Mial merge data base problems

By George (ahem...Peter I mean!!)! I think we may be on
to something here!!

I tried that with one of my non-template files (.doc) and
it worked!!

I browsed to the normal.dot, and saved it, and when I re-
opened it, it didn't ask me for the database!! Whoo hoo!!

Ok, I slowly can try that for all my .doc files.

But what about the .dot files (my government ones)? There
is no template link.

Thanks for at least solving part of the problem!!

Rachael



-----Original Message-----
Going back a few steps, we another experiment you can
try is this:
a. open one of the .doc documents that has the problem.
b. go through all the steps necessary to reconnect
c. use Tools|Templates and Add-ins to see what template
the document is
attached to. The name, or pathname, of the template
should be in the first
textbox (what I previously called a field) to the left
of a Browse...
button. If that field is greyed out, your .doc is
actually a template. But
assuming it is not, use the browse button to look for
the Normal template
and attach that instead.
d. close the .doc
e. re-open it. Do you still see the problem?
--
Peter Jamieson

wrote in message
...
I got rid of "confirm conversion at open" and it does
not
ask for the data source for the .htm version.

Odd.

I will try fiddling around and see if I can change
anything. Maybe I'll try taking the mail merge out,
saving the .dot as .doc and re-merging it, then saving
it. Maybe that will help.


-----Original Message-----
Any other ideas?

None that are likely to lead straight away to The
Answer, but just out of
interest, if you uncheck Word
Tools|Options|General|"Confirm conversion at
open", then open the .htm version of the file, does
Word
still complain that
it cannot find the data source?

Wow. That is quite neat! I wouldn't have thought of
doing
that.

I got the idea from Cindy Meister.

--
Peter Jamieson

"Rachael" wrote
in
message
...
Wow. That is quite neat! I wouldn't have thought of
doing
that.

Here is what I got:

w:MailMergeQueryStringSELECT * FROM C:\Documents
and
Settings\ptorrxc\My Documents\Rachael\Claimant
Information Data Base 2.doc/w:MailMergeQueryString
w:MailMergeDataSource
HRef="C:\Documents and Settings\ptorrxc\My
Documents\Rachael\Claimant Information Data Base
2.doc"/w:MailMergeDataSource

I tried it with both the .doc files and the .dot
files
(my government files), and both had the same thing
written.

I tried it with the one and only file I know that
does
not ask me for the database each time, and it was
the
same as well.

Any other ideas?



-----Original Message-----
Hello Rachael,

OK, we're in danger of talking at cross-purposes
here,
so for the moment I'm
not going to try to answer all your questions and
points.

Can you please try to do the following:
a. open one of the documents (.doc) that is
connected
to your data source.
Assuming it has lost its data source in the way you
have
described,
reconnect it to the data source. But don't save it,
and
don't do a merge.
b. Click File|Save As, and use the "Save as Type"
drop-
down list at the
bottom of the dialog box to select the file
type "Web
Page (*.htm, *.html).
The type a name such as myfile.htm in the File Name
box.
Notice where Word
is saving this file, and click Save.
c. Go into Word Tools|Options|General and
check "Confirm conversions at
open".
d. re-open myfile.htm (e.g. from the list of
recently
opened files in the
Word FIle menu. You should see a dialog box
titled "Convert file". Select
"Plain Text" and click OK.
e. you should now see the "source code" of your
document in HTML format. It
won't look anything like your actual document, but
will
probably start

html xmlns="urn..."

Look down the document about 30 lines or so and you
should see lines that
show various pieces of information about the mail
merge
data source, e.g.
the lines starting

w:MailMergeMainDocType
w:MailMergeQueryString

etc. Can you please tell us what the few lines
after

w:MailMergeQueryString

and

w:MailMergeDataSource

say?

And/or cut and paste these lines in a message and
post
them here.

I am expecting the MailMergeQueryString to look
something like

SELECT * FROM the full path name of your data
source
document

and the MailMergeDataSource to look lke

HRef="the full path name of your data source"

If there is a problem with the path name being too
long,
you may see that
the name is truncated in one or the other of those
texts. If neither is
truncated, thepath name length probably isn't the
problem.

Finally,

In terms of the template, I didn't create the
template,
it's government. And it always needs to be
attached
to
the datasource. I work under a strict government
legislation which legislates which information
has
to
be
on which form and we are not allowed to change it
(unfortunately). As well, because of the nature
of
the
job, I have to send out these government forms
with
every
piece of mail I send. I even have a legislation
that
tells me what items HAVE to be on my fax covers
(there's
a list of about 20 items) (and we actually get in
trouble
if information is missing!!)

OK, it's clear that if you have to use a specific
predefined template then
if there is a problem with the template then it
may be
impossible to solve
unless someone is allowed to change it. But I get
the
impression from what
you have said that you are allowed to change some
aspects of a template. For
example, if the template is connected to a data
source,
it will be connected
to a specific file in a specific location in your
folders. But if you have a
typical WIndows configuration where your documents
are
stored in My
Documents, the full path name of /your/ "My
Documents"
folder will almost
certainly contain some form of logon or user name.
Since
that name will be
different for each user, each user's copy of the
template would either have
to be a bit different, or would (probably) have to
have
a macro that would
work out the full path name of the data source.

Peter Jamieson





.



.

OK, I believe this means that the reason why you see the problem every time
you open a /document/ is because it is actually the /template/ that is
connected to a file that either does not exist, or that it cannot connect
to. To fix that, I think you will either have to
a. modify the template or
b. ensure the data source is exactly where the template expects it to be
(and that may not be easy to determine).

However, earlier you said the following

In terms of the template, I didn't create the template,
it's government. And it always needs to be attached to
the datasource. I work under a strict government
legislation which legislates which information has to be
on which form and we are not allowed to change it
(unfortunately). As well, because of the nature of the
job, I have to send out these government forms with every
piece of mail I send. I even have a legislation that
tells me what items HAVE to be on my fax covers (there's
a list of about 20 items) (and we actually get in trouble
if information is missing!!)

so I'm not sure what leeway you have in terms of altering the template.

Technically, to alter the template, all you should have to do is open the
..dot (using File|Open), get through the questions about the data source,
provide the correct one, and do a File|Save. If you have already tried those
exact steps and they did not work, perhaps there is another way.

While we're here, templates are intended to be used in a particular way in
Word - the idea is that once you have created (or been given) the template,
you don't open it (using File|Open) - you use File|New to select a template
and create a new /Document/ (.doc) that is based on it, then save that (if
you need to). That way, the template is proptected from certain kinds of
accidental modification (e.g. you can't easily modify the "boilerplate" text
in the template without opening it, but you can add to its list of
autotexts).


--
Peter Jamieson

"Rachael" wrote in message
...
By George (ahem...Peter I mean!!)! I think we may be on
to something here!!

I tried that with one of my non-template files (.doc) and
it worked!!

I browsed to the normal.dot, and saved it, and when I re-
opened it, it didn't ask me for the database!! Whoo hoo!!

Ok, I slowly can try that for all my .doc files.

But what about the .dot files (my government ones)? There
is no template link.

