DAO Object Model: The Definitive Guide [Paperback]

Helen Feddema (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 8, 2000

Each iteration of Windows has meant a corresponding improvement in the techniques used for transferring data among its applications. Today's leading technique is called Automation. It allows you to work directly with objects in an application's interface using their object models. But if you want to write code in a programming language, such as Visual Basic, in order to work with the apps that support Automation, you must understand the inner workings of an application's object model--or in the case of Microsoft's Access, its two object models.

Microsoft Access is the bestselling stand-alone relational database program for Windows offering both power and ease of use. And in many respects, Microsoft has made Automation the centerpiece of its vision for application development. DAO Object Model: The Definitive Reference will guide you through the Access object models, allowing you, with the support of Automation, to reference the application components you want to manipulate. An understanding of the object models is essential for developers who work with data in Access tables, or who want to manipulate components of the Access interface from other Office apps. The Data Access Objects (DAO) model is used to write and read data in Access tables. The Access object model is used to manipulate forms, reports, queries, macros, and other components of the Access interface, including most of the commands by means of the DoCmd object.

This book will include an introduction and a brief description of the differences between VBA (used in most Office applications) and VBScript (used in Outlook). This chapter will also cover Office utilities and add-ons helpful in writing and debugging code, such as the Object Browser, the Integrated Development Environment (IDE) for VBA and the Interactive Debugger for VBScript. The book will then be divided into two parts; one covering the Access Object Model and the other, the Data Access Objects. Each section will have a description of what the object represents; listings of properties, events, and methods; and one or more code samples illustrating its use in VBA and/or VBScript code. Each property, event, or method section will have an explanation of the language element, and many will have code samples (either VBA or VBScript) as well.

This book will detail, to an advanced user or keen intermediate user, the Access object models and how they are used. It will be the reference guide VB developers reach for when working with data in Access tables, or for manipulating components of the Access interface from other Office applications.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Helen Feddema grew up in New York City. She was ready for computers when she was 12, but computers were not ready for her yet, so she got a B.S. in philosophy from Columbia and an M.T.S. in theological studies from Harvard Divinity School, while working at various office jobs. It was at HDS that she got her first computer, an Osborne, and soon computers were her primary interest. She started with word processing and spreadsheets, went on to learn dBASE, and did dBASE development for six years, part of this time as a corporate developer. After being laid off in a flurry of corporate downsizing, she started doing independent consulting and development, using dBASE, ObjectVision, WordPerfect and Paradox. Always looking for something new and better, Helen beta tested Access 1.0 and soon recognized that this was the database she had been looking for ever since Windows 3.0 was introduced. Since that time, she has worked as a developer of Microsoft Office applications, concentrating on Access, Word, and Outlook. Helen coauthored Inside Microsoft Access, (New Riders, 1992), and wrote two books for Pinnacle's "The Pros Talk Access" series, Power Forms and Power Reports (1994). She also coauthored Access How-Tos for the Waite Group Press (1995), and more recently contributed to The Microsoft Outlook Handbook (Osborne-McGraw-Hill), Que's Special Edition: Using Microsoft Outlook 97 (1997), Office Annoyances (O'Reilly, 1997), and Outlook Annoyances (O'Reilly, 1998). She also contributed chapters to Que's Special Edition: Using Microsoft Project 98 (1997) and Teach Yourself Project (1998). Most recently, Helen co-authored Sybex' MCSD: Access 95 Study Guide (1998). She has also been a regular contributor to Pinnacle's Smart Access and Office Developer journals, Woody's Underground Office newsletter, PC Magazine's Undocumented Office and the MS Office and VBA Journal. She recently contributed articles on Menu Manager and Outlook Automation Access add-ins and Access-Word data merging to Smart Access, as well as writing the Access Archon column for the Woody's Office Watch e-zine. Helen sometimes beta tests seven or eight products at once, mostly Microsoft, but with some from other vendors as well. She lives in the mid-Hudson area of New York state, with three cats and three computers. Helen maintains a web page with a large selection of code samples concentrating on connecting Access, Outlook, Word, and Excel. She is an MVP on the WOPR Lounge, a threaded discussion group devoted to Microsoft Office.

Product Details

• Paperback: 403 pages
• Publisher: O'Reilly Media; Pap/Cdr edition (January 8, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1565924355
• ISBN-13: 978-1565924352
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 7 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,987,735 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Helen fails to REFRESH an old topic, May 15, 2000

By 

Donald Culp (Dayton, OH) - See all my reviews

This review is from: DAO Object Model: The Definitive Guide (Paperback)

This book does not serve its purpose as a definitive reference. I was able to read it cover to cover in an hour or so while sitting in an airport and found nothing remarkable - the striking part is that the book dismisses objects, methods and properties which the author does not understand or have experience with. REFRESH, for example (which is treated dismissively in the book) must be used in order to refresh a changed collection in a multi-user environment or update a collection in a rapidly changing single-user environment, or the field that you expected to be gone will still appear; or the table that you just built using DAO won't be in the collection.

I was disappointed that Oreilly allowed such a book to be published. I had concerns about the author's technical ability before the book was published. Oreilly should have had these same reservations.

22 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars It is a little late for a book on DAO, is it not?, March 10, 2000

By 

Michael S. Kaplan - See all my reviews

This review is from: DAO Object Model: The Definitive Guide (Paperback)

We are certainly at a point where Microsoft would prefer for people to believe the DAO is in fact DOA (dead on arrival). While it is naive to believe every marketing nugget that comes out of Microsoft, a reference book on DAO at this point seems a little late, doesn't it? Sort of like if O'Reilly put out an OS/2 reference book tomorrow.

Once you get past the skepticism about the timing, the book itself has some issues. I perused it at the bookstore using my "10 minute rule" (browse the book for ten minutes, refuse to buy it if you find ten mistakes in that time). I will not give the exact count of mistakes I found, but I'll go so far as to say that it failed the test, and failed worse than any book in recent memory. I won't get into specifics since I am not Ms. Feddema's technical editor, but I'll tell you that if you decide to purchase the book, make sure you skip anything related to replication or security. Online help for DAO is far from perfect, but in this case help has fewer mistakes!

Moving past what is there that is wrong, there is much that is not covered that one would expect in anything titled a "definitive guide" such as this. None of the sort-of hidden methods that have been documented in places like the Jet Engine programmer's Guide and elsewhere (PrivDBEngine, ISAMStats, etc.) are even mentioned. It does not talk about any high end issues such as thread safety. It does not really discuss security in any usable way (and security is the one thing you will need DAO for if you still use it since ADO/ADOx don't do the job right now!). Transaction processing is not discussed in depth. VBScript is "covered" but since VBScript's best host is ASP, where DAO is not safe to use since it is not thread safe, this discussion is incomplete to say the least (I assume this discussion comes from Ms. Feddema's Outlook experience, but in general ADO is definitely the preferred VBScript data access method). My favorite Jet topic (replication) is "covered" but in an incorrect manner that will keep it from being useful.

The book ends up being a mediocre reiteration of basic DAO knowledge, and that is something that is in my opinion at least 30 months too late.

10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars More Reference than How-to Book, February 13, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: DAO Object Model: The Definitive Guide (Paperback)

This book covered the most I've seen on DAO. It does not cover ADO at all, but mentions that another book covering ADO is in the works. The book is really a reference book, listing out each and every command. It works best as a lookup for specific commands. If you need to learn DAO get another book, but once your into it and get into trouble, this book might just help.