I'll suggest using bookmarks
instead of Open and Close markers because bookmarks surrounding visible text
don't have to be hidden.
I also have to deal with the conditonal text issue. I was also thinking
of doing it with bookmarks. Also a bookmark range is really easy to
hide using VBA. However, I would also use Open and Close markers (belt
and braces?), coz maybe you/your user wants to be able to see where the
conditioned text starts and ends. Ok, I suppose you could enable some
sort of hiliting or shading to see where it is, and the 'hidden'
underline will also show you where it is.
I'll also suggest applying style(s) to hide or unhide rather than directly applying font
formatting.
So if your doc/template has 25 styles then you will need 25 x (3 + 1) =
100 styles to implement three conditions?
Better to just apply the Hidden effect attribute as local formatting.
Don't make new styles for this.
But, IMO, No! No! No! The problem withing hiding text is...and I have
already tried it...is that if you try hiding whole chapters, including
the chapter title, its outline numbering, and the end of section, can
driver Word mad. Word 2000 created duplicate, unaccessible ghost pages
of the page following the deleted chapter, and Word 2003 created a load
of blank pages.
Btw, what do you do if you need some *real* hidden text?
You could alternatively use a system of IF fields, with either literal text
or IncludeText fields that pull in bookmarked pieces of separate documents
that contain the conditional text.
That's a really nice idea, Jay.
I've probably omitted a half dozen workable schemes and variations.
How about cutting the conditioned out text, and saving it as Autotext.
Could use also saving it in a backup doc file as backup. Very
respectible, I think.
Now, you want some humor? Some guy suggested/actually uses a method
that uses the Track Changes (it comes in different colors, right?) to
hold the versions. Just don't use Track Changes and don't accidentally
do Accept All...
And then there is doing this with hiliting...just what happens if you
need the hiliting?
Or have three templates, each one applying a different hidden character
style to hide different blocks of text...
Now I will go in a completely different direction:
What is loosely called 'conditional text' in the narrow world of Word
and FrameMaker way of looking at things, actually encompasses a whole
world of meaning and technology. This is not just one more widget
within a word processor. We are talking about moving from word
processing to real *CONTENT MANAGEMENT*.
Boom. Maybe it;s time for me also to move up in the world...
g luck
When you complete it, Jose, tell us how much you would sell it for.
Avraham
Jay Freedman wrote:
There isn't any "feature" for swapping bits of document, but are lots of
ways to approach this. Some are more work up front, others are more work to
maintain as the document evolves, but none are really simple.
You certainly can use a VBA solution, although I'll suggest using bookmarks
instead of Open and Close markers because bookmarks surrounding visible text
don't have to be hidden. I'll also suggest applying style(s) to hide or
unhide rather than directly applying font formatting.
You could alternatively use a system of IF fields, with either literal text
or IncludeText fields that pull in bookmarked pieces of separate documents
that contain the conditional text. The IF fields can use the value of a
custom document property to determine which kind of manual you're printing;
change the property value and update the fields, and the manual is instantly
reconfigured.
I've probably omitted a half dozen workable schemes and variations.
--
Regards,
Jay Freedman
Microsoft Word MVP FAQ: http://word.mvps.org
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all may benefit.
Jose Valdes wrote:
I am writing three manuals that are almost identical. However, each
manual has some unique content. As a former user of Adobe FrameMaker,
my rash impulse was to use VBA to recreate the Condition Text feature
in MS Word. Here's how it works:
Info unique to manual A appears in these markup tags:
ManualAContentOpen and ManualAContentClose. Manuals B and C have
similar tags. If I want to print manual A, VBA scripts format B and C
content as hidden text (Format menu | Font | Hidden checkbox).
Content for A is not hidden, but VBA scripts hide markup tags.
I have already starting this work and feel competent enough to
complete it. I fear, however, that I might be giving into my dark
impulses to play with VBA instead of writing. ;-) I was hired to be a
writer of course.
Does feature exist already somewhere? Am I on the right track?