Creating a Word document that contains uneditable regions?

[Barbara White]

using Word 2000 on Windows XP

We're creating a series of Word documents that will be used like forms.
Users will open the document, enter some simple information online, and
then print the file for further [paper-based] processing.

The customer only wants to use Word, otherwise we'd approach this
differently, perhaps using Acrobat forms.

We know that theoretically, we can use Word forms in these Word files,
but we have instructions not to do that because the customers have had
problems with Word forms before. (And frankly, Word forms might be
overkill because the information that we're collecting is just plain
text, simple--no checkboxes or drop-down lists will be necessary.)

We know that we can create tables to align the information properly with
rows and tables and Categories with related spaces for User Responses.
However, we know that this could potentially be messy because the user
will likely [inadvertently] delete or change a Category rather than just
typing text into the corresponding User Response areas.

Our questions: is there a way to lock those Categories in place? Example:

NAME: <user response>
ADDRESS: <user response>

Can we configure this in Word so that the "Name:" and "Address:" bits
are not able to be edited or deleted by the user? And can that be done
in a way so that they WILL be able to type in the User Response areas?

Many thanks for help/pointers.

 

[Jay Freedman]

In any version of Word up to and including Word 2003, forms are the only way
to achieve that kind of protection. There will be another mechanism (called
content controls) in Word 2007, but that's still in beta testing and not yet
stable enough for production use.

If users will be filling in forms "online" as in "with a web browser", then
Word is the wrong tool. I think your first job is to find the right tool,
whether PDF or CGI or something else, and then make the case to the
customer. (Also point out that Word 2000 is no longer supported by
Microsoft.)

--
Regards,
Jay Freedman
Microsoft Word MVP
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[Barbara White]

Thanks, Jay. I think I'll try one more time to convince them to take the
PDF approach (providing that users don't need more than the Reader to
complete a PDF form--it's been a few years since I've used PDF for forms).

Thanks again.

Barbara