Subform VS tab control

[nhtraven]

Hi all

I am wondering if one or more of the expert programmers would give me insight into the difference between tab control and a subform. Is it just aesthetics? Is there a benefit to using one over the other? I see that i can add a subform within a tab control. Is a tab control more for the ADP? I am making a stand alone database.

I am wondering if using a tab control keeps the form a little more "dumby proof" so your users cannot get confused as to what and where they are entering data. IS this the case?

Can a tab control color be changed? i have looked in the Access help for this and couldnt find it anywhere. The format toolbar is locked when i have the tab control focused.


Thanks for any insight in advance.

Raven

 

[Edski]

Hi Raven,
Firstly, Tab Controls cannot change colour. Do a search and you'll find many many threads concerning this.

I use Tab controls when I have One Main form and many subforms that just don't fit on the screen. I don't like forms that users have to scroll down the screen to view - many users don't like this either - so I use tab pages.

The difference between a subform and a tab control? A subform is simply a form that you insert into another (Main) form. Usually this subform will be linked to the Main form. A Tab control is a control that can have multiple pages with a different subform in each page, thus separating your Main form into a more managable one. It enables the user to see just the one subform at a time by clicking the tab pages at the top. Without the tab control, a Main form with many subform would need to be stacked vertically down the screen (so the user needs to use the vertical scroll bar) or positioned next to each other (user must use the horizontal scroll bar).

Another option would be to put them ontop of each other (stacked) and make only one visible at a time. Placing some command buttons on the main form could make each one visible, depending on which button was pushed.

Hope that's clear.