Alternative to Attachment field

[MeldrethMan]

My client uses a Jobs table with attachment field to store JPG scanned images of the work being done, maybe as many as 8 images. The backend database containing the table is growing rapidly, already up to 0.75GB and likely to go on growing at the same rate.

Instead is there a way to store just the links to each image and allow the client to display them as needed, preferably full screen. That would reduce the size of the backend dramatically.

I started out along the lines of trying to archive non-current records but ran into the fact that Access can't append attachment fields.

 

[dhookom]

I typically store the path to the images. If all the images are in the same folder, I might store the path to the folder in a table and then only store the unique path\file.jpg in the table of images. There are lots of examples on the web regarding how to display the images in a form or report.

Duane
Hook'D on Access
MS Access MVP

 

[MeldrethMan]

Thanks Duane. I've done this for my own use but my client would probably find it tedious to have to find the file location and paste it in, compared with the convenience of using an Attachment field.

Would it be possible to create some sort of browse facility so she could steer to where the images are stored, then select and add to the field containing the link? You may have indicated this in your answer but I didn't understand by 'store the path to the folder in a table and then only store the unique path\file.jpg in the table of images'.

 

[dhookom]

I use a variation of an API. There are other options if you search for VBA to browse for a file.

Duane
Hook'D on Access
MS Access MVP

 

[MeldrethMan]

Thanks Duane, you're continuing help is much appreciated. I found a good solution in TheAceMan1's contribution to this post

http://www.tek-tips.com/viewthread.cfm?qid=1289131

This does what I want and allows selection of a file then creation of a link to it in a text box. To make the link work I had to adapt the call to say

me.Textboxname = Browsefiles()
me.Textboxname = me.Textboxname & "#" & me.Textboxname & "#