Mail Merge Data Source

[Desiree McComb]

I'm using Microsoft Office 2003.

I have several different word documents located in different areas on my
computer and I merge from several different Excel spreadsheets. Once I set up
a mail merge from one particular spreadsheet, 9 out of 10 times I always want
to use that same, particular spreadsheet for that particular Word doc.
Usually, I don't have a problem opening the document. It asks me if I want to
continue because it's drawing info from a database. I click "Yes". Sometimes
it immediately opens up to my document using the previously selected
spreadsheet. THE PROBLEM - some documents, no matter how many times I select
the desired spreadsheet upon opening, it constantly asks me to select the
desired spreadsheet each time I close out and re-open.

Why does it do this for some documents and not others? I would like to know
what the difference between the two documents are so that I can make sure
that once a database is chosen, I don't have to keep re-selecting the data
source. Thanks!

 

[Peter Jamieson]

If the are no obvious differences such as "some documents have sorts and
filters", some data sources are in a different folder", and so on, something
you can try:

Open one of the documents that constantly asks.

Enable the mailmerge toolbar (View->Toolbars)

Click the first icon and set the mailmerge type to Normal Word document..
This disconnects the data source and loses any sorts/filters, but all your
merge fields are still intact.

Click it again and set the mailmerge type back to the one you need.

Click the second icon and reselect your data source.

Save and close the mailmerge main document.

Test by re-opening.

The reason this /may/ work is that once Word decides it cannot find your
data source, in some versions even if you select the correct data source and
save the mail merge main document, Word does not actually forget the data
source it was originally connected to.

 

[Desiree McComb]

Oh my god. You're amazing! That was so simple. I thought it would be a lot
more complicated than that. Thank you so much.