Working with Parts

In most cases, the functions of the various layout parts are obvious from their names: header, body, and footer. Summary parts work a bit differently than other layout parts. Since summary fields gather information from across several records, they cannot appear within the body of an individual record. That's where the various kinds of summary parts come in by providing a way to display this cross-record data. Grand summary parts summarize information for all the records being browsed. Subsummary parts do the same for a group of records, based on the break field you designate within the Part Definition dialog box.

Title header: This special type of header appears only at the top of the page or first screen. It can also be used as a title page. Each layout can only contain one title header.

Header: Use for field titles or column headings in columnar layouts (Figure 11.51). It appears at the top of every page or screen. Each layout can only contain one header.

Figure 11.51. Used in a columnar layout, a header part enables you to run field titles across the top for more than one row of records.

Leading grand summary: Use this type of summary part to display summary information at the beginning of the group of the records being browsed.

Body: Use for the bulk of your data, including graphics. The body appears for each record in the database. Each layout can only contain one body.

Subsummary: Use this type of summary part to display summary information for the group of records specified by the break field.

Trailing grand summary: Use this type of summary part to display summary information at the end of the group of the records being browsed.

Footer: Use for dates or page numbers. The footer appears at the bottom of each page or screen. Each layout can contain only one footer.

Title footer: This special type of footer appears only at the bottom of the first page or screen. Each layout can only contain one title footer.

To add a layout part

1.	Make sure you're in Layout mode ( in Windows, on the Mac). Choose Layouts > Part Setup.
2.	When the Part Setup dialog box appears, click Create (Figure 11.52). Figure 11.52. Click Create when the Part Setup dialog box appears.
3.	Within the Part Definition dialog box, select the type of part you want to create from the eight choices (Figure 11.53). Figure 11.53. The Part Definition dialog box offers eight choices.
4.	If you're creating a subsummary part, you'll also need to select from the right-hand list which field (also known as a break field) you'd like the records to sort by.
5.	The Part Definition dialog box also allows you to control where and how pages will break. Check the appropriate box or boxes. Click OK.
6.	When the Part Setup dialog box reappears, click Done and the new part appears in the layout.

Tip

• If you're clear about the purpose and placement of layout parts, you can add a part directly by clicking on the Part button in the left-hand Layout status area and dragging the resulting part to where you want it (Figure 11.54).

  Figure 11.54. The Part button within the Layout status area lets you add a part by clicking and dragging directly within the layout.

  

To delete a part

1.	Make sure you're in Layout mode ( in Windows, on the Mac). Choose Layouts > Part Setup.
2.	Within the Part Setup dialog box, select the part you want eliminated and press . If you've selected a part that contains objects, you'll get a warning dialog box. If you're sure, click Delete.

To reorder parts

1.	Make sure you're in Layout mode ( in Windows, on the Mac). Choose Layouts > Part Setup.
2.	Click on the part you want to move, hold the cursor down, and drag the part to a new position in the order (Figure 11.55). Figure 11.55. Reorder parts by clicking and dragging them within the Part Setup dialog box.
3.	Click Done. The part appears in the new position.

To resize a part

• Make sure you're in Layout mode ( in Windows, on the Mac). Click on the dotted line separating one part from another and drag it to make the part larger or smaller (Figure 11.56).

  Figure 11.56. To resize a part, click and drag on the dotted line separating one part from another.

  

Tip

• Resizing one part doesn't change the size of any other parts in the layout. Instead, the size of the entire layout will grow or shrink accordingly.