[MJones]

Hi,

I'm creating about 30 standard letters. Each letter will have some dropdown
boxes and some sections where you click and replace text; I'll call these the
'replacement text boxes'. The text that is replaced in the replacement text
boxes is stuff like 'manager's title' or 'employee improvement you would like
them to exhibit'. So users know what goes in the box, I've added these
helpful comments as default text in the Text Form Field Options window.

I've got it working with one aggrevation.

For the replacement text boxes, I do not protect/lock the sections. That
way, when users click in the boxes, the helpful comment text that's there, is
replaced by the user's text. Good that works.

For the dropdown boxes, I need to protect/lock the sections so the boxes
will drop down. I'm using continuous section breaks around these boxes.
Good they work.

The aggrevation is that continuous section breaks force a new line after
them. This is a problem when I have both a dropdown box and a replacement
text box on the same line. Sometimes, there will be a return in the middle
of the line unless I can be crafty enough to word the text so the break is at
the end of a line.

Does anyone have any better approach to accomplish the same thing? I'm
using Word 2003, but my client that will be using the forms has Word 2002.

I'd really appreciate any ideas you may have. I'm not really a VB
programmer, and altough I understand a little of it, I was hoping not to have
to go that direction.

Thank you,

Michele

[CyberTaz]

I believe your only problem is that you are trying to insert the section
breaks at the *end* of a paragraph. The insertion point can't be moved to
the right of the marker, so the break is inserted *before* the marker,
forcing it down - you can't have a section break in the 'midst' of a line
(without breaking the line). Put your insertion point at the *beginning* of
the line where you want the break to occur - IOW, always think of secton
breaks as the *start* of a section, not as the *end* of one.

--
HTH |:)
Bob Jones
[MVP] Office:Mac

"MJones" wrote in message
...
Hi,

I'm creating about 30 standard letters. Each letter will have some
dropdown
boxes and some sections where you click and replace text; I'll call these
the
'replacement text boxes'. The text that is replaced in the replacement
text
boxes is stuff like 'manager's title' or 'employee improvement you would
like
them to exhibit'. So users know what goes in the box, I've added these
helpful comments as default text in the Text Form Field Options window.

I've got it working with one aggrevation.

For the replacement text boxes, I do not protect/lock the sections. That
way, when users click in the boxes, the helpful comment text that's there,
is
replaced by the user's text. Good that works.

For the dropdown boxes, I need to protect/lock the sections so the boxes
will drop down. I'm using continuous section breaks around these boxes.
Good they work.

The aggrevation is that continuous section breaks force a new line after
them. This is a problem when I have both a dropdown box and a replacement
text box on the same line. Sometimes, there will be a return in the
middle
of the line unless I can be crafty enough to word the text so the break is
at
the end of a line.

Does anyone have any better approach to accomplish the same thing? I'm
using Word 2003, but my client that will be using the forms has Word 2002.

I'd really appreciate any ideas you may have. I'm not really a VB
programmer, and altough I understand a little of it, I was hoping not to
have
to go that direction.

Thank you,

Michele

[MJones]

Hi Bob,

My basic problem is that I can't break in the middle of a line without
having a line break.

I'm trying to break in between the dropdown box and the replacement text
boxes, and if that means in the middle of the line, then I need to do that so
they both work properly.

Basically, if this idea won't work, I'm looking for another strategy to
accomplish this form letter request. It doesn't seem to be such a wild idea
to me and I'm hoping that someone would have run across it that can help.

Thanks for trying,

Michele

"CyberTaz" wrote:

I believe your only problem is that you are trying to insert the section
breaks at the *end* of a paragraph. The insertion point can't be moved to
the right of the marker, so the break is inserted *before* the marker,
forcing it down - you can't have a section break in the 'midst' of a line
(without breaking the line). Put your insertion point at the *beginning* of
the line where you want the break to occur - IOW, always think of secton
breaks as the *start* of a section, not as the *end* of one.

--
HTH |:)
Bob Jones
[MVP] Office:Mac

"MJones" wrote in message
...
Hi,

I'm creating about 30 standard letters. Each letter will have some
dropdown
boxes and some sections where you click and replace text; I'll call these
the
'replacement text boxes'. The text that is replaced in the replacement
text
boxes is stuff like 'manager's title' or 'employee improvement you would
like
them to exhibit'. So users know what goes in the box, I've added these
helpful comments as default text in the Text Form Field Options window.

