You can help users search for
records by adding a combo box to their forms. And, with Access 2002 or Access
2003’s Combo Box wizard, you do not have to know how to program to do it.

For example, suppose your users need to search for records on the Employee Data Form by last name. Follow these steps to create a combo box that
will do just that:

  1. Open your
    Employee Data Form in Design view.
  2. Click the Combo
    Box button in the Toolbox. (In Access 2002, make sure the Control Wizards
    button is activated first.)
  3. Click and drag to
    create the combo box within your form.
  4. Select the option, Find A Record On My Form Based On The Value I Selected In My Combo Box and click Next.
  5. Click Next.
  6. Select First Name
    and Last Name from the available fields. Click Next.
  7. Adjust field width
    as necessary and click Next twice.
  8. Enter Find Record
    and click Finish.
  9. Right-click the
    combo box and select Properties.
  10. Under Data, click
    the Row Source Builder button.
  11. Under Last Name,
    click the Sort cell and choose Ascending.
  12. Close the Query
    window and click Yes.
  13. Save the form
    changes.

When users open the form, users
can click the drop-down arrow of the combo box and scroll down to select an
employee name. Access then finds and displays the record for the selected
employee.

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