Question re Super Easy Word Merge

[Guest]

Albert -
I have nearly 50 documents that we produce through this, and am adding more
as our system develops. The list of templates is now so long that it doesn't
fit on the page any more (I have already made the box as tall as possible)
and increasingly, users have to scroll to find the doc they want. It's hardly
the end of the world, but some people have said that since there is plenty of
empty space on the page, couldn't we have multiple columns, side by side,
showing all the available templates without having to scroll?
I had a quick fiddle with the WordMerge Templates form in design mode but
didn't want to risk breaking it, as it is critical to our system!
Would be good if this is possible...
Many thanks
CW

 

[BruceM]

You would do best to ask this question in a Word newsgroup. This group is
for Microsoft Access, a relational database program. However, I will say
that it is always a good idea to back up a file such as a template before
making changes.

 

[Guest]

Bruce -
I beg to differ. My query definitely does belong here. Clearly you haven't
come across it, but Super Easy Word Merge is a fantastic module provided by
Albert Kallal specifically to produce merged documents from Access into Word
without any hassle of bookmarks and without writing queries and reports. I
really recommend that you look into it.
CW

 

[BruceM]

I really recommend if you are going to post a question about a utility that
you be specific about the utility behind your question. If your question is
misunderstood it may be well to take another look at the question.
My work does not involve doing mail merge, so I would have no reason to
investigate a utility to assist in that task. Your recommendation that I
look into it is as misguided as your haughty attitude.

 

[Guest]

Bruce -
I have re-read my response and totally fail to see where you have taken
offence, or why you considered any of what I said to be "haughty".
There are scores, perhaps hundreds, of posts in this group about Albert
Kallal's Super Easy Word Merge and lots of people have found it to be
extremely helpful.
But if you don't do any merging, then of course you would not have come
across it and would not have any interest in it.
So if I may make another recommendation without upsetting you, it's probably
best for you to back out of this particular discussion and allow Albert to
answer my query when he comes across it.
And one last one: take the weekend off, and calm down!

 

[Albert D. Kallal]

There is one suggestion that might help here:

The first suggestion is do all the templates belong to one form?

For example, if you have a customers form, and vendors form, then often the
templates need to be *separated* between the two forms.

So, for the customer form, you would go:

MergeSingleWord "cust"

and for vendors you go:

MergeSingleWord "vendors"

Now, when you run the word merge, the particular templates for a given form
will not be cluttered, and you *reduce* the number of documents in the
"list".

However, if the template list is for the same form, then we in a bit of
trouble. My thinking here is that when the list of templates gets longer
then about 10, or 15...then the current design and interface I have really
is not workable. What I should likely do is post a new version in which the
users can pop open the file browse dialog, and that way create new dirs, and
simply use the windows file manager to create and organize the templates in
to a bunch of folders. And, the file browse also is muti-column.

The "limited" list size that we have now is much a design on purpose. You
give a user 10 or 15 documents to choose from, and they are fine. You give
them 50, then the whole current design is not appropriate at all.

I consider posting a version that uses the standard file dialog to choose
the template as this would satisfy more advanced users....


So, consider using some directories. you can even place more then one merge
button on the bottom of the form

eg:
buttion1: Thank you letters
buttion2: OverDue bill letters

The code behind button one would be:

MergeSingleWord "ThankYou"

And, for button 2

MergeSingleWord "OverDue"

So, you can segment the types of letters by using more the one merge button
on the form.....

And...yes.....this newsgroup was a good place to ask your question!

 

[Guest]

Albert -
That's all very helpful (as usual), many thanks.
The documents do indeed cover several different areas of our work, so I will
try to segment them into groups as you have suggested.
I'll have a go at that next week.
And thanks for confirming that I wasn't off track by posting this query
here. I can't imagine what was biting BruceM, but it certainly wasn't me!!
Thanks again
CW

 

[BruceM]

"Clearly you haven't come across it..."
"I really recommend ..."
No question I was being overly sensitive at these "Don't you know about this
utility I use? You really should." remarks, but at the same time you are
still trying to write me off as a crank to somebody who probably couldn't
care less about our exchange. I think you touched a nerve just as you
intended, and now you are in the "Who, me?" mode.

 

[Guest]

Bruce -
I hesitate to use the word "recommend", but I am thinking that you need some
help. You have a wonderfully creative imagination, the way you have
interpreted my innocent comments, but it could be a good idea to go and see
somebody who can help you calm down and be a little less neurotic.
Anyway, I'm going to cease this conversation now and wish you all the best.
CW

 

[BruceM]

Even though you say you are dropping out of the conversation, I fully expect
you will check to see if I replied. I acknowledged I was overly sensitive.
As you know, such things as tone of voice have a lot to do with how we
interpret words. Absent that, we are left with the words as they appear on
the page or screen. This is why emoticons are sometimes used -- to suggest
a lightheartedness that the words may not convey, for instance. Maybe you
accidentally pushed a button that triggered something I can't quite
identify, but in any case your imagination is no less creative than my own
if you think you can diagnose neurosis and recommend therapy based on a
short exchange, especially when I acknowledged that I overreacted.