I've got it working with one aggrevation.

For the replacement text boxes, I do not protect/lock the sections. That
way, when users click in the boxes, the helpful comment text that's there,
is
replaced by the user's text. Good that works.

For the dropdown boxes, I need to protect/lock the sections so the boxes
will drop down. I'm using continuous section breaks around these boxes.
Good they work.

The aggrevation is that continuous section breaks force a new line after
them. This is a problem when I have both a dropdown box and a replacement
text box on the same line. Sometimes, there will be a return in the
middle
of the line unless I can be crafty enough to word the text so the break is
at
the end of a line.

Does anyone have any better approach to accomplish the same thing? I'm
using Word 2003, but my client that will be using the forms has Word 2002.

I'd really appreciate any ideas you may have. I'm not really a VB
programmer, and altough I understand a little of it, I was hoping not to
have
to go that direction.

Thank you,

Michele

[CyberTaz]

If what you want is something like:

Text Form Field Here Drop-Down Form Field Here

I think you may be under a wrong impression about how Protection works in
forms. You don't need Section Breaks for this.

The protection feature determines whether a user can change things about the
document content/structure/formatting & can be regulated by the use of
Section Breaks. Text Form Fields & Drop-Down Form Fields function the same
regardless of whether the section they're in is protected or not. It's just
that the Protect Form (Lock) button needs to be turned on in order for them
to function. IOW, there is a distinction between protecting the *Form* &
protecting the *Document* containing the form controls.

For better control I'd suggest using a table (2 column, 1 row) with the Text
Form Field in one cell & the D-D Form Field in the second. Unless you need
them for other reasons, though, Section Breaks aren't required unless you
want people to change things (revise text, for example) in specified areas
of the doc & its content *other than* using the form controls. When you
click the Lock button the controls will be active regardless of what type
they are. The user just can't delete any content, change margins, move tabs,
add content - other than in the provided controls.

--
Regards |:)
Bob Jones
[MVP] Office:Mac

"MJones" wrote in message
...
Hi Bob,

My basic problem is that I can't break in the middle of a line without
having a line break.

I'm trying to break in between the dropdown box and the replacement text
boxes, and if that means in the middle of the line, then I need to do that
so
they both work properly.

Basically, if this idea won't work, I'm looking for another strategy to
accomplish this form letter request. It doesn't seem to be such a wild
idea
to me and I'm hoping that someone would have run across it that can help.

Thanks for trying,

Michele

"CyberTaz" wrote:

I believe your only problem is that you are trying to insert the section
breaks at the *end* of a paragraph. The insertion point can't be moved to
the right of the marker, so the break is inserted *before* the marker,
forcing it down - you can't have a section break in the 'midst' of a line
(without breaking the line). Put your insertion point at the *beginning*
of
the line where you want the break to occur - IOW, always think of secton
breaks as the *start* of a section, not as the *end* of one.

--
HTH |:)
Bob Jones
[MVP] Office:Mac

"MJones" wrote in message
...
Hi,

I'm creating about 30 standard letters. Each letter will have some
dropdown
boxes and some sections where you click and replace text; I'll call
these
the
'replacement text boxes'. The text that is replaced in the replacement
text
boxes is stuff like 'manager's title' or 'employee improvement you
would
like
them to exhibit'. So users know what goes in the box, I've added these
helpful comments as default text in the Text Form Field Options window.

I've got it working with one aggrevation.

For the replacement text boxes, I do not protect/lock the sections.
That
way, when users click in the boxes, the helpful comment text that's
there,
is
replaced by the user's text. Good that works.

For the dropdown boxes, I need to protect/lock the sections so the
boxes
will drop down. I'm using continuous section breaks around these
boxes.
Good they work.

The aggrevation is that continuous section breaks force a new line
after
them. This is a problem when I have both a dropdown box and a
replacement
text box on the same line. Sometimes, there will be a return in the
middle
of the line unless I can be crafty enough to word the text so the break
is
at
the end of a line.

Does anyone have any better approach to accomplish the same thing? I'm
using Word 2003, but my client that will be using the forms has Word
2002.

