ArcView to Access Link v2.0a

Updated October 30, 2002

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The NPS ArcView to Access Link software (Av2Ax), developed for ArcView 3.x, provides a connection between spatial data in an ArcView shape file or coverage and tabular data in an Access database. These links allow a user to shift between the two products to view related data in both spatial and tabular formats. Av2Ax was designed and developed by the GIS Team of the National Park Service's Alaska Support Office. The code is public and may be freely downloaded and distributed. This code is offered as is; please back up any pertinent data before using this extension, as we do not accept responsibility for its use.

Download ArcView to Access Link (Av2Ax) v2.0a for Access 97, 2000, 2002

Download Help File for ArcView to Access Link (Av2Ax) v2.0a

Attention Windows XP Users:

For the ArcView to Access Link software v2.0 and v2.0a to run properly in the XP operating system, you must install the ArcView 3.x Windows XP Patch. This patch can be downloaded from ESRI.

What does the ArcView to Access Link do?

Once the Av2Ax software has been setup, there are two major functions available to control the software.

Manage Links:

Av2Ax allows you to select a group of features from a view in ArcView and link to a table, query, form, or report in Access displaying related records. Conversely, it allows you to select a group of records in an Access table, query, or form and link to a view in ArcView selecting and zooming to related features.

The information required to make this connection and share data between ArcView and Access is stored in a link record. Each project and database may have multiple link records joining different views and objects. These link records can only be created and maintained in ArcView, even though most links are bi-directional.

In addition to the ability to create links, you may also perform some maintenance functions on existing links. The edit function revisits the link create wizard and allows you to make changes to a link. The copy function copies the properties of an existing link into a new one. You may then edit the new link to make changes. You may also rename and delete links. You may only modify links for the current ArcView project with these functions.

Run Links:

Once a link is created, it must be made active before you can run it. You can activate any number of links at once. Before or after specifying the active links for linking from ArcView to Access, you must select features from each of the views/themes from the activated links manually, by running a query, or any other method of your choosing. Similarly, when linking from Access to ArcView, you must select records from each of the tables, queries, or forms from the activated links.

Requirements

Proper installations of ArcView and Access are required to run the Av2Ax Link. This version of Av2Ax has been designed and tested with ESRI's ArcView GIS 3.2, 3.2a, and 3.3. This version is supported by Access 97, Access 2000, or Access 2002 (XP) databases. Other versions may not work without modification.

Upgrading from the Beta Version

We have made significant changes to the Av2Ax software since the Beta version was released. These modifications have concentrated on simplifying the link process and smoothing out some of the inconsistencies that our Beta testers discovered. Please read the Installation and User Guide before attempting to upgrade. The instructions for installation clearly state steps that should be followed only if upgrading from the Beta version. You should reinstall the extension and master database files and then re-setup each ArcView project and Access database following the setup procedures of this new version.

Upgrading from the Version 2.0

The major enhancement for version 2.0a is the support for Access 2000 and 2002 database files. Where version 2.0 worked only with Access 97 databases, this new version works with Access 97, 2000, or 2002. This version has also been tested with the new release of ArcView 3.3. One functionality improvement allows the user to customize the "Zoom To" scale when linking from Access to ArcView. Please read the Installation and User Guide before attempting to upgrade. The instructions for installation clearly state steps that should be followed only if upgrading from the version 2.0. You should reinstall the extension and master database files and then re-setup each ArcView project and Access database following the setup procedures of this new version.