Thanks for at least solving part of the problem!!

Rachael



-----Original Message-----
Going back a few steps, we another experiment you can
try is this:
a. open one of the .doc documents that has the problem.
b. go through all the steps necessary to reconnect
c. use Tools|Templates and Add-ins to see what template
the document is
attached to. The name, or pathname, of the template
should be in the first
textbox (what I previously called a field) to the left
of a Browse...
button. If that field is greyed out, your .doc is
actually a template. But
assuming it is not, use the browse button to look for
the Normal template
and attach that instead.
d. close the .doc
e. re-open it. Do you still see the problem?
--
Peter Jamieson

wrote in message
...
I got rid of "confirm conversion at open" and it does
not
ask for the data source for the .htm version.

Odd.

I will try fiddling around and see if I can change
anything. Maybe I'll try taking the mail merge out,
saving the .dot as .doc and re-merging it, then saving
it. Maybe that will help.


-----Original Message-----
Any other ideas?

None that are likely to lead straight away to The
Answer, but just out of
interest, if you uncheck Word
Tools|Options|General|"Confirm conversion at
open", then open the .htm version of the file, does
Word
still complain that
it cannot find the data source?

Wow. That is quite neat! I wouldn't have thought of
doing
that.

I got the idea from Cindy Meister.

--
Peter Jamieson

"Rachael" wrote
in
message
...
Wow. That is quite neat! I wouldn't have thought of
doing
that.

Here is what I got:

w:MailMergeQueryStringSELECT * FROM C:\Documents
and
Settings\ptorrxc\My Documents\Rachael\Claimant
Information Data Base 2.doc/w:MailMergeQueryString
w:MailMergeDataSource
HRef="C:\Documents and Settings\ptorrxc\My
Documents\Rachael\Claimant Information Data Base
2.doc"/w:MailMergeDataSource

I tried it with both the .doc files and the .dot
files
(my government files), and both had the same thing
written.

I tried it with the one and only file I know that
does
not ask me for the database each time, and it was
the
same as well.

Any other ideas?



-----Original Message-----
Hello Rachael,

OK, we're in danger of talking at cross-purposes
here,
so for the moment I'm
not going to try to answer all your questions and
points.

Can you please try to do the following:
a. open one of the documents (.doc) that is
connected
to your data source.
Assuming it has lost its data source in the way you
have
described,
reconnect it to the data source. But don't save it,
and
don't do a merge.
b. Click File|Save As, and use the "Save as Type"
drop-
down list at the
bottom of the dialog box to select the file
type "Web
Page (*.htm, *.html).
The type a name such as myfile.htm in the File Name
box.
Notice where Word
is saving this file, and click Save.
c. Go into Word Tools|Options|General and
check "Confirm conversions at
open".
d. re-open myfile.htm (e.g. from the list of
recently
opened files in the
Word FIle menu. You should see a dialog box
titled "Convert file". Select
"Plain Text" and click OK.
e. you should now see the "source code" of your
document in HTML format. It
won't look anything like your actual document, but
will
probably start

html xmlns="urn..."

Look down the document about 30 lines or so and you
should see lines that
show various pieces of information about the mail
merge
data source, e.g.
the lines starting

w:MailMergeMainDocType
w:MailMergeQueryString

etc. Can you please tell us what the few lines
after

w:MailMergeQueryString

and

w:MailMergeDataSource

say?

And/or cut and paste these lines in a message and
post
them here.

I am expecting the MailMergeQueryString to look
something like

SELECT * FROM the full path name of your data
source
document

and the MailMergeDataSource to look lke

HRef="the full path name of your data source"

If there is a problem with the path name being too
long,
you may see that
the name is truncated in one or the other of those
texts. If neither is
truncated, thepath name length probably isn't the
problem.

Finally,

In terms of the template, I didn't create the
template,
it's government. And it always needs to be
attached
to
the datasource. I work under a strict government
legislation which legislates which information
has
to
be
on which form and we are not allowed to change it
(unfortunately). As well, because of the nature
of
the
job, I have to send out these government forms
with
every
piece of mail I send. I even have a legislation
that
tells me what items HAVE to be on my fax covers
(there's
a list of about 20 items) (and we actually get in
trouble
if information is missing!!)

OK, it's clear that if you have to use a specific
predefined template then
if there is a problem with the template then it
may be
impossible to solve
unless someone is allowed to change it. But I get
the
impression from what
you have said that you are allowed to change some
aspects of a template. For
example, if the template is connected to a data
source,
it will be connected
to a specific file in a specific location in your
folders. But if you have a
typical WIndows configuration where your documents
are
stored in My
Documents, the full path name of /your/ "My
Documents"
folder will almost
certainly contain some form of logon or user name.
Since
that name will be
different for each user, each user's copy of the
template would either have
to be a bit different, or would (probably) have to
have
a macro that would
work out the full path name of the data source.

Peter Jamieson





.



.

OK. When I choose filenew, the templates I need to use
aren't listed under any of the headings. That's why I
have to use fileopen to open them.

When I open the files, choose the database, and then save
it, it still asks for the database when they start up.

I can technically do anything to the template as long as
it doesn't change how it looks, and as long as the mail
merge data works.

Now, finding out where the template thinks the data is,
like you said, might be hard. However, I think that would
help solve the problem. When I did that thing before and
changed it to html, it specified the same location for
all the files I checked (I checked about 6) and the
database was in the location indicated. But that may be
because when I opened the file, I choose the location of
the database. Is there any way to get that information
without opening the file and locating the database, to
see where it is before I link it up?

Thanks.

-----Original Message-----
OK, I believe this means that the reason why you see the
problem every time
you open a /document/ is because it is actually
the /template/ that is
connected to a file that either does not exist, or that
it cannot connect
to. To fix that, I think you will either have to
a. modify the template or
b. ensure the data source is exactly where the template
expects it to be
(and that may not be easy to determine).

However, earlier you said the following

In terms of the template, I didn't create the template,
it's government. And it always needs to be attached to
the datasource. I work under a strict government
legislation which legislates which information has to
be
on which form and we are not allowed to change it
(unfortunately). As well, because of the nature of the
job, I have to send out these government forms with
every
piece of mail I send. I even have a legislation that
tells me what items HAVE to be on my fax covers
(there's
a list of about 20 items) (and we actually get in
trouble
if information is missing!!)

so I'm not sure what leeway you have in terms of
altering the template.

Technically, to alter the template, all you should have
to do is open the
..dot (using File|Open), get through the questions about
the data source,
provide the correct one, and do a File|Save. If you have
already tried those
exact steps and they did not work, perhaps there is
another way.

While we're here, templates are intended to be used in a
particular way in
Word - the idea is that once you have created (or been
given) the template,
you don't open it (using File|Open) - you use File|New
to select a template
and create a new /Document/ (.doc) that is based on it,
then save that (if
you need to). That way, the template is proptected from
certain kinds of
accidental modification (e.g. you can't easily modify
the "boilerplate" text
in the template without opening it, but you can add to
its list of
autotexts).


