Query criteria breaks parent/child relationships

[RankSinatra]

I have a form based on a query that selects cashiers by date their register is assigned and location they work. If I put "front" in the location criteria, it filters the results correctly. However, I want the date combo box on the form to only show the attendants that had registers on that specific selected date. So I have the combobox referenced in the query criteria for the operationaldate field as forms![parentform]![datecombobox]. This works until I close the form and reopen it, after which the subforms no longer update and the text boxes on them tell me I must input values for the fields that should be linked automatically to the comboboxes. If I delete the expression from the criteria, the subforms once again link as they are supposed to. Is there another way to have the comboboxes for the cashier's names and locations autoupdate based on the date value? Because otherwise it shows every cashier and every location for every date and that doesn't reflect the sign out records.

[ranman256]

you can only have the subforms work 1 way,
either link the subtable to the cashier, or to the date.

you wouldnt even NEED a subform. This would eliminate the subform errors you mentioned.
Instead use a continuous form with all records, with combo boxes on the form header.
pick a date to filter the records on the date.
pick a cashier to filter the records on the cashier.

build the 'where' clause by cycling thru all the controls....
it executes afterupdate event
if null, ignore.
if not, apply.

sub cboDate_Afterupdate()
  FilterRecs
end sub

sub cboCashier_Afterupdate()
  FilterRecs
end sub

'----------------
sub FilterRecs()
'----------------
dim sWhere as string 


sWhere = "1=1"
if not IsNUll(cboDate) then sWhere = sWhere & " and [Date]=#" & cboDate & "#"
if not IsNUll(cboCashier) then sWhere = sWhere & " and [Cashier]='" & cboCashier & "'"


If sWhere = "1=1" Then
  Me.FilterOn = False
Else
  Me.Filter = sWhere
  Me.FilterOn = True
End If
end sub

[RankSinatra]

I was able to fix this issue by setting the criteria on the combobox queries instead of the underlying query. I'm dealing with a different problem now. I don't know if I should start a new thread or posted here, but at the risk of starting too many threads I'm just going to include it on this one. That is, until someone else tells me otherwise. The issue I'm having now is related to the table opened exclusively by another user error. I have two forms that reference the same sign out log table, one assigns new registers and the other one balances the old ones. I would like to do both actions simultaneously, signing out new tills while balancing the a.m. registers. However it will not let me have both forms open simultaneously. Is there a way around this? I'm not worried about over writing records because the sign out form only adds new records, it does not edit the old ones so I can't overwrite anything.