I wouldn't rely on it - being a rather cautious type I would probably at
least be prepared to
a. ensure that the .dot was disconnected from any data source
b. send .dot and .doc versions and instructions on what to try if the
initial template doesn't work.
Those instrcutions would probably need to
a. mention that she will may need to re-attach a data source (attaching one
to the template is slightly less of a problem in Word 2000 than it is in
Word 2003)
b. suggest that if things are not working, she opens the /template/ (not a
..doc based on it), selects it all (e.g. ctrl-A), and executes all the fields
(ctrl-F9), and does the same for the headers and footers, if any, then saves
the template.
c. in a worst case scenario, she might need to start with a .doc version
and save it as a .dot. But of course if there is something else wrong on her
system, that might take you back to square one...
"Stephen" wrote in message
news
Hi,
Again, thank you for your help. Sorry for the delay but I had to ask her
to
email me the .dot file. It actually came as gobbly-gook and I don't know
why.
But I recreated the .dot file from the original letterhead and when I
changed the page setup margins on my machine and saved it as a .dot file,
it
opens fine. (On her machine I did Control-A to block everything and then
moved over the arrow on the top toolbar, if that makes any difference.)
Now, I guess the question is, if I save it in my Word, which is Office
Word
2003, do you think it will work okay in her Word, which is Word 2000.
Again, thanks for any help on this.
Take care,
Stephen
"Peter Jamieson" wrote:
I am doing this for a friend who knows even less about mail merge than
I
do.
I doubt she has a macro on her machine that changes the margins on a
.dot
file when it opens into a .doc file (I can look though).
I doubt it too, but it is worth checking.
Sorry I didn't provide enough information. It is a .dot file but it
opens
as an untitled .doc file (it seems to make this switch from .dot to
.doc
itself on the open).
Well I can't see why you (or she) are seeing the behaviour that you do.
If you can despam my e-mail address and
send
me a copy of the template and some sample "sanitised" data I can have a
look
here.
Peter Jamieson
"Stephen" wrote in message
...
Hi,
Thank you for your reply.
Sorry I didn't provide enough information. It is a .dot file but it
opens
as an untitled .doc file (it seems to make this switch from .dot to
.doc
itself on the open).
I am doing this for a friend who knows even less about mail merge than
I
do.
I doubt she has a macro on her machine that changes the margins on a
.dot
file when it opens into a .doc file (I can look though).
I took the .dot file from her original letterhead, which is a .doc
file.
The margins on the letterhead .doc file are fine. I added mailmerge
first
and last name and address fields and then saved it. When I save the
.dot
file the margins are fine but when I reopen it as the untitled .doc
file,
the
right margin is a half-inch to the left and her letterhead information
is
askew.
I did add the current date a few tabs to the right of the name fields.
Could that do it? She wants it near the right margin but should the
date
be
on the line above the name fields? I didn't realize that this might be
part
of the problem. (The date isn't so far over though that it would
affect
the
right margin. It is closer to the middle than the end.) When I reopen
the
.dot file the current date that I added now disappears. So maybe it is
part
of the problem.
I hope I haven't confused the issue further.
Again, thank for any help you can give me on this.
Stephen
"Peter Jamieson" wrote:
Can you step through what you did a bit slower (and try it again!).
For
example, by a MailMerge Template, do you mean a .doc file or a .dot
file?
Also, are there any macros in your system that might re-apply a
particular
set of layout standards?
Peter Jamieson
"Stephen" wrote in message
...
In Word 2000, I've changed the margins and inserted the current date
into
a
Mailmerge Template and then saved it.
But when I reopen the Template the margins are back to the old
(incorrect
margins) and current date is gone.
I'm not sure what I am doing wrong and would appreciate any help.
Thanks a lot,
Stephen