I'd really appreciate any ideas you may have. I'm not really a VB
programmer, and altough I understand a little of it, I was hoping not
to
have
to go that direction.

Thank you,

Michele

[MJones]

Remember, there are 30 letters and some of the field entries could be several
lines long so tables won't work.

Also, I find that locking makes a big difference. The dropdown box doesn't
dropdown unless its locked and the text boxes can't be locked or then the
text in them won't go away when you click on them.

I got this idea from a website, I think an MVP. I'll try to find it if that
will help and I'll get back to you.

Thanks for your help so far.

"CyberTaz" wrote:

If what you want is something like:

Text Form Field Here Drop-Down Form Field Here

I think you may be under a wrong impression about how Protection works in
forms. You don't need Section Breaks for this.

The protection feature determines whether a user can change things about the
document content/structure/formatting & can be regulated by the use of
Section Breaks. Text Form Fields & Drop-Down Form Fields function the same
regardless of whether the section they're in is protected or not. It's just
that the Protect Form (Lock) button needs to be turned on in order for them
to function. IOW, there is a distinction between protecting the *Form* &
protecting the *Document* containing the form controls.

For better control I'd suggest using a table (2 column, 1 row) with the Text
Form Field in one cell & the D-D Form Field in the second. Unless you need
them for other reasons, though, Section Breaks aren't required unless you
want people to change things (revise text, for example) in specified areas
of the doc & its content *other than* using the form controls. When you
click the Lock button the controls will be active regardless of what type
they are. The user just can't delete any content, change margins, move tabs,
add content - other than in the provided controls.

--
Regards |:)
Bob Jones
[MVP] Office:Mac

"MJones" wrote in message
...
Hi Bob,

My basic problem is that I can't break in the middle of a line without
having a line break.

I'm trying to break in between the dropdown box and the replacement text
boxes, and if that means in the middle of the line, then I need to do that
so
they both work properly.

Basically, if this idea won't work, I'm looking for another strategy to
accomplish this form letter request. It doesn't seem to be such a wild
idea
to me and I'm hoping that someone would have run across it that can help.

Thanks for trying,

Michele

"CyberTaz" wrote:

I believe your only problem is that you are trying to insert the section
breaks at the *end* of a paragraph. The insertion point can't be moved to
the right of the marker, so the break is inserted *before* the marker,
forcing it down - you can't have a section break in the 'midst' of a line
(without breaking the line). Put your insertion point at the *beginning*
of
the line where you want the break to occur - IOW, always think of secton
breaks as the *start* of a section, not as the *end* of one.

--
HTH |:)
Bob Jones
[MVP] Office:Mac

"MJones" wrote in message
...
Hi,

I'm creating about 30 standard letters. Each letter will have some
dropdown
boxes and some sections where you click and replace text; I'll call
these
the
'replacement text boxes'. The text that is replaced in the replacement
text
boxes is stuff like 'manager's title' or 'employee improvement you
would
like
them to exhibit'. So users know what goes in the box, I've added these
helpful comments as default text in the Text Form Field Options window.

I've got it working with one aggrevation.

For the replacement text boxes, I do not protect/lock the sections.
That
way, when users click in the boxes, the helpful comment text that's
there,
is
replaced by the user's text. Good that works.

For the dropdown boxes, I need to protect/lock the sections so the
boxes
will drop down. I'm using continuous section breaks around these
boxes.
Good they work.

The aggrevation is that continuous section breaks force a new line
after
them. This is a problem when I have both a dropdown box and a
replacement
text box on the same line. Sometimes, there will be a return in the
middle
of the line unless I can be crafty enough to word the text so the break
is
at
the end of a line.

Does anyone have any better approach to accomplish the same thing? I'm
using Word 2003, but my client that will be using the forms has Word
2002.

I'd really appreciate any ideas you may have. I'm not really a VB
programmer, and altough I understand a little of it, I was hoping not
to
have
to go that direction.

Thank you,

Michele

[Suzanne S. Barnhill]

As long as you tab into the text form fields, the text will be selected. I
think it would be much more sensible to protect the entire form and expect
users to know how to use it properly; I would find it extremely confusing
and frustrating to fill in a form that had form fields that couldn't be used
as such. (Actually, I've had this experience; I got a form that contained
form fields but was not protected, and there were elaborate instructions
telling users how to open the Form Field Options dialog and change the check
box from unchecked to checked!)

