LibreOffice-Suite-Base/C2/Create-a-simple-form/English
| Visual Cues | Narration |
|---|---|
| Show Slide Number 1
Spoken tutorial on LibreOffice Base: Simple Form. Learning Objectives 1. What is a form? 2. Create a form using the Wizard |
Welcome to the Spoken tutorial on LibreOffice Base.
In this tutorial, we will cover Simple Forms in LibreOffice Base. Here, we will learn the following: 1. What is a form? 2. How to create a form using the Wizard |
| Show Slide Number 2
What is a form?
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Using LibreOffice Base, so far, we learnt about creating a database and creating tables where we store the data.
But, how do we enter data into the database tables? One way is to directly type in data into the cells of the tables, which we did in the last tutorial. There is another way to enter data swiftly as well as with minimum errors. And that, is by using Forms. A form is a front end or user interface for data entry and editing data. For example, a simple form can consist of fields in a table. Let us consider the Library database example that we created in previous tutorials. So a simple form can consist of the fields in the Books table. And this form, now, can be used to enter data into the Books table. Now, let us learn how to create a form. |
| Open LibreOffice Base program from Windows Start-->All Programs-->LibreOffice Suite--> LibreOffice Base
Click on the 'open an existing database file' option. In the 'Recently Used' drop down box, Library should be visible, Click on the Finish button. Click on File and point on open. Click on File >> Recent documents. Don’t click. |
Let us first invoke the LibreOffice Base program.
If Base program is not opened, then we will click on the Start button at the bottom left, then click on All programs, then click on LibreOffice Suite and then click on LibreOffice Base. Let us now click on the 'open an existing database file' option. In the 'Recently Used' drop down box, our Library database should be visible. So now, let us select it and click on the Finish button. If LibreOffice Base is already open, Then we can open the Library database file Library.odb by clicking on the File menu on the top and then clicking on Open. Alternately, click on Recent Documents in the File menu, and choose Library.odb . |
| Click on the Forms icon in the Database list on the left panel.
Click on: Use Wizard to create form. Move the cursor over this popup window area, as narration goes forward, pointing at the various controls on this window. Click on Tables:Books from the drop down on the top that says Tables or Queries Click on >> button. Click on BookId on the RHS list, Click on < button. Click on the Next button. |
Now we are in the Library Database.
Let us click on the Forms icon in the Database list on the left panel.
Let us click on the second option: Use Wizard to create form. We now see a new window which is similar to the LibreOffice Writer window. And on top of it we see a popup window, that says 'Form Wizard'. Let’s go through this Wizard to create our first form based on the Books table. Notice the 8 steps that we will go through on the left hand side. We are in step 1 which is 'Field Selection'. And, on the right hand side let us choose Tables:Books from the drop down here that says Tables or Queries. Below this, we see a list of available fields on the left hand side. On the right hand side we see fields on the form. We will need to move only those fields which we need on the form. For now, let us click on the button with double arrow mark symbols. Notice that, we have moved all the fields from the left to the right. Since we have set up BookId field to autogenerate its own numbers, we don’t need it on the form So let us move this field back to the left hand side. Click on BookId on the right hand side and click on the button that has one 'Less than' symbol. Ok, let us go to the next step now, by clicking on the Next button at the bottom. |
| Click on the Next button. | Step 2. Since we are creating a simple form, let us skip this step for now and simply click on the Next button. |
| Click on the one icon after another slowly below the label 'Arrangement of the main form'
Click on the first icon. Click on the Next button. |
We are in Step 5. 'Arrange controls'.
Also notice that in the background window, we see the Books table in an Orange background. Let us click on the four icons below the label that says 'Arrangement of the Main form'. As we click through, we see the background window, changing, in the arrangement of labels and text boxes saying title, author etc. Let us use the first arrangement that says 'Columnar – Labels left' and click on the first icon. Here the labels are to the left and text boxes on the right, just like a typical paper form. Now let us click on the Next button to proceed. |
| Click on the Next button in Step 6. | We are on Step 6 that says 'Set Data Entry'. We will skip this step for now, and go to the Next step. |
| Click through various colours slowly.
Click on Ice blue. Click on the Next button in Step 7 |
Step 7. 'Apply Styles'.
Notice that the window background colour changes as we click through each colour in the list box. Let us choose Ice Blue, by clicking on it. Now, let us go to the final step. |
| Type ' Books Data Entry Form' in the Name of the form text box
Click on the Work on the Form option button. Click on the Finish button |
Step 8. Let us now give a name to our form.
We can follow our own naming conventions, But for now, let us type a descriptive name, 'Books Data Entry Form' in the text box that is below the label ‘Name of the form’. Now, how do we want to proceed after creating the form? Let us 'Work with the form' first. Meaning we will start using the form for data entry. To change the form design, we can choose 'Modify the form', which we will see later. For now, we are done, so let us click on the finish button at the bottom. |
| Show cursor over the first row
Click on tab keys 6 times. Click on Next Record icon, black triangle in the bottom toolbar. Point cursor on Record 3 in (the bottom Click on those four black icons slowly to show tooltips, and show that the record changes. |
We have now created our first simple form that says 'Books Data Entry Form' on the window title.
Notice that the text boxes are filled with values, that read 'An autobiography', 'Jawaharlal Nehru' etc. Where did these values come from? We typed in these values directly into the Books table in the previous part of the Base tutorial. Now this form is ready to use for data entry. Let us click on the tab keys to go through each value. Notice that the form shows the second book's information and the title is now 'Conquest of self'. We can also go to each book's information, otherwise called 'record', by clicking on the black triangle icon that points to the right, in the Forms Navigation toolbar at the bottom. Notice that the record number 3 of 5 is displayed here. Notice that Base shows tool tips, when we point our cursor on these black arrow icons: First Record, Previous Record, Next Record, and Last Record. We also can use these to traverse through the records. |
| Show Slide Number 3
Summary 1. What is a form? 2. Create a form using the Wizard |
This brings us to the end of this tutorial on Simple Forms in LibreOffice Base.
To summarize, we learned: 1. What a form is? 2. how to create a form using the Wizard |
| Acknowledgement Slide | Spoken Tutorial Project is a part of the Talk to a Teacher project, supported by the National Mission on Education through ICT, MHRD, Government of India. This project is co-ordinated by http://spoken-tutorial.org. More information on the same is available at the following link http://spoken-tutorial.org/NMEICT-Intro. This script has been contributed by Priya Suresh, DesiCrew Solutions. signing off. Thanks for joining. |
