Vocabulary
Data: Information you enter into a field to create a record.
Database file: A set of information that has been organized
in some way, i.e., a telephone book, a restaurant menu.
Field: A category--a column in a table. In
the telephone example, the fields would be name, address, and telephone number.
Filter: A filter answers one question. If you ask the
database to show you all the records of people named Anderson in the telephone book, you are asking it to perform a filter.
Null: Empty. You will see this word in an error message
if you leave a field empty that must contain data.
Primary Key: A special field that identifies each record. Also
known as Key field. The data in the field must be unique.e.g., a student number. A key symbol identifies the field.
Properties: Characteristics that precisely define a field.
Query: Questions. If you ask the database to show you everyone
who is named Anderson or Andersen, you are asking it to perform a query. The data, called a subset, appears in a spreadsheet-like
view.
Record: One row in a table, e.g., all the information about
one person in an address book. There are many records in a database.
Report: Printer version od a table or query
Sort: To put records in an order, usually alphabetical, based
on the data in a specific field.
Table: Tables store all the information in your database. Many
records appear on the screen at one time. This information is arranged in columns and rows and looks like a spreadsheet.
You can enter data into a table. Every Access database must have at least one table.
