Documenting Your Database, Creating a Database Help File

Creating support documentation:

There a couple options for providing support documentation for a database that you have developed:

  1. External documentation (Word document, HTML file,…)
  2. Help file and associated to various areas throughout your database
  3. Creating an Access Report within your database

Developing support documentation for your database is a enormous subject to cover and there are entire sites devoted to this exact subject. Below are a collection of what I consider to be some of the best :

Do note that many of the links provided above are through the Web Archive as the direct links are all gone now. Many such tools no longer exist and Microsoft has simply done away with much of their older knowledge base articles.

Personally, this day in age, I think creating an HTML based help system is the way to go and can even be directly integrated into a database form via a WebBrowser control, if so desired.  My fallback would be PDF.

2 responses on “Documenting Your Database, Creating a Database Help File”

  2. Tony Nahon

    Hi Daniel: I have been looking to upgrade an application help feature in an MS/Access database that I developed several years ago (it’s as old as this post!). The Help facility uses HTML Help Workshop etc, and I would be interested in your comments on whether this is still the way to go or if there is another/current ‘best practice’ for MS/Access application help.

    I use UtterAccess on a regular basis and enjoy your contributions – always interesting and enlightening. 

    Regards. . .
    Tony Nahon
    Parksville, BC