--
Peter Jamieson

"Rachael" wrote in
message
...
By George (ahem...Peter I mean!!)! I think we may be on
to something here!!

I tried that with one of my non-template files (.doc)
and
it worked!!

I browsed to the normal.dot, and saved it, and when I
re-
opened it, it didn't ask me for the database!! Whoo
hoo!!

Ok, I slowly can try that for all my .doc files.

But what about the .dot files (my government ones)?
There
is no template link.

Thanks for at least solving part of the problem!!

Rachael



-----Original Message-----
Going back a few steps, we another experiment you can
try is this:
a. open one of the .doc documents that has the
problem.
b. go through all the steps necessary to reconnect
c. use Tools|Templates and Add-ins to see what
template
the document is
attached to. The name, or pathname, of the template
should be in the first
textbox (what I previously called a field) to the left
of a Browse...
button. If that field is greyed out, your .doc is
actually a template. But
assuming it is not, use the browse button to look for
the Normal template
and attach that instead.
d. close the .doc
e. re-open it. Do you still see the problem?
--
Peter Jamieson

wrote in message
...
I got rid of "confirm conversion at open" and it
does
not
ask for the data source for the .htm version.

Odd.

I will try fiddling around and see if I can change
anything. Maybe I'll try taking the mail merge out,
saving the .dot as .doc and re-merging it, then
saving
it. Maybe that will help.


-----Original Message-----
Any other ideas?

None that are likely to lead straight away to The
Answer, but just out of
interest, if you uncheck Word
Tools|Options|General|"Confirm conversion at
open", then open the .htm version of the file, does
Word
still complain that
it cannot find the data source?

Wow. That is quite neat! I wouldn't have thought
of
doing
that.

I got the idea from Cindy Meister.

--
Peter Jamieson

"Rachael"
wrote
in
message
...
Wow. That is quite neat! I wouldn't have thought
of
doing
that.

Here is what I got:

w:MailMergeQueryStringSELECT * FROM
C:\Documents
and
Settings\ptorrxc\My Documents\Rachael\Claimant
Information Data Base
2.doc/w:MailMergeQueryString
w:MailMergeDataSource
HRef="C:\Documents and Settings\ptorrxc\My
Documents\Rachael\Claimant Information Data Base
2.doc"/w:MailMergeDataSource

I tried it with both the .doc files and the .dot
files
(my government files), and both had the same
thing
written.

I tried it with the one and only file I know that
does
not ask me for the database each time, and it was
the
same as well.

Any other ideas?



-----Original Message-----
Hello Rachael,

OK, we're in danger of talking at cross-purposes
here,
so for the moment I'm
not going to try to answer all your questions
and
points.

Can you please try to do the following:
a. open one of the documents (.doc) that is
connected
to your data source.
Assuming it has lost its data source in the way
you
have
described,
reconnect it to the data source. But don't save
it,
and
don't do a merge.
b. Click File|Save As, and use the "Save as
Type"
drop-
down list at the
bottom of the dialog box to select the file
type "Web
Page (*.htm, *.html).
The type a name such as myfile.htm in the File
Name
box.
Notice where Word
is saving this file, and click Save.
c. Go into Word Tools|Options|General and
check "Confirm conversions at
open".
d. re-open myfile.htm (e.g. from the list of
recently
opened files in the
Word FIle menu. You should see a dialog box
titled "Convert file". Select
"Plain Text" and click OK.
e. you should now see the "source code" of your
document in HTML format. It
won't look anything like your actual document,
but
will
probably start

html xmlns="urn..."

Look down the document about 30 lines or so and
you
should see lines that
show various pieces of information about the
mail
merge
data source, e.g.
the lines starting

w:MailMergeMainDocType
w:MailMergeQueryString

etc. Can you please tell us what the few lines
after

w:MailMergeQueryString

and

w:MailMergeDataSource

say?

And/or cut and paste these lines in a message
and
post
them here.

I am expecting the MailMergeQueryString to look
something like

SELECT * FROM the full path name of your data
source
document

and the MailMergeDataSource to look lke

HRef="the full path name of your data source"

If there is a problem with the path name being
too
long,
you may see that
the name is truncated in one or the other of
those
texts. If neither is
truncated, thepath name length probably isn't
the
problem.

Finally,

In terms of the template, I didn't create the
template,
it's government. And it always needs to be
attached
to
the datasource. I work under a strict
government
legislation which legislates which information
has
to
be
on which form and we are not allowed to
change it
(unfortunately). As well, because of the
nature
of
the
job, I have to send out these government forms
with
every
piece of mail I send. I even have a
legislation
that
tells me what items HAVE to be on my fax
covers
(there's
a list of about 20 items) (and we actually
get in
trouble
if information is missing!!)

OK, it's clear that if you have to use a
specific
predefined template then
if there is a problem with the template then it
may be
impossible to solve
unless someone is allowed to change it. But I
get
the
impression from what
you have said that you are allowed to change
some
aspects of a template. For
example, if the template is connected to a data
source,
it will be connected
to a specific file in a specific location in
your
folders. But if you have a
typical WIndows configuration where your
documents
are
stored in My
Documents, the full path name of /your/ "My
Documents"
folder will almost
certainly contain some form of logon or user
name.
Since
that name will be
different for each user, each user's copy of the
template would either have
to be a bit different, or would (probably) have
to
have
a macro that would
work out the full path name of the data source.

Peter Jamieson





.



.



.

Ok. I know I just posted something else, but I tried=20
something a little different.=20

I opened the notepad, browsed to one of my template=20
files, and opened it. Obviously I figured it would look=20
weird because it would be converted to text.=20

I browsed through the text and found this:

C : \ c a r l a \ C l a i m a n t I n f o r m a t i o=20
n D a t a B a s e 2 . d o c =03 =FF=08 =FF=FF=0E =20
B r u c e R e i d =1A C : \ W o r k \ O C F \ O C F 2 -=20
1 0 - 0 3 . d o c=20
B r u c e R e i d e C : \ D o c u m e n t s a n d =20
S e t t i n g s \ t p r g b c r \ A p p l i c a t i o n =20
D a t a \ M i c r o s o f t \ W o r d \ A u t o R e c o v=20
e r y s a v e o f O C F 2 - 1 0 - 0 3 . a s d=20
B r u c e R e i d e C : \ D o c u m e n t s a n d =20
S e t t i n g s \ t p r g b c r \ A p p l i c a t i o n =20
D a t a \ M i c r o s o f t \ W o r d \ A u t o R e c o v=20
e r y s a v e o f O C F 2 - 1 0 - 0 3 . a s d=20
B r u c e R e i d e C : \ D o c u m e n t s a n d =20
S e t t i n g s \ t p r g b c r \ A p p l i c a t i o n =20
D a t a \ M i c r o s o f t \ W o r d \ A u t o R e c o v=20
e r y s a v e o f O C F 2 - 1 0 - 0 3 . a s d=20
B r u c e R e i d e C : \ D o c u m e n t s a n d =20
S e t t i n g s \ t p r g b c r \ A p p l i c a t i o n =20
D a t a \ M i c r o s o f t \ W o r d \ A u t o R e c o v=20
e r y s a v e o f O C F 2 - 1 0 - 0 3 . a s d=20
B r u c e R e i d U C : \ D o c u m e n t s a n d =20
S e t t i n g s \ t p r g b c r \ A p p l i c a t i o n =20
D a t a \ M i c r o s o f t \ T e m p l a t e s \ O C F=20
2 - 1 0 - 0 3 . d o t =07 p t o r c a d % C : \ c a r l a \=20
B i l l 1 9 8 O C F F o r m s \ O C F 1 2 . d o t =20


Now, Carla is the person in our department responsible=20
for distributing these forms, and Bruce was the person=20
who converted the government forms to work on our system.=20

I'm not sure about all the locations for Bruce's file,=20
but I was thinking that if I change that first line to be=20
the location of my database file, not Carla's, it should=20
work.=20

I'll try it and if it doesn't work I'll post back.
-----Original Message-----
By George (ahem...Peter I mean!!)! I think we may be on=20
to something here!!

