Sorry, I did say that I had done the append query. Obviously wrongly but I
wasnt ignoring your advice.

I realise that its hard work talking to a novice but I am trying to do this
right rather than go for the easier option.



"Duane Hookom" wrote:

To get the results, you need to run an append query as per two previous
replies in this thread. The questions are then displayed in a continuous
subform.

I'm not sure if it would help understand but if you look at the Northwind
Orders and OrderDetails tables. Let's make a couple assumptions:
- an order record is like a case record
- an order detail is like a result
- a product is like a question (let's assume there are only 7 products
available or 7 questions)
- we then have to assume that everyone is going to buy all seven products
(answer all 7 questions)

== northwind ==
You would create an append query based on your product table and the one
Order from your order table. This would create 7 order detail records waiting
for you to enter quantities to purchase.

== survey ==
You would create an append query based on your questions table and the one
Case from your tblCase table. This would create 7 tblResults records waiting
for you to enter an answer value.

You would never create a single field for each product to be ordered. For
instance you wouldn't have an Orders table with fields like: Bread, Milk,
Eggs, Apples, ... As I stated earlier, if your questions are fairly generic,
you need to normalize.

Maybe you should just allow the two local "Experts" create all the fields,
controls, reports, queries, ... required with the multiple field solution ;-)

--
Duane Hookom
Microsoft Access MVP


"Desperate in Ontario" wrote:

Thanks for the replies

Excel won't provide the answers though as it won't porvide reports in the
same way as Access does. I am probably wrong there but my experience of Excel
doesnt give me means of saying that those Cases who live in post code xxx,
who are aged xx, answered, yes, scored 20 etc.

My basic problem with this is that now I have the tables. I haven't been
able to construct a form that has all the questions (i realize that I can get
round this by using text boxes,) and a method of entering the answers so that
the results table is populated.

The two local "Experts" suggest that I use a field per question. Even some
online examples use this method, So I am very confused. I really want to do
this the right way tho, I don't want to build in problems for later,

I have made a query that is ResultsToQuestionText. I thought this might help
with the forms as a subform to case. i still have the problem of how to get a
box for each response and show which question.

I have tried substituting my questions into AYS but that was a mess too!

thank you

"Duane Hookom" wrote:

I agree with John (as usual). One of the nice benefits of creating a
normalized survey application is you don't have to create lots of fields,
lookup tables, controls, etc.

When I began working on the At Your Survey solution, I was taking over an
application started by someone else. I very soon got tired of adding fields,
adding tables, adding controls, adding code, adding logic,...

While the normalized structure requires that your survey conforms with some
basic constraints, it is quite flexible. It could be modified to provide a
different user interface but the table structure should remain mostly the
same.

--
Duane Hookom
Microsoft Access MVP


"John W. Vinson" wrote:

On Thu, 13 Nov 2008 07:17:01 -0800, Desperate in Ontario
wrote:


Hi,
I have set up the forms and am trying to add the boxes for the results.
Should I be looking at list boxes or combo boxes?

Whichever is more suitable for your user interface. They both let you edit
fields; they look different (the listbox always displays multiple rows, the
combo drops down thereby saving screen space, and they handle keystrokes
differently). Both work.

My questions are listed in rows as text in tblQuestionsAsked, not as fields,
so how do I enter each question into the form and have a box for the results?

You don't enter questions INTO THE FORM. You *use* the form (or a Questions
form) to enter questions INTO THE TABLE. The form for entering answers
displays the data stored in the table.

Should my results table have rows for each answer?

Yes.

Would it be so terrible if I went back to having a field for each question??

Yes.

In the nature of surveys, questions change over time. If you have a field per
question, then when you add or change a question, you must restructure your
Table, restructure all Queries involving the table, redesign your Form,
redesign your Reports... a monstrous amount of work. In a normalized design
when you change or add a question you open the Questions form, change or add
the question... and you're DONE.

If you'll only ever do *one* survey, and never change it, and discard the
database when you're done, then maybe you can do it that way... but it might
be simpler to do so in Excel, since you're essentially building a spreadsheet
rather than a database.
--

John W. Vinson [MVP]