[AccessD] Relative reference to Word document?

Tina Norris Fields tinanfields at torchlake.com
Mon Aug 26 14:07:53 CDT 2013


Very enjoyable and informative response.  Thanks a bunch.
TNF

Tina Norris Fields
tinanfields-at-torchlake-dot-com
231-322-2787

On 8/26/2013 1:53 PM, Charlotte Foust wrote:
> If you need a Word document, then by all means use Word.  I've built Notice
> of Action letters (health insurance language) in Access because I didn't
> want to have the hassle of integrating a Word document into something that
> required boiler plate interspersed with variable detail information and
> variable lookup information.  It was extremely complex and resulted in 2
> back to back letters to each recipient, one in English and then one in
> Spanish.  The number of total pages depended on the number of detail items,
> the county of service, the particular medical benefits plan involved, and
> the specific reasons for denial or payment by line item.  The result was
> usually about 8 pages of mixed boiler plate and individual and customized
> data.  We ran them in batches of 250 - 500 at a time printed to PDF.  We
> also had to be able to go back and enter a claim number and reprint  any of
> the letters on demand.
>
> I built it in Access because I could nest subreports, group several times
> on a single value (i.e., language), and handle the variables in Access
> easier than I could in Word.  I had subreports nested 4 deep.  Each
> subreport could grow and shrink, as could the groups they were in.  They
> weren't required to be perfect Word documents, so the wrapping was largely
> controlled by the ffixed width of the control it appeared in.  No automatic
> hyphens, etc., but acceptable.
>
> Access may well be the hard way for what you're doing, but it isn't because
> the report generator is clunky, it's because it is extremely powerful.  As
> with dot net, once you learn the essentials and the scope of possibilities,
> everything looks like an Access report. ;-}
>
> Charlotte
>
>
> On Sun, Aug 25, 2013 at 5:59 PM, Tina Norris Fields <
> tinanfields at torchlake.com> wrote:
>
>> Hi Charlotte,
>>
>> Maybe I was doing the wrong things.  Both you and Susan have supported the
>> concept of making this into an embedded Access report.
>>
>> My experience was that the contents of the merge fields varied in size and
>> the text of my "letter" didn't wrap well, so I didn't get the kind of
>> paragraph spacing and formatting that I get with Word.  When I found I
>> could not add postal bar codes to my Access labels, but it was a snap with
>> Word, I took these experiences together and said "forget it."  Ever since,
>> I have set up the data source in Access and the form letters and labels in
>> Word.
>>
>> I'm willing to learn.
>>
>> Best,
>>
>> TNF
>>
>> Tina Norris Fields
>> tinanfields-at-torchlake-dot-**com
>> 231-322-2787
>>
>> On 8/25/2013 4:19 PM, Charlotte Foust wrote:
>>
>>> I've built incredibly complex reports in Access and never found it
>>> "clunky".  I would be interested to know what "clunky" behaviors you have
>>> had problems with.
>>>
>>> Charlotte
>>>
>>>
>>> On Fri, Aug 23, 2013 at 10:24 AM, Tina Norris Fields <
>>> tinanfields at torchlake.com> wrote:
>>>
>>>   Susan - :-)
>>>> For number one - I did, and it didn't work - they still moved it - in
>>>> fact, they didn't even realize that they were moving it.  "Hey, I'm just
>>>> editing it to bring it up-to-date, and I'll keep it here where I can
>>>> easily
>>>> find it again next year.  I'm not moving it, I'm just updating it!"
>>>>
>>>> For number two - yeah, except that the Access report writer is so clunky
>>>> -
>>>> still, you may be right.  I'll noodle on that one for a while.  The
>>>> executive director will want to update it periodically, which will
>>>> require
>>>> my assistance, but I can live with that.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> TNF
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>> --
>> AccessD mailing list
>> AccessD at databaseadvisors.com
>> http://databaseadvisors.com/**mailman/listinfo/accessd<http://databaseadvisors.com/mailman/listinfo/accessd>
>> Website: http://www.databaseadvisors.**com<http://www.databaseadvisors.com>
>>



More information about the AccessD mailing list