Make Access reports easier to read with group headers and footers - TechRepublic

Make Access reports easier to read with group headers and footers

Does your Access report contain so much data that it’s difficult to read? Then make your report easier on the eyes by breaking it up with group headers and footers. Mary Ann Richardson explains how.

Jun 20, 2006
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You’ve sorted your Access report by the zip code field, but
your users are finding it difficult to determine where the records for each zip
code begin or end. Rather than having your users read down the list of zip
codes to find the data they want, you can add a group header and group footer
that will make it easier for them to locate records for a particular zip code.
Follow these steps:

  1. Open
    the report in Design View.
  2. Click
    the Sorting And Grouping button on the toolbar.
  3. Click
    Zip Code under the Field/Expression column.
  4. In
    the Group Header box, select Yes.
  5. In
    the Group Footer box, select Yes.
  6. Close
    the Sorting And Grouping dialog box.
  7. Click
    the Label button in the toolbox.
  8. Click
    and drag in the Group Header section of the Report.
  9. Enter
    Zip Code in the label control.
  10. Right-click
    the Zip Code field in the detail section, and select Cut.
  11. Right-click
    the Group Header section next to the label control, and select Paste.
  12. Click
    the Rectangle tool.
  13. Click
    and drag to draw a horizontal line in the Group Footer section.
  14. Right-click
    the line and select Fill Color, then select Black.
  15. Perform
    any other formatting to the report as desired.

When you run the report, each group of records pertaining to
a particular zip code will begin with a header identifying the zip code, and will be
separated from the next group by a horizontal line in the group footer.

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