--
Suzanne S. Barnhill
Microsoft MVP (Word)
Words into Type
Fairhope, Alabama USA
Word MVP FAQ site: http://word.mvps.org
Email cannot be acknowledged; please post all follow-ups to the newsgroup so
all may benefit.

"MJones" wrote in message
news
Remember, there are 30 letters and some of the field entries could be
several
lines long so tables won't work.

Also, I find that locking makes a big difference. The dropdown box
doesn't
dropdown unless its locked and the text boxes can't be locked or then the
text in them won't go away when you click on them.

I got this idea from a website, I think an MVP. I'll try to find it if
that
will help and I'll get back to you.

Thanks for your help so far.

"CyberTaz" wrote:

If what you want is something like:

Text Form Field Here Drop-Down Form Field Here

I think you may be under a wrong impression about how Protection works
in
forms. You don't need Section Breaks for this.

The protection feature determines whether a user can change things about
the
document content/structure/formatting & can be regulated by the use of
Section Breaks. Text Form Fields & Drop-Down Form Fields function the
same
regardless of whether the section they're in is protected or not. It's
just
that the Protect Form (Lock) button needs to be turned on in order for
them
to function. IOW, there is a distinction between protecting the *Form* &
protecting the *Document* containing the form controls.

For better control I'd suggest using a table (2 column, 1 row) with the
Text
Form Field in one cell & the D-D Form Field in the second. Unless you
need
them for other reasons, though, Section Breaks aren't required unless
you
want people to change things (revise text, for example) in specified
areas
of the doc & its content *other than* using the form controls. When you
click the Lock button the controls will be active regardless of what
type
they are. The user just can't delete any content, change margins, move
tabs,
add content - other than in the provided controls.

--
Regards |:)
Bob Jones
[MVP] Office:Mac

"MJones" wrote in message
...
Hi Bob,

My basic problem is that I can't break in the middle of a line without
having a line break.

I'm trying to break in between the dropdown box and the replacement
text
boxes, and if that means in the middle of the line, then I need to do
that
so
they both work properly.

Basically, if this idea won't work, I'm looking for another strategy
to
accomplish this form letter request. It doesn't seem to be such a
wild
idea
to me and I'm hoping that someone would have run across it that can
help.

Thanks for trying,

Michele

"CyberTaz" wrote:

I believe your only problem is that you are trying to insert the
section
breaks at the *end* of a paragraph. The insertion point can't be
moved to
the right of the marker, so the break is inserted *before* the
marker,
forcing it down - you can't have a section break in the 'midst' of a
line
(without breaking the line). Put your insertion point at the
*beginning*
of
the line where you want the break to occur - IOW, always think of
secton
breaks as the *start* of a section, not as the *end* of one.

--
HTH |:)
Bob Jones
[MVP] Office:Mac

"MJones" wrote in message
...
Hi,

I'm creating about 30 standard letters. Each letter will have some
dropdown
boxes and some sections where you click and replace text; I'll call
these
the
'replacement text boxes'. The text that is replaced in the
replacement
text
boxes is stuff like 'manager's title' or 'employee improvement you
would
like
them to exhibit'. So users know what goes in the box, I've added
these
helpful comments as default text in the Text Form Field Options
window.

I've got it working with one aggrevation.

For the replacement text boxes, I do not protect/lock the sections.
That
way, when users click in the boxes, the helpful comment text that's
there,
is
replaced by the user's text. Good that works.

For the dropdown boxes, I need to protect/lock the sections so the
boxes
will drop down. I'm using continuous section breaks around these
boxes.
Good they work.

The aggrevation is that continuous section breaks force a new line
after
them. This is a problem when I have both a dropdown box and a
replacement
text box on the same line. Sometimes, there will be a return in
the
middle
of the line unless I can be crafty enough to word the text so the
break
is
at
the end of a line.

Does anyone have any better approach to accomplish the same thing?
I'm
using Word 2003, but my client that will be using the forms has
Word
2002.

I'd really appreciate any ideas you may have. I'm not really a VB
programmer, and altough I understand a little of it, I was hoping
not
to
have
to go that direction.

Thank you,

Michele

[MJones]

That sounds good Suzanne, except that the tab key just makes a tab. How do
you get the tab to jump to the next field?

