Formatting Text on a Form

After you place all your information on the form (that is, the controls you want to include and labels to display any titles or explanatory text), the next step is to make the form look more appealing.

All the formatting tools you need are on the Formatting toolbar (the top toolbar in the Form Design view). Table 11.1 describes several of the formatting tools. To format a control or label, select it, and then click the appropriate formatting tool to apply the format to the control or label.

Table 11.1. Tools on the Formatting Toolbar

Tool	Purpose
	Toggles bold on/off
	Toggles italic on/off
	Toggles underline on/off
	Left-aligns text
	Centers text
	Right-aligns text
	Fills the selected box with the selected color
	Colors the text in the selected box
	Colors the outline of the selected box
	Controls the border width on the selected box
	Adds a special effect to the selected box

Some tools, such as the Font and Size tools, are drop-down lists. You click the down arrow next to the tool and then select from the list. Other tools are simple buttons for turning bold and italic on or off. Still other tools, such as the Color and Border tools, combine a button and a drop-down list. If you click the button, it applies the current value. You can click the down arrow next to the button to change the value.

You can change the color of the form background, too. Just click the header for the section you want to change (for example, Detail) to select the entire section. Then right-click and choose Fill/Back color to change the color.

AutoFormat You can use a shortcut for formatting your form. Choose Format, AutoFormat. You can choose from among several premade color and formatting schemes. If you don't like the formatting after you apply it, press Ctrl+Z to undo.