I tried that with one of my non-template files (.doc)=20
and=20
it worked!!

I browsed to the normal.dot, and saved it, and when I re-
opened it, it didn't ask me for the database!! Whoo hoo!!

Ok, I slowly can try that for all my .doc files.=20

But what about the .dot files (my government ones)?=20
There=20
is no template link.=20

Thanks for at least solving part of the problem!!

Rachael



-----Original Message-----
Going back a few steps, we another experiment you can=20
try is this:
a. open one of the .doc documents that has the problem.
b. go through all the steps necessary to reconnect
c. use Tools|Templates and Add-ins to see what=20
template=20
the document is
attached to. The name, or pathname, of the template=20
should be in the first
textbox (what I previously called a field) to the left=20
of a Browse...
button. If that field is greyed out, your .doc is=20
actually a template. But
assuming it is not, use the browse button to look for=20
the Normal template
and attach that instead.
d. close the .doc
e. re-open it. Do you still see the problem?
--=20
Peter Jamieson

wrote in message
...
I got rid of "confirm conversion at open" and it does=20
not
ask for the data source for the .htm version.

Odd.

I will try fiddling around and see if I can change
anything. Maybe I'll try taking the mail merge out,
saving the .dot as .doc and re-merging it, then saving
it. Maybe that will help.


-----Original Message-----
Any other ideas?

None that are likely to lead straight away to The
Answer, but just out of
interest, if you uncheck Word
Tools|Options|General|"Confirm conversion at
open", then open the .htm version of the file, does=20
Word
still complain that
it cannot find the data source?

Wow. That is quite neat! I wouldn't have thought of
doing
that.

I got the idea from Cindy Meister.

--=20
Peter Jamieson

"Rachael" =20
wrote=20
in
message
...
Wow. That is quite neat! I wouldn't have thought of
doing
that.

Here is what I got:

w:MailMergeQueryStringSELECT * FROM=20
C:\Documents
and
Settings\ptorrxc\My Documents\Rachael\Claimant
Information Data Base=20
2.doc/w:MailMergeQueryString
w:MailMergeDataSource
HRef=3D"C:\Documents and Settings\ptorrxc\My
Documents\Rachael\Claimant Information Data Base
2.doc"/w:MailMergeDataSource

I tried it with both the .doc files and the .dot=20
files
(my government files), and both had the same thing
written.

I tried it with the one and only file I know that=20
does
not ask me for the database each time, and it was=20
the
same as well.

Any other ideas?



-----Original Message-----
Hello Rachael,

OK, we're in danger of talking at cross-purposes=20
here,
so for the moment I'm
not going to try to answer all your questions and
points.

Can you please try to do the following:
a. open one of the documents (.doc) that is=20
connected
to your data source.
Assuming it has lost its data source in the way=20
you
have
described,
reconnect it to the data source. But don't save=20
it,
and
don't do a merge.
b. Click File|Save As, and use the "Save as Type"
drop-
down list at the
bottom of the dialog box to select the file=20
type "Web
Page (*.htm, *.html).
The type a name such as myfile.htm in the File=20
Name
box.
Notice where Word
is saving this file, and click Save.
c. Go into Word Tools|Options|General and
check "Confirm conversions at
open".
d. re-open myfile.htm (e.g. from the list of=20
recently
opened files in the
Word FIle menu. You should see a dialog box
titled "Convert file". Select
"Plain Text" and click OK.
e. you should now see the "source code" of your
document in HTML format. It
won't look anything like your actual document, but
will
probably start

html xmlns=3D"urn..."

Look down the document about 30 lines or so and=20
you
should see lines that
show various pieces of information about the mail
merge
data source, e.g.
the lines starting

w:MailMergeMainDocType
w:MailMergeQueryString

etc. Can you please tell us what the few lines=20
after

w:MailMergeQueryString

and

w:MailMergeDataSource

say?

And/or cut and paste these lines in a message and=20
post
them here.

I am expecting the MailMergeQueryString to look
something like

SELECT * FROM the full path name of your data=20
source
document

and the MailMergeDataSource to look lke

HRef=3D"the full path name of your data source"

If there is a problem with the path name being too
long,
you may see that
the name is truncated in one or the other of those
texts. If neither is
truncated, thepath name length probably isn't the
problem.

Finally,

In terms of the template, I didn't create the
template,
it's government. And it always needs to be=20
attached
to
the datasource. I work under a strict government
legislation which legislates which information=20
has
to
be
on which form and we are not allowed to change=20
it
(unfortunately). As well, because of the nature=20
of
the
job, I have to send out these government forms=20
with
every
piece of mail I send. I even have a legislation=20
that
tells me what items HAVE to be on my fax covers
(there's
a list of about 20 items) (and we actually get=20
in
trouble
if information is missing!!)

OK, it's clear that if you have to use a specific
predefined template then
if there is a problem with the template then it=20
may be
impossible to solve
unless someone is allowed to change it. But I get=20
the
impression from what
you have said that you are allowed to change some
aspects of a template. For
example, if the template is connected to a data
source,
it will be connected
to a specific file in a specific location in your
folders. But if you have a
typical WIndows configuration where your=20
documents=20
are
stored in My
Documents, the full path name of /your/ "My=20
Documents"
folder will almost
certainly contain some form of logon or user name.
Since
that name will be
different for each user, each user's copy of the
template would either have
to be a bit different, or would (probably) have to
have
a macro that would
work out the full path name of the data source.

Peter Jamieson





.



.

.

OK. I replaced the text with the location of my data=20
base, but the file wouldn'y open after that.=20

At least I know now that it's linked to someone elses=20
database!!

