## Visual Linking Expert

You link databases so records from one database will match related records from another. For example, if you activate a Movie database and a Studio database, you link the databases so that each movie (from the Movies database) can be matched up with the studio that made the movie (from the Studio database).

When you link, a field is used that is common to both databases. The program uses the link to match up records from one database with those from the other. In this example, the link assures that the data in each row of the report refers to the same movie.

Use Visual Linking to link two or more databases together. When you choose the Add Database to Report command from the Database menu, and select an additional database, The Visual Linking Expert appears and displays the additional database.

##### Visual Linking

This scroll box displays all the tables currently in your report along with any links and indexes.

##### Tables

When you click this button, the Choose Tables To Use In Visual Linking dialog box appears where you can choose the desired tables you want to link in your report and whether smart linking is used.

##### Arrange Tables

When you click this button, the program will arrange the tables to fit in the most efficient manner inside the Visual Linking scroll box.

##### Link

Click By Name to link tables by their names or By Key to use foreign key information. Click Link to link tables automatically.

##### Clear Links

Click this button to clear all the current table links.

##### Link Options

To activate this button, you must have a link line selected. Once you have a link selected, click this button to open the Link Options dialog box where you can choose what type of index to use, allow partial text matches, etc., for the selected link.

##### Delete Link

Click a link then click this button to remove it.

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