Fixing Mail Merge soon?

[gkoval]

I finally had a chance to do a Mail Merge in 2003 and what happened? Even
though I think I'm in the wrong spot, I have to vent. I've been doing Mail
Merges since Word 6.0 and 2003's is awful. Why the change from 3 simple
steps to 5 non-simple steps? It's one of the reason of why the whole company
isn't being upgraded to the new version - the user's won't like it.

Any chance things will be back to normal (and functional) for the next
release?

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http://www.microsoft.com/office/com...bcc&dg=microsoft.public.word.mailmerge.fields

 

[Doug Robbins - Word MVP]

I would suggest that you turn on the Mail Merge toolbar by selecting
Toolbars from the View menu and then checking the Mail Merge toolbar.

Alternatively, you can get the original Mail Merge Helper back by selecting
Customise from the Tools menu and then go to the Commands tab of the
Customise dialog and select the All Commands Category and then scroll down
through the list until you come to the Mail Merge Helper item and then click
and drag it onto the expanded Tools menu or a toolbar.

--
Hope this helps.

Please reply to the newsgroup unless you wish to avail yourself of my
services on a paid consulting basis.

Doug Robbins - Word MVP

 

[lrose33]

I will not use Word 2002, 2003, or any newer version of Word until mail merge
is fixed. I use mail merge everyday and the newer version is truly awful. I
still use Word 2000 because the mail merge function is much simpler & faster.
I have read the comment about adding the old mail merge helper to the
toolbar (a very esoteric procedure - No one would ever find it on their own.
) I've experimented with this in Word 2003 and find it is a pain. It is
slightly better than than the idiot mail merge wizard in newer versions. In
Word 2000, you can set up the merge fields quickly and all at one time. Using
the helper or the wizard in the newer version for addresses, you have to
insert one merge field, close the box, insert a lline return, reopen the box,
insert the next merge field, close the box, etc. This was easy in the old
version. You have managed to take a simple procedure and make it insanely
complicated. If something's not broke, DON'T fix it. However, feel free to
fix this new "feature" asap.

 

[Doug Robbins - Word MVP]

No one will disagree with you on that point. Re the insertion of fields
issue however, take a look at fellow MVP Cindy Meister's website at
http://homepage.swissonline.ch/cindymeister/MergFram.htm

She has a utility that you can get there that will overcome that problem.


--
Hope this helps.

Please reply to the newsgroup unless you wish to avail yourself of my
services on a paid consulting basis.

Doug Robbins - Word MVP

 

[Graham Mayor]

1. Microsoft is not listening to your comments here - this is a peer group
forum.
2. Microsoft is not going to change mail merge back to the way it was done
in Word 2000.
3. The only thing that really changed with the later versions was the way
Word connects to its data and this was done to increase stability as much as
anything.
4. All the things that you complain about are easily resolved. See
http://www.gmayor.com/mail_merge_labels_with_word_xp.htm and for the
anomalies caused by changing the way Word connects to its data, see
http://www.gmayor.com/formatting_word_fields.htm

Yes it came as a shock when Microsoft introduced the new methods of working
in Word XP, but if you use the mailmerge toolbar, it is no more trouble than
it was in 2000.

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Graham Mayor - Word MVP


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