query plan'

FIX: you receive incorrect data from SQL Server 2000 Analysis Services after you use the Page Heap tool (Pageheap.exe) to troubleshoot heap corruption issues