Fields and their Usage

[gwboolean]

I am currently setting up a document database, as well as several others for an application that will take in document control, item control, change control, MRP, and a couple of other related applications.



The OLE fields have been around for quite awhile and I have attempted to use them in the past with limited success. What I have in mind is a field to store a barcode that could be used and kept in a document record. It is my thought that an OLE field might be a good place for this. Are there any pros and cons to the usage of an OLE field for this?

Another field that interests me and is new to me is the attachment field. By the description I have a pretty good idea what it does, but can anyone give me some detail on it's usage and reliability?

[CJ_London]

take a look at this link

https://support.office.com/en-gb/art...B&fromAR=1#bm2

[gwboolean]

Thanks, that gave me most of what I needed. I did not see .pdf files in the list of attachments that could be placed in the field. Are they not supported in this field type?

[ItsMe]

Hmmm, not quite sure I am seeing a specific question. One thing that stands out is you need to store documents. I would not use an attachment field in an Access database. Also, I would not use an OLE field to store documents in an Access database. Perhaps you have read the link provided by Ajax.

For documents, store them on a hard drive somewhere and store the path as text in an Access table. You might consider BLOB storage via Microsoft Azure or another service if you need something online.

As for barcodes, barcodes are just a font. So, 54432FG95 can be stored as text and displayed as a barcode.

[gwboolean]

Thanks, ITsMe. That tells me all I need to know. I never had good luck with the OLE fields in the past, but was hoping that those had changed. What you mentioned with attachments I have been doing and it does work fine (except I never thought of putting the path into a text field before, that is better than what I have been doing). So I take it that the attachment field isn't that great or reliable then.

[ItsMe]

It boils down to size. The attachment field can be useful if you want to transport a few files with the DB. But when it comes to document management, it's a pain. Similar to OLE wrappers, you need to dig into the tables using code to extract the file and use it outside of Access.

Another thing, I do not know if you are using scanners. It is likely that a third party solution may be better than existing Microsoft Libraries to automate third party equipment and TWAINS. I have one vender that I have used for years. Not sure if their latest versions are easily translated to VBA, though.