mail merge directory

[jack west]

Im trying to set up a mail merge directory sheet so that
I can create a new daily delivery schedule for my trucks.
Problem is: that once Im done & merged to new document, i
cannot revise list by checking/unchecking recipient list,
instead i have to create a new mail merge operation every
day. How do I create one master sheet that can be changed
daily???
Thanks

 

[Peter Jamieson]

You are right that the output from a merge does not automatically reflect
changes in the data source, but that is simply how mail merge works (and in
fact most ways of generating reports from base data work in much the same
way). But you should not have to "create a new mail merge operation" every
day. You should be able to
a. mark the list you are using as your data source in some way (perhaps
have a field called Include which is set to Y or blank)
b. have a mailmerge main document that is set up with a filter so that only
the records where Include=Y are merged
c. open the mailmerge main document and do the merge each day.

Although that should work in theory, several problems in Word (especially
Word 2002) can thwart you because they result in the data source becoming
detached from the mail merge main document, so each day you would have to
re-attach the data source and re-create the Include=Y filter. If that is
what is happening, let us know what version of Word you are using, what your
data source is, andhow you are connecting to it.

 

[Cindy M -WordMVP-]

Hi Jack,

Im trying to set up a mail merge directory sheet so that
I can create a new daily delivery schedule for my trucks.
Problem is: that once Im done & merged to new document, i
cannot revise list by checking/unchecking recipient list,
instead i have to create a new mail merge operation every
day. How do I create one master sheet that can be changed
daily???

Mail merge wasn't conceived to do this kind of thing.
Perhaps this data would be better in an Excel spreadsheet?

Where (in what application and format) is the data you're
using for the merge currently stored?

Cindy Meister
INTER-Solutions, Switzerland
http://homepage.swissonline.ch/cindymeister (last update Sep
30 2003)
http://www.word.mvps.org

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