A3 – Access Lab Project 3 – 5% of final mark

 

Important Note: This, like all Access Labs, is an individual assignment. The College values honesty as a key principle in the College environment and in the workplace. Academic work submitted by a student is evaluated on the assumption that the work presented by the student is his or her own, unless designated otherwise.  The College considers Plagiarism, (presenting someone else’s work, in whole or in part, as your own), and the facilitation of plagiarism, (one student sharing work with other students), to be unacceptable and will impose sanctions, which may be - a requirement that the student complete a course on academic integrity, a requirement that the student submit additional work, a grade of zero for the assignment, a grade of F for the course or suspension from the College. A record will also be kept in the student's file. For full detail, see Algonquin College Directive E43 – Plagiarism.

 

If you have trouble with any part of this Lab, be sure to post questions in the Discussion  Board, or click ‘Staff Info’ to see how to get help from your Prof.

 

Introduction to Lab A3

As explained in class, Online Portfolios are becoming increasingly common as a way to present your skills to potential employers, or others who might be interested. They not only make it easy for interested parties to see your resume, but also give you a chance to highlight your accomplishments with online pictures, samples of your work etc. There are many articles on this idea on the web, which you might like to review. Here is one of the best (with an excellent example of a real online portfolio included):

http://www.liscareer.com/moody_onlineportfolios.htm

Here are a couple from other students at Algonquin:

http://academic.algonquincollege.com/students/desj0123/

http://academic.algonquincollege.com/students/smek0002/

 

So, in this Lab  you will not only prepare and submit Access databases, but will put up a web page as a first step towards an on-line portfolio. In A4, you will add to your page an example of your work with Access. This will ensure that your  work can be viewed by anyone interested, and also give you a glimpse of how data is made available in today’s intranets, extranets, and e-commerce sites.

We hope that you will add to your portfolio as you continue your education at Algonquin College, and find it useful when you are looking for a job. Have fun!

 

Detailed Instructions

 

Note: before proceeding, you must have web space as per A2. If you did not complete this part of A2, you must do so now. 

To begin building your online portfolio use MS Word to build a ‘home’ page for your portfolio as follows:

  • At the top of the page, put your name and contact information (e-mail address, phone number, mailing address, or whatever – the details are up to you). Use an attractive, good sized font.
  • Beneath this put a heading that says ‘My Skills’, and follow with a list of at least 3 skills  you possess that would be of interest to an employer.
  • Next add a bordered table,  with 2 columns and as many rows as you need. The first column is to be headed ‘Year’, the second ‘School’ and the rows are to provide the year and school name of the schools you have attended in reverse order by year (i.e.  the top row should be for Algonquin).
  • Next put the title ‘A sample of my work with MS Access’. Beneath this you will add a clickable link to your Access project the next lab.
  • If you wish, you may add any additional information, a picture of yourself, background colour etc. – your choice – but be sure that it is suitable for a professional portfolio.
  • Now, save the file using the Save as Type - Web Page option. Note that the file must be named index.htm or it cannot be viewed correctly later.

 

Before attempting the remaining steps, be sure that you have worked through the text Projects 5 and 6 and done the Skill Drills at the end of the Projects.

 

Next, do all steps  in Challenge Exercises 1 and 2 on p 222 and 223 exactly as per the text except that in step 1.4 and 2.5 you should add to the query name the words ‘by xxxx’, where xxxx is your last name. Also skip the printing in steps 1.5 and 2.5, and omit step 1.6 and steps 2.6 through 2.9 (ie don’t do steps 6 to 9 in Exercise 2).

 

Next, do all steps in Challenge Exercises 1 and 2 on p 272 and 273 exactly as per the text except that in step 1.5 where it says ‘appropriate title’, insert your own name (first and last), and skip the printing at step 1.6 .

 

When  your work is complete

First, upload the needed files for the ‘on-line portfolio’ to your web space (note that this can only be done while at the college). Here’s how:

·        First, (as long as you have received the e-mail telling you that your web space is ready), you can go to http://academic.algonquincollege.com  and follow the instructions on ‘Posting your home page’ to post your web page. But there is an easier way. If you paste the address ftp://academic.algonquincollege.com  into your Browser address bar, then, when asked, enter your userid and password, you can then find the correct folder, and ‘click and drag’ your files from an Explorer window to the FTP window, as demonstrated in class.

·        Upload the index.htm file – created above.

·        When you have uploaded, ensure that your work is viewable correctly on the web. The URL will be: http://academic.algonquincollege.com/students/youruserid

 

 

Next, submit the 2 databases from the Challenge exercises like this:

  • logon to your own section of MGT2338 on Bb (not the combined section site)
  • click the Assignments button
  • click  View/Complete Assignment: A3
  • in the comments box, type the URL for your web page, so your prof can view and mark it (note that this must be typed correctly or the link will not work!)
  • click Browse button, and upload first database (Fort_Fun_Query)  - do not press ‘Submit’
  • click Browse button, and upload second database (Fort_Fun_Forms) 
  • click Submit

 

Deadline – see weekly planner

 

Note: Many students had problems with A2 (and in some cases wrote a note with the submission that said things like ‘I tried, but I just couldn’t get step 3 to work’), but did not give me a chance to help! This is frustrating for students and professor alike! This exercise, like the others, is not intended to be done ‘on your own’. As I have said often in class (but many of you are choosing not to attend, so do not hear this), I am very ready to help. Come to class! If there is not time to get the help you need there, come to my office. Click ‘Staff Info’ to see how.