Table 7 lists the tags used to identify types of objects in a database.
Table 7. Access Database Explorer object tags.
| Tag | Object Type |
|---|---|
| tbl | Table |
| qry | Query |
| frm | Form |
| rpt | Report |
| mcr | Macro |
| bas | Module |
If you wish, you can use more exact tags or suffixes to identify the purpose and type of a database object. If you use the suffix, use the tag given from Table 7 to indicate the type. Use either the tag or the suffix found along with the more general tag, but not both. The tags and suffixes are shown in Table 8.
Table 8. Specific object tags and suffixes for Access Database Explorer objects.
| Tag | Suffix | Object Type |
|---|---|---|
| tlkp | Lookup | Table (lookup) |
| qsel | (none) | Query (select) |
| qapp | Append | Query (append) |
| qxtb | XTab | Query (crosstab) |
| qddl | DDL | Query (DDL) |
| qdel | Delete | Query (delete) |
| qflt | Filter | Query (filter) |
| qlkp | Lookup | Query (lookup) |
| qmak | MakeTable | Query (make table) |
| qspt | PassThru | Query (SQL pass-through) |
| qtot | Totals | Query (totals) |
| quni | Union | Query (union) |
| qupd | Update | Query (update) |
| fdlg | Dlg | Form (dialog) |
| fmnu | Mnu | Form (menu) |
| fmsg | Msg | Form (message) |
| fsfr | SubForm | Form (subform) |
| rsrp | SubReport | Form (subreport) |
| mmnu | Mnu | Macro (menu) |
Here are some examples:
tblValidNamesLookup
tlkpValidNames
fmsgError
mmnuFileMnu
When naming objects in a database, don’t use spaces. Instead, capitalize the first letter of each word. For example, instead of Quarterly Sales Values Table, use tblQuarterlySalesValues.
There is strong debate over whether fields in a table should have tags. Whether you use them is up to you. However, if you do use them, use the tags from Table 9.
Table 9. Field tags (if you decide to use them).
| Tag | Object Type |
|---|---|
| bin | Binary |
| byt | Byte |
| guid | Globally unique identified (GUID) used for replication AutoIncrement fields |
| lng | Autoincrementing (either sequential or random) Long (used with the suffix Cnt) |
| cur | Currency |
| dat | Date/time |
| dbl | Double |
| int | Integer |
| lng | Long |
| mem | Memo |
| ole | OLE |
| sng | Single |
| str | Text |
| f | Yes/No |
Copyright © 1995 Greg Reddick. You can freely distribute this document.