APPLICATION DESIGN

Example: Using a data connection resource
In this example, a data connection resource allows users to view and edit information stored in a Microsoft Access database from an IBM® Lotus® Notes® database.

A database named Show Dogs contains a collection of information related to show dogs. A data source named "Dogs" on the server where the Access database resides specifies ODBC as the data driver to use with the "Show Dogs" database.

In the Notes database, showdogs.nsf, a DCR named "Canines" establishes a connection to a table named "Canines" in the Access database.

The following form shows the fields used to add records about the show dogs to the Access database.

Form showing fields for a DCR

The ID field on the form is associated with the ID field in the Access database. The Field properties box shows the settings that specify the data connection resource, the table name, the field name, and the designation of the field as a Key field.

Field properties for DCR example

All of the values for ID will be stored locally in the NSF file. When users create documents from this form, the values are pushed to the Access database. A sample view of the documents looks like this:

DCR example view

See Also