Mail Merge Data Source from Web Pages

[SK]

I have got an ASPX application and I want to do the Mail Merge on the client
machine.
But the data source for merging in residing on the Server side on Web Server.
If you click on "Open Data Source" on the Mail Merge toolbar, "Select Data
Source" dialog comes up.
Under "Files of Type", there is an option "Web Pages (*.htm, *,asp) and the
file name can be specified with http://.

If anybody know how to get a data source value from a Web Server, please
reply back.

 

[Peter Jamieson]

Hello SK,

I do not believe it can be done without an intermediate step, because
Word will not open files on Internet URLs such as http: or ftp: as
mailmerge data sources.

The exception if your users also happen to have access to a folder on
the server via a Windows networking URL (i.e., the file would have to be
available via UNC name such as \\myserver\myshare\

Whataver the data source, Word seems to insist on having /something/
that can be reached via the Windows file system or is held on the local
workstation. For example, "file data sources" such as .txt, .mdb etc.
can be reached directly, but even "server-based" data sources such as
SQL Server tables can only reached by having either an ODBC User/System
DSN (in the local system registry), an ODBC file DSN, an OLE DB .udl or
..odc file, or an external text file converter installed on the local
machine. It won't even work with DSN-less ODBC connections. So even if
you are capable of writing a text file converter, ODBC driver, or OLE DB
provider, you still have to create a file that is not on your server to
make the whole thing work.

This is of course a total nuisance for precisely the type of application
you have in mind, and it is very difficult to see why Microsoft never
allowed it - it's probably either a cock-up, or a deliberate attempt to
make approaches that use .NET and Content Controls (instead of
MailMerge) more attractive. Indeed, if you know you are working with
users who have Word 2007, perhaps that's the way to go.

All that said, although I have looked at this over the years and have
failed to find a way that uses mailmerge and have never heard of a way,
perhaps there is.

Peter Jamieson

http://tips.pjmsn.me.uk