I'll keep working on it.=20

Rachael


-----Original Message-----
Ok. I know I just posted something else, but I tried=20
something a little different.=20

I opened the notepad, browsed to one of my template=20
files, and opened it. Obviously I figured it would look=20
weird because it would be converted to text.=20

I browsed through the text and found this:

C : \ c a r l a \ C l a i m a n t I n f o r m a t i o=20
n D a t a B a s e 2 . d o c =03 =FF=08 =FF=FF=0E =20
B r u c e R e i d =1A C : \ W o r k \ O C F \ O C F 2 -=20
1 0 - 0 3 . d o c=20
B r u c e R e i d e C : \ D o c u m e n t s a n d =20
S e t t i n g s \ t p r g b c r \ A p p l i c a t i o=20
n =20
D a t a \ M i c r o s o f t \ W o r d \ A u t o R e c o=20
v=20
e r y s a v e o f O C F 2 - 1 0 - 0 3 . a s d=20
B r u c e R e i d e C : \ D o c u m e n t s a n d =20
S e t t i n g s \ t p r g b c r \ A p p l i c a t i o=20
n =20
D a t a \ M i c r o s o f t \ W o r d \ A u t o R e c o=20
v=20
e r y s a v e o f O C F 2 - 1 0 - 0 3 . a s d=20
B r u c e R e i d e C : \ D o c u m e n t s a n d =20
S e t t i n g s \ t p r g b c r \ A p p l i c a t i o=20
n =20
D a t a \ M i c r o s o f t \ W o r d \ A u t o R e c o=20
v=20
e r y s a v e o f O C F 2 - 1 0 - 0 3 . a s d=20
B r u c e R e i d e C : \ D o c u m e n t s a n d =20
S e t t i n g s \ t p r g b c r \ A p p l i c a t i o=20
n =20
D a t a \ M i c r o s o f t \ W o r d \ A u t o R e c o=20
v=20
e r y s a v e o f O C F 2 - 1 0 - 0 3 . a s d=20
B r u c e R e i d U C : \ D o c u m e n t s a n d =20
S e t t i n g s \ t p r g b c r \ A p p l i c a t i o=20
n =20
D a t a \ M i c r o s o f t \ T e m p l a t e s \ O C F=20
2 - 1 0 - 0 3 . d o t =07 p t o r c a d % C : \ c a r l a=20
\=20
B i l l 1 9 8 O C F F o r m s \ O C F 1 2 . d o t =20


Now, Carla is the person in our department responsible=20
for distributing these forms, and Bruce was the person=20
who converted the government forms to work on our=20
system.=20

I'm not sure about all the locations for Bruce's file,=20
but I was thinking that if I change that first line to=20
be=20
the location of my database file, not Carla's, it should=20
work.=20

I'll try it and if it doesn't work I'll post back.
-----Original Message-----
By George (ahem...Peter I mean!!)! I think we may be on=20
to something here!!

I tried that with one of my non-template files (.doc)=20
and=20
it worked!!

I browsed to the normal.dot, and saved it, and when I=20
re-
opened it, it didn't ask me for the database!! Whoo=20
hoo!!

Ok, I slowly can try that for all my .doc files.=20

But what about the .dot files (my government ones)?=20
There=20
is no template link.=20

Thanks for at least solving part of the problem!!

Rachael



-----Original Message-----
Going back a few steps, we another experiment you can=20
try is this:
a. open one of the .doc documents that has the=20
problem.
b. go through all the steps necessary to reconnect
c. use Tools|Templates and Add-ins to see what=20
template=20
the document is
attached to. The name, or pathname, of the template=20
should be in the first
textbox (what I previously called a field) to the left=20
of a Browse...
button. If that field is greyed out, your .doc is=20
actually a template. But
assuming it is not, use the browse button to look for=20
the Normal template
and attach that instead.
d. close the .doc
e. re-open it. Do you still see the problem?
--=20
Peter Jamieson

wrote in message
.. .
I got rid of "confirm conversion at open" and it=20
does=20
not
ask for the data source for the .htm version.

Odd.

I will try fiddling around and see if I can change
anything. Maybe I'll try taking the mail merge out,
saving the .dot as .doc and re-merging it, then=20
saving
it. Maybe that will help.


-----Original Message-----
Any other ideas?

None that are likely to lead straight away to The
Answer, but just out of
interest, if you uncheck Word
Tools|Options|General|"Confirm conversion at
open", then open the .htm version of the file, does=20
Word
still complain that
it cannot find the data source?

Wow. That is quite neat! I wouldn't have thought=20
of
doing
that.

I got the idea from Cindy Meister.

--=20
Peter Jamieson

"Rachael" =20
wrote=20
in
message
...
Wow. That is quite neat! I wouldn't have thought=20
of
doing
that.

Here is what I got:

w:MailMergeQueryStringSELECT * FROM=20
C:\Documents
and
Settings\ptorrxc\My Documents\Rachael\Claimant
Information Data Base=20
2.doc/w:MailMergeQueryString
w:MailMergeDataSource
HRef=3D"C:\Documents and Settings\ptorrxc\My
Documents\Rachael\Claimant Information Data Base
2.doc"/w:MailMergeDataSource

I tried it with both the .doc files and the .dot=20
files
(my government files), and both had the same thing
written.

I tried it with the one and only file I know that=20
does
not ask me for the database each time, and it was=20
the
same as well.

Any other ideas?



-----Original Message-----
Hello Rachael,

OK, we're in danger of talking at cross-purposes=20
here,
so for the moment I'm
not going to try to answer all your questions and
points.

Can you please try to do the following:
a. open one of the documents (.doc) that is=20
connected
to your data source.
Assuming it has lost its data source in the way=20
you
have
described,
reconnect it to the data source. But don't save=20
it,
and
don't do a merge.
b. Click File|Save As, and use the "Save as=20
Type"
drop-
down list at the
bottom of the dialog box to select the file=20
type "Web
Page (*.htm, *.html).
The type a name such as myfile.htm in the File=20
Name
box.
Notice where Word
is saving this file, and click Save.
c. Go into Word Tools|Options|General and
check "Confirm conversions at
open".
d. re-open myfile.htm (e.g. from the list of=20
recently
opened files in the
Word FIle menu. You should see a dialog box
titled "Convert file". Select
"Plain Text" and click OK.
e. you should now see the "source code" of your
document in HTML format. It
won't look anything like your actual document,=20
but
will
probably start

html xmlns=3D"urn..."

Look down the document about 30 lines or so and=20
you
should see lines that
show various pieces of information about the mail
merge
data source, e.g.
the lines starting

w:MailMergeMainDocType
w:MailMergeQueryString

etc. Can you please tell us what the few lines=20
after

w:MailMergeQueryString

and

w:MailMergeDataSource

say?

And/or cut and paste these lines in a message=20
and=20
post
them here.

I am expecting the MailMergeQueryString to look
something like

SELECT * FROM the full path name of your data=20
source
document

and the MailMergeDataSource to look lke

HRef=3D"the full path name of your data source"

If there is a problem with the path name being=20
too
long,
you may see that
the name is truncated in one or the other of=20
those
texts. If neither is
truncated, thepath name length probably isn't the
problem.

Finally,

In terms of the template, I didn't create the
template,
it's government. And it always needs to be=20
attached
to
the datasource. I work under a strict=20
government
legislation which legislates which information=20
has
to
be
on which form and we are not allowed to change=20
it
(unfortunately). As well, because of the=20
nature=20
of
the
job, I have to send out these government forms=20
with
every
piece of mail I send. I even have a=20
legislation=20
that
tells me what items HAVE to be on my fax covers
(there's
a list of about 20 items) (and we actually get=20
in
trouble
if information is missing!!)

