How to Collect Data via E-Mail in MS Access

Collecting Data via E-Mail in MS Access
Microsoft Office Access 2007 simplifies the process of collecting information from others. It builds the data collection form automatically by using Microsoft Office InfoPath 2007 or HTML in the body of an e-mail message. Microsoft Office Outlook 2007 processes the incoming forms and helps you save the data in your Office Access 2007 data store—effectively updating the database without retyping.

To collect new information via e-mail:
1. Open or select the table containing the fields that you want to collect.
2. On the External Data tab, click Create E-mail.
3. Follow the wizard to create an e-mail form.
a. Select HTML or InfoPath form (if you select the latter, the recipients must have Office InfoPath 2007 and Office Outlook 2007 deployed).
b. Select Automatically process replies and add data to Table if you don’t have to approve each entry before it is saved in the database.

Returned forms will go to a newly created folder named Access Data Collections in your Inbox in Office Outlook 2007. Each time you receive a filled form, it will be flagged as a task for you to review.

To export collected data to Access:
1. If you have not selected automatic processing, right-click the returned e-mail message, and then click Export to Access. Or you can open the message and click the same command from the Ribbon.
2. Green or red icons will flag whether the export was successful or not.

After sending a data collection e-mail message, you can use the Manage Replies command on the External Data tab of the Ribbon to change some of the message options and resend the message.