Access can be intimidating for the people who are not developers and are just using the database for data input and retrieval. One way to make your database more “user-friendly” is to use command buttons to automate the process of opening a form. Buttons like these in the Northwind Database can make all the difference in the usability of your database.

Using the Access Wizard you can create these buttons without writing a single line of VBA code.

Create a Command Button to Open An Access Form

1. Open in the design view the form in which you would like to place the button.
2. You will need the Toolbox Toolbar so make sure it is open.
   
   
   
   TIP: To open the toolbar, click the Toolbox button on the main Form Design Toolbar.
   
   
3. The Toolbox Toolbar will usually open docked to the bottom of the Access window. Make sure the Wizards Button is activated. (It will look “pushed in”.)
   
   
   
4. Click the Command Button Tool.
   
   
5. Point to the place on the form where you want the new command button to go. Your mouse pointer will show a command button icon.
   
   
6. Either click or click and drag to the desired button shape.
   
   
7. When the mouse is released the Command Button Wizard will start and the first step dialog box will open.
8. In the first pane under Categories, click Form Operations.
9. In the second pane under Actions, click Open Form.
   
   
10. Click Next.
11. In the second step dialog box, choose which form you want to open and click Next.
    
    
12. In the third box, choose if you want to filter the records or show all and click Next.
    
    
13. The fourth step is to choose how you want the button to look. Pictures are pretty but not usually very informative. Text will tell the end-users what will happen when the button is clicked. Click Next after setting the button’s appearance.
    
    
14. The final step is to name the button. The conventional naming dictates that the tag “cmd” be used for command buttons. (See Naming Conventions in Access.)
    
    
15. Click Finish.
16. The button will be placed on your form.
    
    
17. When shown in the form view the button has a professional look.