Microsoft Access offers three types of add-ins: wizards, builders, and menu add-ins. Each type has its own advantages and uses. Before you create your add-in, you need to decide which type of user interface you want to use. This decision affects how the user starts your add-in, and how you develop and install it.
If you want to call your add-in when a user creates a new table, query, form, report, or control, your add-in will be a wizard. If you want to call your add-in to help a user set properties in Design view, your add-in will be a builder. If the add-in isn’t context-specific, it will be a menu add-in. Wizards and builders are available to the user through the same interface that supports the Microsoft Access wizards and builders. By default, menu add-ins are available through the Add-ins submenu (Tools menu). Which interface your add-in will be available through is determined by how it is registered when it is installed.
See Also For more information on types of add-ins and how they are installed, see “Preparing Your Add-in for Installation” later in this chapter.
A wizard handles complex operations. It usually consists of a series of dialog boxes that provide a step-by-step interface that guides the user through the process of creating an object. Wizards usually use forms, graphics, and helpful text to shield the user from the technical intricacies of an operation. Microsoft Access form and report wizards are examples of this type of add-in. These add-ins guide you through creating forms and reports.
Microsoft Access provides direct support for several types of wizards. As a result, the wizards you create are available through the same user interface as the Microsoft Access wizards. For example, if you create a wizard to design a specific type of form, and you install it properly, it appears in the same list as the Microsoft Access form wizards. The types of wizards that Microsoft Access provides include:
A builder is a simpler tool than a wizard. Builders usually consist of a single dialog box or form that guides the user through the process of setting a property, such as constructing an expression. The Microsoft Access Expression Builder is an example of this type of add-in.
As with wizards, Microsoft Access provides direct support for many types of builders. You can create builders for any property, even those that Microsoft Access doesn’t provide builders for. Also, you can define more than one builder for the same property. As long as your builder is installed correctly, it is available to users through the standard builder interface. For example, if one or more builders are already installed for a property, your builder is available from a list of builders. The types of builders that Microsoft Access provides include:
A menu add-in is a general-purpose tool that accomplishes a task that doesn’t fit into the wizard or builder categories. A menu add-in typically operates on multiple objects or on the Microsoft Access application itself. The Add-in Manager is an example of a menu add-in.
Menu add-ins are supported by Microsoft Access through the Add-ins submenu (Tools menu). When you install your menu add-in, the command to run it is added to the Add-ins submenu. It’s important to understand that menu add-ins are available to the user whenever the Tools menu is available. After a menu add-in is installed, you can also add a button or command to run the menu add-in from any toolbar by using the Customize dialog box (Toolbars submenu, View menu). This means that menu add-ins are not context-sensitive like wizards and builders. A wizard exists to aid the user within a specific context, such as form or query design. A menu add-in exists to perform a general function that may not fit within the context of the user’s current operation.