How do I print an Excel Autoshape on a Word doc using mailmerge?

[TG in AZ]

I am trying to do a mailmerge from an Excel spreadsheet to a Word doc. One of
the columns on the spreadsheet is filled by autoshapes (rectangles) that help
color code each row. (A rectangle slightly smaller that the cell it is in.) I
need these colored rectangles to print on the Word doc. I have enabled "print
object" in the autoshape properties menu in Excel, and the shapes print from
Excel, but nothing shows up on the Word doc when I do the mailmerge. (There
is no text in these cells on the spreadsheet, just the colored rectangle.)

Thanks for your help!

 

[Doug Robbins - Word MVP]

I am almost certain that you can only merge text directly. Anything
graphical would have to be inserted using an

{ INCLUDEPICTURE { MERGFIELD picturefullfilename}}

and that is not what you have. I don't know of anyway of doing what you
want with mailmerge.

--
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

 

[Cindy M -WordMVP-]

Hi =?Utf-8?B?VEcgaW4gQVo=?=,

I am trying to do a mailmerge from an Excel spreadsheet to a Word doc. One of
the columns on the spreadsheet is filled by autoshapes (rectangles) that help
color code each row. (A rectangle slightly smaller that the cell it is in.) I
need these colored rectangles to print on the Word doc. I have enabled "print
object" in the autoshape properties menu in Excel, and the shapes print from
Excel, but nothing shows up on the Word doc when I do the mailmerge. (There
is no text in these cells on the spreadsheet, just the colored rectangle.)

I agree with Doug's analysis.

The only possible solution to your problem, using mailmerge, would be to
1. copy/paste the Excel table into Word

2. Create the colored rectangles in something like Windows PAINT

3. Use Insert/Picture/From File to insert them into the WORD table

Word will pick up graphical objects, as well as formatting, from a Word table as
the data source.

other than that, you'd have to use the IncludePicture method Doug mentions, and
is described in the Mail merge FAQ on my website.

Cindy Meister
INTER-Solutions, Switzerland
http://homepage.swissonline.ch/cindymeister (last update Jun 8 2004)
http://www.word.mvps.org

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