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5.9: Field Names and Data Types

  • Page ID
    14806
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    Learning Objectives

    • Discuss field name requirements
    • Discuss types of data used in Microsoft Access

    Field Names

    A field name should be descriptive enough to identify the purpose of the field, without being overly long to prevent excessive typing. Enter the field name by placing the pointer in the first row of the Table Design window under the Field Name column. In order to ensure a valid field name, a field name:

    • Cannot exceed 64 characters,
    • Cannot include periods (.), exclamation points (!), accent grave (`), or brackets ([]),
    • Cannot include spaces,
    • Cannot include low-order ASCII characters,
    • Cannot start with a blank space.

    Data Types

    The data type must be consistent with the data to be stored in the field. The “text” type is the most commonly used data type, including numbers that will not be added like social security or street address numbers. Here is a partial list of Access data types:

    Data Type Description
    Short text Alphanumeric characters
    Long text Alphanumeric characters
    Number Numeric values
    Large Number Numeric values
    Date/Time Date and time data
    Currency Monetary data
    AutoNumber Automatic number increments
    Yes/No Logical values: Yes/No, True/False, etc.
    OLE Objects Pictures, graphs, sound, video
    Hyperlink Line to an Internet resource
    Attachment External files
    Calculated Stores calculations based on other fields
    Lookup Wizard Displays data from another table

    Contributors and Attributions

    CC licensed content, Original
    • Field Names. Authored by: Robert Danielson. Provided by: Lumen Learning. License: CC BY: Attribution

    5.9: Field Names and Data Types is shared under a not declared license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by LibreTexts.

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