Microsoft Access 2010 Bible

Chapter 8: Working with Data on Access Forms

301

Printing a form is like printing anything else. Windows is a WYSIWYG (“What You See Is What

You Get”) environment, so what you see on the form is what you get in the printed hard copy. If

you added page headers or page footers, they would be printed at the top or bottom of the page.

The printout contains any formatting that you specified in the form (including lines, boxes, and

shading) and converts colors to grayscale if you’re using a monochrome printer.

The printout includes as many pages as necessary to print all the data. If your form is wider than a

single printer page, you need multiple pages to print your form. Access breaks up the printout as

necessary to fit on each page.

You can also control printing from the Print dialog box, which you open by clicking the Microsoft

Office Button, and then clicking on Print. Customize your printout by selecting from several

options:

l Print Range: Prints the entire form or only selected pages or records

l (^) Copies: Determines the number of copies to be printed
l Collate: Determines whether copies are collated
You can also click the Properties button and set options for the selected printer or select a different
printer. The Setup button allows you to set margins and print headings.
Tip
Although you may have a form ready to print, you may not be sure whether that information will print on mul-
tiple pages or fit on a single page. Click the Print Preview command under the Print menu to display the Print
Preview window. The default view is the first page to show in single-page preview. Use the ribbon commands
to select different views and zoom in and out. Click Print to print the form to the printer. Click the Close Print
Preview command on the right side of the ribbon to return to Form view.
Working with Form Properties
You use form properties to change the way the form is displayed. Property settings include the
form’s background color or picture, the form’s width, and so on. Tables 8.3 through 8.5 in this
chapter discuss some of the more important properties. Changing default properties is relatively
easy: You select the property in the Property Sheet and set a new value.
On the CD-ROM
The examples in this section use frmProducts from the Chapter08.accdb example database.
Note
The form selector is the area where the rulers meet while the form is in design or layout view. A small black
square appears when the form is selected, as shown in Figure 8.9.