What is the best way to create a contacts database which will have queries?

[Fspinelli]

Hi,

I was given two huge excel sheets; one is of Companies (which includes types and contacts), the other is of Consultants. There are about three thousand company records. A few hundred of the consultants.

I need to create a database with forms for easy end-user entry or viewing. I also have to create a form which allows the user to choose query parameters (if possible)...else I'll just give them boxes and a button to push.

Here's the scoop:

A company might:
- use a consultant,
- have more than one physical address,
- have more than one contact person,
-will have more than one "type" associated to it.

I have a table of states

I have a table of countries.

I have a table of "types"
Twelve type names and each has a check box...check all that apply.

I have a table of "priorties" (1,2,3)
I have to give the end-user the option to pick a priorty.

I have a "call" table which logs the following:
Actual Entry date (not seen by the end-user)
Entry date (date the end-user enters the notes)
Notes (a section to type in notes about the call)
Follow Up date (a date the end-user can enter to follow up)
This call table would be associated to the contacts of the company.

From all this fun stuff I must be able to query by:

State, and/or
Country, and/or
Type(s), and/or
Follow Up Date, and/or
Consultant, and/or
Company, and/or

These queries will either need to b be seen on the monitor or be able to generate a printable report.

What's the best (and easiest) method for this beginner?

Thank you from the bottom of my ignorent but Access fan's heart.

F-

[NeoPa]

Faith, I'm afraid to say that the scope of this question is just too much for what we do here. Designing a database properly involves a great deal of work, and a thorough understanding of all the issues involved. I have no problem if any of our experts choose to spend some extra time to give you what you ask for, but this is well beyond the scope of standard expert advice. It sounds like you may need some professional assistance, but that's not for me to say. It would certainly have a cost involved if you were to.

[Fspinelli]

Thank you.

I tried to offer as much detail so that it was understood.

Simply looking for suggestions (like if I should separate The Company from it's Contacts and relating them to the company and call log). Not looking for someone to design it.

Perhaps I need to learn more about relationships in tables. I must be doing something very wrong with relationships if my queries can't pull data properly.

Thank you to anyone with any sort of suggestions.

:)

[NeoPa]

My suggestions (for what they're worth) would be :

1. Understand that time spent designing the structure correctly at the start more than pays dividends later on when trying to work with it. Fixing a non-matching design later on will take so much more effort than putting it in up-front and getting the design right. Always tough for a beginner anyway, but nevertheless more than worth the hassle.
2. Normalised databases are so much easier to work with as they throw up fewer gotchas than non-normalised ones. This is a concept I would impress upon anyone interested in database work (See Database Normalisation and Table structures).

PS. I noticed the commendable amount of effort put in to provide the detail. Maybe this will convince somebody to spend more than expected time and effort on your behalf. Good luck anyway.

[Fspinelli]

Thank you, NeoPa, reading up on the normalisations now!