*NOTE* I HAVE NOW INCLUDED A FEW FILES FOR EXAMPLE - please help!

i have a database where each record is a specific cost code and i use these records to fill a value list in my main file.

also in my main file, is a summary log where i would like to print out every cost code as well as a calculation. the calculation i need to calculate is the following:

"the total amount of hours spent on each cost code in all (found) records"

i am able to do this with a simple Case statement that checks the "cost_codeX" fields, the only problem i have is relating these fields to the actual cost codes in the other file, i tried using a portal but i did not accomplish this. also, i have no field on which i can relate the cost code database to my main file... unless i create a global id in my main file and also create this same field in the cost code dBase and set them both to 1.

any help would be greatly appreciated, cheers!

Cost Codes.zip

I downloaded the files & didn't get what's going on in the couple of minutes I have to spare tonight.

It sounds like the cost codes file needs each code to have a unique serial # for each record. In the main file, you put the serial number, not the cost code. The relate the two. The main DB now has access to the cost code value for each record (using the relationship).

Is this what you needed?

Almost... because the cost code dBase needs to make a calculation from the main dBase and then the main dBase can gather that calculated information from the portal... make sense?