[AccessD] Mail Merge

Hi John:
After dealing with Word and A97 queries for a while I decided to do
something similar. Got good advice from AccessD list.

I've attached a text file with the base mail merge module as I use it and
one word document as a sample. The only tricky part is the field and record
delimiters are not using the defaults that word offers in the mail merge
document wizard setup. Thi swas on Bret's advice that the defaults be
avoided because of problems with the characters being used in
addresses/names some instances.

It has worked well for me. (You'll have to strip out the error handling and
replace it with your own.)

HTH
John B.

> -----Original Message-----
> From: accessd-bounces at databaseadvisors.com
> [mailto:accessd-bounces at databaseadvisors.com]On Behalf Of John Colby
> Sent: Tuesday, September 23, 2003 3:32 PM
> To: Access Developers discussion and problem solving
> Subject: RE: [AccessD] Mail Merge
>
>
> So you have a piece of code VB macro) that opens the file and imports it?
> Access pulls the data and generates the text file?
>
> John W. Colby
> www.colbyconsulting.com
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: accessd-bounces at databaseadvisors.com
> [mailto:accessd-bounces at databaseadvisors.com]On Behalf Of Charlotte
> Foust
> Sent: Tuesday, September 23, 2003 3:44 PM
> To: Access Developers discussion and problem solving
> Subject: RE: [AccessD] Mail Merge
>
>
> That's the approach I've always used as well.  It isn't quite so bad in
> OXP, but there's just too much overhead when both Word and Access have
> to be considered at once.  The other advantage to the text file
> approach, is that you can go back and redo it if there was a problem and
> you don't have to incur the overhead of a query since the source is
> static.
>
> Charlotte Foust
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Steve Capistrant [mailto:scapistrant at symphonyinfo.com]
> Sent: Tuesday, September 23, 2003 10:45 AM
> To: Access Developers discussion and problem solving
> Subject: RE: [AccessD] Mail Merge
>
>
> If you do the pull method, I don't recommend having the Word document
> look to a query.  There is an extra layer involved when negotiating into
> MDB or MDE that adds what I consider to be a lot of time, plus possibly
> a layer of security.  The approach we prefer at our shop is to have your
> database output a text file with a standard name ("SelectedContacts.txt)
> to a standard folder (like "c:\temp" or the application's install
> folder).  All mail merge documents are trained to look to this file, and
> the speed is MUCH faster for both connecting and merging.  Plus this
> gives the you the added benefit of being able to send this file to
> printing vendors if you have specialty mailings.  And the file can be
> opened in Excel for other kinds of merging and analysis uses as well.
>
> Steve Capistrant
> Symphony Information Services
> scapistrant at symphonyinfo.com
> www.symphonyinfo.com
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: accessd-bounces at databaseadvisors.com
> [mailto:accessd-bounces at databaseadvisors.com]On Behalf Of John Colby
> Sent: Tuesday, September 23, 2003 8:27 AM
> To: AccessD
> Subject: [AccessD] Mail Merge
>
>
> Folks,
>
> I have been looking at a push method of mail merge were an access class
> pushes data into the doc at bookmarks.  It is my understanding that
> there is also a pull method where the document knows what query it needs
> to use to get data from Access and where to put the data in the
> document.  Is that method easy to set up for a given document?  Any
> online references for doing this?  I need to get a handful of mail merge
> docs set up quickly for a customer.
>
> John W. Colby
> www.colbyconsulting.com
>
>
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