SQL 2000 Help - two tables and how to get count from 1st into 2nd

First things first... I HAVE LITTLE TO NO DB KNOWLEDGE so I am looking for complete help and not code snippets. PLEASE.

I have a table that contains categories with a total item count field, working field and not working field.

The second table has the items that belong to the category table with a working field and not working field.

What I need to do:
Get a count of all the items that belong to Category A
Get a count of items for Cat A that are "working"
Get a count of items for Cat A that are "not working"

I need to know how I can update the related fields in the Category table when a new item is added or when an item is updated...ie changed from working to not working or vice versa.

I hope this makes sense and that someone can help.

ALL HELP is greatly appreciated.

 

My visual basic is probably worse than yours.
When I wanted to get different values for a cell , I used the 'IF' EQUATIONS.

For example, If =IF(AND(D110<=TODAY()-30),TRUE,FALSE)
IF(AND(D89<=TODAY()-60),TRUE,FALSE)
IF(AND(R13<=91),0,R13-91)
These give alternative values for a given cell-- i.e TRUE, OR FALSE IF GREATER THAN....
I worked with these basic equations, and juggled to suit the answer I needed, in another cell.
The IF Function, has a test abilty to see if your equation works, so that you can keep adjusting , until you get the answer you need.
Perhaps if you play with the equations in the If module, you can work out a way.