OK, it's clear that if you have to use a specific
predefined template then
if there is a problem with the template then it=20
may be
impossible to solve
unless someone is allowed to change it. But I=20
get=20
the
impression from what
you have said that you are allowed to change some
aspects of a template. For
example, if the template is connected to a data
source,
it will be connected
to a specific file in a specific location in your
folders. But if you have a
typical WIndows configuration where your=20
documents=20
are
stored in My
Documents, the full path name of /your/ "My=20
Documents"
folder will almost
certainly contain some form of logon or user=20
name.
Since
that name will be
different for each user, each user's copy of the
template would either have
to be a bit different, or would (probably) have=20
to
have
a macro that would
work out the full path name of the data source.

Peter Jamieson





.



.

.

.

OK. When I choose filenew, the templates I need to use
aren't listed under any of the headings. That's why I
have to use fileopen to open them.

From what you've said before, Word would typically expect to find /your/
templates under

c:\Documents and Settings\your user name\Application
Data\Microsoft\Templates\

C:\Documents and Settings\ptorrxc\Application Data\Microsoft\Templates

If you copy one of your templates there you should be able to find it under
the General tab when you use File|New.

When I open the files, choose the database, and then save
it, it still asks for the database when they start up.

Unfortunately, at this point I don't understand why your templates are not
remembering the path correctly.

like you said, might be hard. However, I think that would
help solve the problem. When I did that thing before and
changed it to html, it specified the same location for
all the files I checked (I checked about 6) and the
database was in the location indicated. But that may be
because when I opened the file, I choose the location of
the database. Is there any way to get that information
without opening the file and locating the database, to
see where it is before I link it up?

I see you you discovered the way from your other message. But editing and
saving the .dot file in Notepad in the way you attempted won't work
unfortunately (nice try though :-) )

I can technically do anything to the template as long as
it doesn't change how it looks, and as long as the mail
merge data works.

How about trying the following:
a. make a copy of your template (so you can get it back if something goes
wrong)
b. open the template
c. make the template a non-mail merge main document (e.g. by clicking the
leftmost button on the Mailmerge toolbar and selecting Normal Word Document
d. save and close the template

If you now open your template, do you still get the error messages?

Let's assume you don't. Obviously this is not a good way to solve the
problem permanently because each time you open the template (or create a new
document based on it) you will have to connect to the data source manually.
I suppose it does mean that you avoid having to deal with the error dialogs.
But if that does work, it might be worth trying the obvious next step:

e. open the template again
f. re-attach the template to the data source (and make sure the template is
the right kind of mail merge main document, again using the leftmost button
in the mailmerge toolbar)
g. save and close the template

See if that opens without problems. Obviously, the only difference between
this and what you have done before is that this time you have
- unlinked
- saved & close
- relinked

rather than just

- change the link
- save and close

but I think it is worth trying the thing as a two-step process.

--
Peter Jamieson

"Rachael" wrote in message
...
OK. When I choose filenew, the templates I need to use
aren't listed under any of the headings. That's why I
have to use fileopen to open them.

When I open the files, choose the database, and then save
it, it still asks for the database when they start up.

I can technically do anything to the template as long as
it doesn't change how it looks, and as long as the mail
merge data works.

Now, finding out where the template thinks the data is,
like you said, might be hard. However, I think that would
help solve the problem. When I did that thing before and
changed it to html, it specified the same location for
all the files I checked (I checked about 6) and the
database was in the location indicated. But that may be
because when I opened the file, I choose the location of
the database. Is there any way to get that information
without opening the file and locating the database, to
see where it is before I link it up?

Thanks.

-----Original Message-----
OK, I believe this means that the reason why you see the
problem every time
you open a /document/ is because it is actually
the /template/ that is
connected to a file that either does not exist, or that
it cannot connect
to. To fix that, I think you will either have to
a. modify the template or
b. ensure the data source is exactly where the template
expects it to be
(and that may not be easy to determine).

However, earlier you said the following

In terms of the template, I didn't create the template,
it's government. And it always needs to be attached to
the datasource. I work under a strict government
legislation which legislates which information has to
be
on which form and we are not allowed to change it
(unfortunately). As well, because of the nature of the
job, I have to send out these government forms with
every
piece of mail I send. I even have a legislation that
tells me what items HAVE to be on my fax covers
(there's
a list of about 20 items) (and we actually get in
trouble
if information is missing!!)

so I'm not sure what leeway you have in terms of
altering the template.

Technically, to alter the template, all you should have
to do is open the
..dot (using File|Open), get through the questions about
the data source,
provide the correct one, and do a File|Save. If you have
already tried those
exact steps and they did not work, perhaps there is
another way.

While we're here, templates are intended to be used in a
particular way in
Word - the idea is that once you have created (or been
given) the template,
you don't open it (using File|Open) - you use File|New
to select a template
and create a new /Document/ (.doc) that is based on it,
then save that (if
you need to). That way, the template is proptected from
certain kinds of
accidental modification (e.g. you can't easily modify
the "boilerplate" text
in the template without opening it, but you can add to
its list of
autotexts).


--
Peter Jamieson

"Rachael" wrote in
message
...
By George (ahem...Peter I mean!!)! I think we may be on
to something here!!

I tried that with one of my non-template files (.doc)
and
it worked!!

I browsed to the normal.dot, and saved it, and when I
re-
opened it, it didn't ask me for the database!! Whoo
hoo!!

Ok, I slowly can try that for all my .doc files.

But what about the .dot files (my government ones)?
There
is no template link.

Thanks for at least solving part of the problem!!

Rachael



-----Original Message-----
Going back a few steps, we another experiment you can
try is this:
a. open one of the .doc documents that has the
problem.
b. go through all the steps necessary to reconnect
c. use Tools|Templates and Add-ins to see what
template
the document is
attached to. The name, or pathname, of the template
should be in the first
textbox (what I previously called a field) to the left
of a Browse...
button. If that field is greyed out, your .doc is
actually a template. But
assuming it is not, use the browse button to look for
the Normal template
and attach that instead.
d. close the .doc
e. re-open it. Do you still see the problem?
--
Peter Jamieson

wrote in message
...
I got rid of "confirm conversion at open" and it
does
not
ask for the data source for the .htm version.

Odd.

I will try fiddling around and see if I can change
anything. Maybe I'll try taking the mail merge out,
saving the .dot as .doc and re-merging it, then
saving
it. Maybe that will help.


-----Original Message-----
Any other ideas?

None that are likely to lead straight away to The
Answer, but just out of
interest, if you uncheck Word
Tools|Options|General|"Confirm conversion at
open", then open the .htm version of the file, does
Word
still complain that
it cannot find the data source?

Wow. That is quite neat! I wouldn't have thought
of
doing
that.

I got the idea from Cindy Meister.

--
Peter Jamieson

"Rachael"
wrote
in
message
...
Wow. That is quite neat! I wouldn't have thought
of
doing
that.

