I wonder if this would matter in MS Access. Up to now I've continued my use of SELECT TOP 1 * that I've used since using it in Access (which required using an Exists function I found in an Access 97 book).
In any case, I will be using SELECT * from now on. My own view is that it reads better than SELECT 1. If the second were demonstrably faster, I would use it, but if it's a tie, I'll go for aesthetics.
Can you show me up an execution plan from Access? I remember for sure MS Access 97 could not provide you with execution plan, but I am not sure about newest version.