Week in Review Week in Review: July 29, 2023 Highlights include Richard Rost's series on tracking account balances, barcode scanning via PowerApps, improving image quality, and a SQL formatting add-in.
Reader Challenge Logic Puzzle Solution Part 3: Counting the Possible Configurations When I first read through the five-house logic puzzle, I kept thinking, "I should just brute force this thing." I was so naive...
Hidden Features 3 Situations for Using Named Arguments in VBA One of the lesser-known features of VBA is the ability to use named arguments in your calling code. Here are three situations just begging for named arguments.
ShowForm Evolution of a Function: ShowForm() Part 4 Years of real-world usage revealed edge cases that required bug fixes in our function. This is why Joel Spolsky says old code is better than new.
ShowForm Evolution of a Function: ShowForm() Part 3 As our ShowForm function continues to evolve, we begin refactoring and addressing several shortcomings of our earlier efforts.
Archive Archive Collection: Field Descriptions I'm on a short vacation (shh...don't tell anyone)! I'll be back soon, but until then enjoy this curated collection of articles. Today's topic: Field Descriptions.
twinBASIC Weekly Update twinBASIC Update: July 23, 2023 Highlights include an update on Wayne's LLVM progress and a demonstration of how to integrate the Windows Ribbon Framework into twinBASIC.
Week in Review Week in Review: July 22, 2023 Highlights include the seventh installment of a.p.r. pillai's class-based form code series, building Gantt charts in Access, and a deep dive into SQL subqueries.
Announcement Coming Soon: Access Developer Survey MAJOR ANNOUNCEMENT: NoLongerSet will be launching its inaugural Access Developer Survey soon. I need your help!
VBA How to Efficiently Check for Empty Strings in VBA Yes, there is a right way and a wrong way to check for empty strings in VBA. Actually, there are *two* right ways and *two* wrong ways. Let's explore all four.
Debugging TCP Port Test Fails When SQL Server Service Is Stopped There are three likely causes for a failed TCP Port test: 1) firewall on the SQL Server host; 2) SQL Server uses dynamic ports; or 3) SQL Server service is stopped.
ShowForm Why Creating Multiple Copies of a Form Is Bad Practice Creating multiple *instances* of a single form may seem like more work than just making multiple *copies* of a form, but it's an investment worth making.
Code Library CascadeForm(): Prevent Multi-Instance Forms From Hiding Behind Each Other The CascadeForm() function introduces the cascading-window effect from the Windows operating system to Microsoft Access.
twinBASIC Weekly Update twinBASIC Update: July 16, 2023 Highlights include twinPACK publisher support in the new IDE, indenting of pasted code, inline code hints, and the release of a 64-bit tB version of Kr00l's FlexGrid control.
Week in Review Week in Review: July 15, 2023 Highlights include the return of DevHut.net, generating hashes in VBA, bypassing the trusted domains "feature," and an eye-opening video on great interface design.
AI ChatGPT: Genius or Fraud? There's an ongoing debate over whether developers can trust the current crop of LLMs. The problem is people are asking the wrong question.
ShowForm Evolution of a Function: ShowForm() Part 2 As our ShowForm function evolves, we introduce a very basic capability to create and manage multiple form instances.
ShowForm Evolution of a Function: ShowForm() Part 1 Part 1 of the ShowForm function is an MVP (minimum viable product) which is little more than a convenience function wrapper around DoCmd.OpenForm.
ShowForm Evolution of a Function: ShowForm() Code is a living thing. Letting it grow organically over time helps ensure that you get exactly the features you need. My ShowForm() function is a prime example.
UX Countering Automation Bias Those handy default values you provide your users could be doing more harm than good.
twinBASIC Weekly Update twinBASIC Update: July 9, 2023 Highlights include a supercharged Collection class (that also replaces Scripting.Dictionary for most use cases) and several exciting community projects.
Week in Review Week in Review: July 8, 2023 Highlights include the next installment of a.p.r. pillai's class-based form code series, AI regulations, and understanding project requirements.
Code Library 4 Keys to Building Generic Solutions in Code Building and maintaining a library of custom code procedures is an investment that provides compounding benefits over time.
Debugging Written Rubberducking: A Practical Example A practical example of the written rubberducking technique taken straight from our FogBugz issue tracking software.
Debugging Written Rubberducking: My Debugging Superpower While rubber ducks make good code buddies, they make even better pen pals.