Getting to Know Access 2003, Part 3 - Set the Properties for Your Field
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Next, set the properties for the field in the lower-left properties pane. Field properties determine how your table values are stored and displayed. You can set the following properties of a field: size, format, input mask, caption, default value, validation rule, validation text, required, allow zero length, indexed, Unicode compression, IME mode, IME sentence mode, and smart tags. The following list describes the properties in more detail:
- Field size sets the maximum amount of characters you can have in a field.
- Format specifies the display of data such as forcing all values to UPPERCASE.
- Input Mask creates a template for data entry that requires data to conform. You might force all entered telephone numbers to have the following format for example: 000-000-0000.
- Caption displays a name other than the field name for forms, the datasheet view, and reports.
- Default value always automatically enters a value into the field.
- Validation Rule sets an expression that checks for invalid data in the field.
- Validation Text displays a message if the validation rule is violated.
- Required just means the field cannot be left blank.
- Allow Zero Length distinguishes between a blank field and an empty string field.
- Indexed indicates a field upon which the table is indexed.
- Unicode compression compresses Unicode field data to save storage space.
- IME Mode and IME Sentence mode deal with East Asian text specifications.
- Smart Tags recognizes and labels fields as a specific type.
Next: The Primary Key >>
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