Here is what I got:

w:MailMergeQueryStringSELECT * FROM
C:\Documents
and
Settings\ptorrxc\My Documents\Rachael\Claimant
Information Data Base
2.doc/w:MailMergeQueryString
w:MailMergeDataSource
HRef="C:\Documents and Settings\ptorrxc\My
Documents\Rachael\Claimant Information Data Base
2.doc"/w:MailMergeDataSource

I tried it with both the .doc files and the .dot
files
(my government files), and both had the same
thing
written.

I tried it with the one and only file I know that
does
not ask me for the database each time, and it was
the
same as well.

Any other ideas?



-----Original Message-----
Hello Rachael,

OK, we're in danger of talking at cross-purposes
here,
so for the moment I'm
not going to try to answer all your questions
and
points.

Can you please try to do the following:
a. open one of the documents (.doc) that is
connected
to your data source.
Assuming it has lost its data source in the way
you
have
described,
reconnect it to the data source. But don't save
it,
and
don't do a merge.
b. Click File|Save As, and use the "Save as
Type"
drop-
down list at the
bottom of the dialog box to select the file
type "Web
Page (*.htm, *.html).
The type a name such as myfile.htm in the File
Name
box.
Notice where Word
is saving this file, and click Save.
c. Go into Word Tools|Options|General and
check "Confirm conversions at
open".
d. re-open myfile.htm (e.g. from the list of
recently
opened files in the
Word FIle menu. You should see a dialog box
titled "Convert file". Select
"Plain Text" and click OK.
e. you should now see the "source code" of your
document in HTML format. It
won't look anything like your actual document,
but
will
probably start

html xmlns="urn..."

Look down the document about 30 lines or so and
you
should see lines that
show various pieces of information about the
mail
merge
data source, e.g.
the lines starting

w:MailMergeMainDocType
w:MailMergeQueryString

etc. Can you please tell us what the few lines
after

w:MailMergeQueryString

and

w:MailMergeDataSource

say?

And/or cut and paste these lines in a message
and
post
them here.

I am expecting the MailMergeQueryString to look
something like

SELECT * FROM the full path name of your data
source
document

and the MailMergeDataSource to look lke

HRef="the full path name of your data source"

If there is a problem with the path name being
too
long,
you may see that
the name is truncated in one or the other of
those
texts. If neither is
truncated, thepath name length probably isn't
the
problem.

Finally,

In terms of the template, I didn't create the
template,
it's government. And it always needs to be
attached
to
the datasource. I work under a strict
government
legislation which legislates which information
has
to
be
on which form and we are not allowed to
change it
(unfortunately). As well, because of the
nature
of
the
job, I have to send out these government forms
with
every
piece of mail I send. I even have a
legislation
that
tells me what items HAVE to be on my fax
covers
(there's
a list of about 20 items) (and we actually
get in
trouble
if information is missing!!)

OK, it's clear that if you have to use a
specific
predefined template then
if there is a problem with the template then it
may be
impossible to solve
unless someone is allowed to change it. But I
get
the
impression from what
you have said that you are allowed to change
some
aspects of a template. For
example, if the template is connected to a data
source,
it will be connected
to a specific file in a specific location in
your
folders. But if you have a
typical WIndows configuration where your
documents
are
stored in My
Documents, the full path name of /your/ "My
Documents"
folder will almost
certainly contain some form of logon or user
name.
Since
that name will be
different for each user, each user's copy of the
template would either have
to be a bit different, or would (probably) have
to
have
a macro that would
work out the full path name of the data source.

Peter Jamieson





.



.



.

OK. This is what I did.

I opened the .dot file, located the database. I converted
it to a "normal file". Saved as a .doc (which for some
reason it wouldn't let me do when it was mail merged!) I
relinked it back to the database, saved it and closed it.

When I re-opened the file, it didn't ask me for the
database anymore!

Now, it appears this has solved my other issue as well.
On the files I have done this to (I'll slowly do it for
all the files I use), the "find" command directly from
the toolbard works again!

It's going to suck having to re-save all my files, but
what can you do right?

Thanks for all your help. I think this may have solved
the problem. I guess because I don't modify any of the
documents I use, and we don't save what we print, they
weren't getting saved with the correct database. And even
the ones that I was saving still asked for the database
unless I removed it and re-merged the file, then saved.

Thanks again. At least I know I can come here for help if
needed again!!

Rachael
-----Original Message-----
OK. When I choose filenew, the templates I need to use
aren't listed under any of the headings. That's why I
have to use fileopen to open them.

From what you've said before, Word would typically
expect to find /your/
templates under

c:\Documents and Settings\your user name\Application
Data\Microsoft\Templates\

C:\Documents and Settings\ptorrxc\Application
Data\Microsoft\Templates

If you copy one of your templates there you should be
able to find it under
the General tab when you use File|New.

When I open the files, choose the database, and then
save
it, it still asks for the database when they start up.

Unfortunately, at this point I don't understand why your
templates are not
remembering the path correctly.

like you said, might be hard. However, I think that
would
help solve the problem. When I did that thing before
and
changed it to html, it specified the same location for
all the files I checked (I checked about 6) and the
database was in the location indicated. But that may be
because when I opened the file, I choose the location
of
the database. Is there any way to get that information
without opening the file and locating the database, to
see where it is before I link it up?

I see you you discovered the way from your other
message. But editing and
saving the .dot file in Notepad in the way you attempted
won't work
unfortunately (nice try though :-) )

I can technically do anything to the template as long
as
it doesn't change how it looks, and as long as the mail
merge data works.

How about trying the following:
a. make a copy of your template (so you can get it back
if something goes
wrong)
b. open the template
c. make the template a non-mail merge main document
(e.g. by clicking the
leftmost button on the Mailmerge toolbar and selecting
Normal Word Document
d. save and close the template

If you now open your template, do you still get the
error messages?

Let's assume you don't. Obviously this is not a good way
to solve the
problem permanently because each time you open the
template (or create a new
document based on it) you will have to connect to the
data source manually.
I suppose it does mean that you avoid having to deal
with the error dialogs.
But if that does work, it might be worth trying the
obvious next step:

e. open the template again
f. re-attach the template to the data source (and make
sure the template is
the right kind of mail merge main document, again using
the leftmost button
in the mailmerge toolbar)
g. save and close the template

See if that opens without problems. Obviously, the only
difference between
this and what you have done before is that this time you
have
- unlinked
- saved & close
- relinked

rather than just

- change the link
- save and close

but I think it is worth trying the thing as a two-step
process.

--
Peter Jamieson

"Rachael" wrote in
message
...
OK. When I choose filenew, the templates I need to use
aren't listed under any of the headings. That's why I
have to use fileopen to open them.

When I open the files, choose the database, and then
save
it, it still asks for the database when they start up.

I can technically do anything to the template as long
as
it doesn't change how it looks, and as long as the mail
merge data works.

Now, finding out where the template thinks the data is,
like you said, might be hard. However, I think that
would
help solve the problem. When I did that thing before
and
changed it to html, it specified the same location for
all the files I checked (I checked about 6) and the
database was in the location indicated. But that may be
because when I opened the file, I choose the location
of
the database. Is there any way to get that information
without opening the file and locating the database, to
see where it is before I link it up?

