No Longer Set (Page 11)

Rubberducking

This one-step process is a surprisingly effective way to troubleshoot the most complex programming problems.

twinBASIC Update: February 4, 2024

Highlights include two newly commissioned features (BigNumber support and a web page IDE panel) and a tB IDE comment/uncomment add-in.

Week in Review

Week in Review: February 3, 2024

Highlights include the demystification of MS 365 Update Channels, a Rubberduck v3 status update, and adding speech recognition to Access.

Quick Tip

HOW TO: Access the Windows Startup Folder

In previous versions of Windows, the Startup folder was easy to find from the Start Menu. This quick tip makes the Startup folder easy to find again.

Version Control

Mercurial: The Road Less Traveled

Unfortunately, choosing the less popular version control system has some important real-world drawbacks.

Access 101

Access 101: DELETE Query

The DELETE query: a tool for removing records in bulk that is almost too dangerous to use.

Advanced

Static Linking vs. Dynamic Linking

You've likely heard the terms "dynamic link library", "DLL Hell", and "static linking." But what do they mean? Why should you care? And how do they apply to Access?

Form Design

Deep Dive: Improving the Access User Experience with Attached Labels

In this comprehensive article, we explore attached labels in extensive depth: what they are, why you want them, and how to work with them in both the UI and VBA.

twinBASIC Weekly Update

twinBASIC Update: January 28, 2024

Highlights include ... ah, never mind. The new twinBASIC IDE is here!!!! Plus: static linking, experimental type inference, 20-30% reductions in exe sizes, and more!

Week in Review

Week in Review: January 27, 2024

Highlights include an intro to star schemas, highlighting controls and columns in continuous forms, and auto-resizing subforms to fill available space.

Intermediate

Set the Access Application Title Bar to the Full Path of the File at Startup

Today's tip helps you keep track of which Access file is which when you have several similar Access files open at the same time.

Prompt School

Using AI to Explain Unfamiliar Command Lines from the Internet

Let's use ChatGPT to explain how complex command lines work.

Bug Alert

Roll Back to Previous Version of Office When on Microsoft 365 Current Channel (Preview)

Rolling back to previous versions of Microsoft 365 (nee Office 365) is hard enough in the best-case scenario. Troubleshooting problems is a nightmare.

Version Control

Git vs. Mercurial in 2024

This classic article from fifteen years ago contains one of the most impressively specific (and accurate) technology predictions I've ever read.

Quick Tip

QuickTip: Navigation Captions

Even after 17 years of developing in Microsoft Access, I'm still learning about features that have been there the whole time...

twinBASIC Weekly Update

twinBASIC Update: January 21, 2024

Highlights include a minor delay of the long-awaited twinBASIC IDE update, a new twinBASIC FAQ page, and several new and updated tB projects from fafalone.

Week in Review

Week in Review: January 20, 2024

Highlights include creating Windows taskbar notifications with VBA, FMS Access tools demo, and conditionally hiding buttons on continuous forms.

Defensive Programming

Bug Alert: Accidental Double-Clicking of Long-Running Processes

This is not a bug in Access itself, but rather a common pattern that leads to occasional logic errors that can be nearly impossible to reproduce (and debug).

Announcement

Access Day 2024

Come join the Microsoft Access team, several Access MVPs (including me), and other fellow Access developers in Redmond, WA, on March 15, 2024.

Code Library

GetCtlAtMouse(): A Reliable Way to Return the Current Control Object Under the Mouse Cursor in Access

In this follow-up to my earlier article on the undocumented AccHitTest() method, we improve how we handle errors when the mouse is over an empty area of the form.

Tools

Ditto: My Newest Favorite Micro-Productivity Tool

"That's what she said."

Commentary

Microsoft Access: The Only Low-Code/No-Code/High-Code Data Application on the Market

Microsoft Access was the original low-code tool before low-code tools were all the rage. There's an important reason why Access remains the king.

twinBASIC Weekly Update

twinBASIC Update: January 14, 2024

Highlights include a dedicated twinBASIC forum at VBForums, new teaser images from this Friday's upcoming beta release, and several projects from fafalone.

Week in Review

Weeks in Review: January 13, 2024

Highlights include the release of "Access on Steroids", a Rubberduck v3 update, a CDO StartTLS deep dive, and two presentations on classes in VBA.

Code Library

How to Open a File with its Default Application in VBA

One of the handiest functions I use in my Access applications is this gem from Dev Ashish: fHandleFile(). Here's how to make it compatible with 64-bit VBA.