ACC: How to Create a "Please Wait" Message

ID: Q96989

The information in this article applies to:

Microsoft Access versions 1.0, 1.1, 2.0, 7.0, 97

SUMMARY

Moderate: Requires basic macro, coding, and interoperability skills.

Sometimes you may want to display a status message to inform users that they must wait for an action to be completed. For example, you may want to display the text "Please Wait" while Microsoft Access is initializing a database, running a long query, and so on. This article uses the sample database Northwind.mdb (or NWIND.MDB in version 1.x or 2.0) to show you how to create a "Please Wait" message.

NOTE: This article explains a technique demonstrated in the sample files, FrmSampl.exe (for Microsoft Access for Windows 95 version 7.0) and FrmSmp97.exe (for Microsoft Access 97). For information about how to obtain these sample files, please see the following articles in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

Q150895 ACC95: Microsoft Access Sample Forms Available on MSL

Q175066 ACC97: Microsoft Access 97 Sample Forms Available on MSL

MORE INFORMATION

To display a status message in Microsoft Access, do the following:

Create a new form not based on any table or query, and name it PLEASEWAIT. Add a label with the message you want to display. For example, type "Please Wait" (without the quotation marks) as the caption. The form properties should be set to the following:
```
      Form: PLEASEWAIT
      ----------------
      ScrollBars: Neither
      Popup: Yes
      Modal: Yes
      RecordSelectors: No
      NavigationButtons: No 
```

Create the following macro named Test1:


      Macro Name             Action
      -----------------------------
      Test1                  OpenForm
                             RepaintObject
                             OpenQuery
                             Close

      Test1 Actions
      -----------------------------
      OpenForm
         Form Name: PLEASEWAIT
         View: Form
         Data Mode: Read Only
         Window Mode: Normal
      RepaintObject
         Object Type: Form
         Object Name: PLEASEWAIT
      OpenQuery
         Query Name: Order Details Extended
         View: Datasheet
      Close
         Object Type: Form
         Object Name: PLEASEWAIT
         Save: No     (Microsoft Access 7.0 and 97)

NOTE: The above argument for OpenQuery is just an example of what you may want to run; this can be anything. The main macro actions in Test1 are OpenForm, RepaintObject, and Close.

Run the macro. Note that the PLEASEWAIT form opens. As soon as the query completes processing, the form disappears and the query results appear.

Additional query words: statusbar status bar meter wait


Keywords          : FmsOthr 
Version           : 1.0 1.1 2.0 7.0 97
Platform          : WINDOWS 
Issue type        : kbhowto

Last Reviewed: March 20, 1999