Thanks.

-----Original Message-----
OK, I believe this means that the reason why you see
the
problem every time
you open a /document/ is because it is actually
the /template/ that is
connected to a file that either does not exist, or
that
it cannot connect
to. To fix that, I think you will either have to
a. modify the template or
b. ensure the data source is exactly where the
template
expects it to be
(and that may not be easy to determine).

However, earlier you said the following

In terms of the template, I didn't create the
template,
it's government. And it always needs to be attached
to
the datasource. I work under a strict government
legislation which legislates which information has
to
be
on which form and we are not allowed to change it
(unfortunately). As well, because of the nature of
the
job, I have to send out these government forms with
every
piece of mail I send. I even have a legislation that
tells me what items HAVE to be on my fax covers
(there's
a list of about 20 items) (and we actually get in
trouble
if information is missing!!)

so I'm not sure what leeway you have in terms of
altering the template.

Technically, to alter the template, all you should
have
to do is open the
..dot (using File|Open), get through the questions
about
the data source,
provide the correct one, and do a File|Save. If you
have
already tried those
exact steps and they did not work, perhaps there is
another way.

While we're here, templates are intended to be used
in a
particular way in
Word - the idea is that once you have created (or been
given) the template,
you don't open it (using File|Open) - you use File|New
to select a template
and create a new /Document/ (.doc) that is based on
it,
then save that (if
you need to). That way, the template is proptected
from
certain kinds of
accidental modification (e.g. you can't easily modify
the "boilerplate" text
in the template without opening it, but you can add to
its list of
autotexts).


--
Peter Jamieson

"Rachael" wrote
in
message
...
By George (ahem...Peter I mean!!)! I think we may
be on
to something here!!

I tried that with one of my non-template files
(.doc)
and
it worked!!

I browsed to the normal.dot, and saved it, and when
I
re-
opened it, it didn't ask me for the database!! Whoo
hoo!!

Ok, I slowly can try that for all my .doc files.

But what about the .dot files (my government ones)?
There
is no template link.

Thanks for at least solving part of the problem!!

Rachael



-----Original Message-----
Going back a few steps, we another experiment you
can
try is this:
a. open one of the .doc documents that has the
problem.
b. go through all the steps necessary to reconnect
c. use Tools|Templates and Add-ins to see what
template
the document is
attached to. The name, or pathname, of the template
should be in the first
textbox (what I previously called a field) to the
left
of a Browse...
button. If that field is greyed out, your .doc is
actually a template. But
assuming it is not, use the browse button to look
for
the Normal template
and attach that instead.
d. close the .doc
e. re-open it. Do you still see the problem?
--
Peter Jamieson

wrote in
message
...
I got rid of "confirm conversion at open" and it
does
not
ask for the data source for the .htm version.

Odd.

I will try fiddling around and see if I can
change
anything. Maybe I'll try taking the mail merge
out,
saving the .dot as .doc and re-merging it, then
saving
it. Maybe that will help.


-----Original Message-----
Any other ideas?

None that are likely to lead straight away to
The
Answer, but just out of
interest, if you uncheck Word
Tools|Options|General|"Confirm conversion at
open", then open the .htm version of the file,
does
Word
still complain that
it cannot find the data source?

Wow. That is quite neat! I wouldn't have
thought
of
doing
that.

I got the idea from Cindy Meister.

--
Peter Jamieson

"Rachael"
wrote
in
message
...
Wow. That is quite neat! I wouldn't have
thought
of
doing
that.

Here is what I got:

w:MailMergeQueryStringSELECT * FROM
C:\Documents
and
Settings\ptorrxc\My Documents\Rachael\Claimant
Information Data Base
2.doc/w:MailMergeQueryString
w:MailMergeDataSource
HRef="C:\Documents and Settings\ptorrxc\My
Documents\Rachael\Claimant Information Data
Base
2.doc"/w:MailMergeDataSource

I tried it with both the .doc files and
the .dot
files
(my government files), and both had the same
thing
written.

I tried it with the one and only file I know
that
does
not ask me for the database each time, and it
was
the
same as well.

Any other ideas?



-----Original Message-----
Hello Rachael,

OK, we're in danger of talking at cross-
purposes
here,
so for the moment I'm
not going to try to answer all your questions
and
points.

Can you please try to do the following:
a. open one of the documents (.doc) that is
connected
to your data source.
Assuming it has lost its data source in the
way
you
have
described,
reconnect it to the data source. But don't
save
it,
and
don't do a merge.
b. Click File|Save As, and use the "Save as
Type"
drop-
down list at the
bottom of the dialog box to select the file
type "Web
Page (*.htm, *.html).
The type a name such as myfile.htm in the
File
Name
box.
Notice where Word
is saving this file, and click Save.
c. Go into Word Tools|Options|General and
check "Confirm conversions at
open".
d. re-open myfile.htm (e.g. from the list of
recently
opened files in the
Word FIle menu. You should see a dialog box
titled "Convert file". Select
"Plain Text" and click OK.
e. you should now see the "source code" of
your
document in HTML format. It
won't look anything like your actual
document,
but
will
probably start

html xmlns="urn..."

Look down the document about 30 lines or so
and
you
should see lines that
show various pieces of information about the
mail
merge
data source, e.g.
the lines starting

w:MailMergeMainDocType
w:MailMergeQueryString

etc. Can you please tell us what the few
lines
after

w:MailMergeQueryString

and

w:MailMergeDataSource

say?

And/or cut and paste these lines in a message
and
post
them here.

I am expecting the MailMergeQueryString to
look
something like

SELECT * FROM the full path name of your
data
source
document

and the MailMergeDataSource to look lke

HRef="the full path name of your data source"

If there is a problem with the path name
being
too
long,
you may see that
the name is truncated in one or the other of
those
texts. If neither is
truncated, thepath name length probably isn't
the
problem.

Finally,

In terms of the template, I didn't create
the
template,
it's government. And it always needs to be
attached
to
the datasource. I work under a strict
government
legislation which legislates which
information
has
to
be
on which form and we are not allowed to
change it
(unfortunately). As well, because of the
nature
of
the
job, I have to send out these government
forms
with
every
piece of mail I send. I even have a
legislation
that
tells me what items HAVE to be on my fax
covers
(there's
a list of about 20 items) (and we actually
get in
trouble
if information is missing!!)

OK, it's clear that if you have to use a
specific
predefined template then
if there is a problem with the template then
it
may be
impossible to solve
unless someone is allowed to change it. But I
get
the
impression from what
you have said that you are allowed to change
some
aspects of a template. For
example, if the template is connected to a
data
source,
it will be connected
to a specific file in a specific location in
your
folders. But if you have a
typical WIndows configuration where your
documents
are
stored in My
Documents, the full path name of /your/ "My
Documents"
folder will almost
certainly contain some form of logon or user
name.
Since
that name will be
different for each user, each user's copy of
the
template would either have
to be a bit different, or would (probably)
have
to
have
a macro that would
work out the full path name of the data
source.

Peter Jamieson





.



.



.



.