"Suzanne S. Barnhill" wrote:

As long as you tab into the text form fields, the text will be selected. I
think it would be much more sensible to protect the entire form and expect
users to know how to use it properly; I would find it extremely confusing
and frustrating to fill in a form that had form fields that couldn't be used
as such. (Actually, I've had this experience; I got a form that contained
form fields but was not protected, and there were elaborate instructions
telling users how to open the Form Field Options dialog and change the check
box from unchecked to checked!)

--
Suzanne S. Barnhill
Microsoft MVP (Word)
Words into Type
Fairhope, Alabama USA
Word MVP FAQ site: http://word.mvps.org
Email cannot be acknowledged; please post all follow-ups to the newsgroup so
all may benefit.

"MJones" wrote in message
news
Remember, there are 30 letters and some of the field entries could be
several
lines long so tables won't work.

Also, I find that locking makes a big difference. The dropdown box
doesn't
dropdown unless its locked and the text boxes can't be locked or then the
text in them won't go away when you click on them.

I got this idea from a website, I think an MVP. I'll try to find it if
that
will help and I'll get back to you.

Thanks for your help so far.

"CyberTaz" wrote:

If what you want is something like:

Text Form Field Here Drop-Down Form Field Here

I think you may be under a wrong impression about how Protection works
in
forms. You don't need Section Breaks for this.

The protection feature determines whether a user can change things about
the
document content/structure/formatting & can be regulated by the use of
Section Breaks. Text Form Fields & Drop-Down Form Fields function the
same
regardless of whether the section they're in is protected or not. It's
just
that the Protect Form (Lock) button needs to be turned on in order for
them
to function. IOW, there is a distinction between protecting the *Form* &
protecting the *Document* containing the form controls.

For better control I'd suggest using a table (2 column, 1 row) with the
Text
Form Field in one cell & the D-D Form Field in the second. Unless you
need
them for other reasons, though, Section Breaks aren't required unless
you
want people to change things (revise text, for example) in specified
areas
of the doc & its content *other than* using the form controls. When you
click the Lock button the controls will be active regardless of what
type
they are. The user just can't delete any content, change margins, move
tabs,
add content - other than in the provided controls.

--
Regards |:)
Bob Jones
[MVP] Office:Mac

"MJones" wrote in message
...
Hi Bob,

My basic problem is that I can't break in the middle of a line without
having a line break.

I'm trying to break in between the dropdown box and the replacement
text
boxes, and if that means in the middle of the line, then I need to do
that
so
they both work properly.

Basically, if this idea won't work, I'm looking for another strategy
to
accomplish this form letter request. It doesn't seem to be such a
wild
idea
to me and I'm hoping that someone would have run across it that can
help.

Thanks for trying,

Michele

"CyberTaz" wrote:

I believe your only problem is that you are trying to insert the
section
breaks at the *end* of a paragraph. The insertion point can't be
moved to
the right of the marker, so the break is inserted *before* the
marker,
forcing it down - you can't have a section break in the 'midst' of a
line
(without breaking the line). Put your insertion point at the
*beginning*
of
the line where you want the break to occur - IOW, always think of
secton
breaks as the *start* of a section, not as the *end* of one.

--
HTH |:)
Bob Jones
[MVP] Office:Mac

"MJones" wrote in message
...
Hi,

I'm creating about 30 standard letters. Each letter will have some
dropdown
boxes and some sections where you click and replace text; I'll call
these
the
'replacement text boxes'. The text that is replaced in the
replacement
text
boxes is stuff like 'manager's title' or 'employee improvement you
would
like
them to exhibit'. So users know what goes in the box, I've added
these
helpful comments as default text in the Text Form Field Options
window.

I've got it working with one aggrevation.

For the replacement text boxes, I do not protect/lock the sections.
That
way, when users click in the boxes, the helpful comment text that's
there,
is
replaced by the user's text. Good that works.

For the dropdown boxes, I need to protect/lock the sections so the
boxes
will drop down. I'm using continuous section breaks around these
boxes.
Good they work.

The aggrevation is that continuous section breaks force a new line
after
them. This is a problem when I have both a dropdown box and a
replacement
text box on the same line. Sometimes, there will be a return in
the
middle
of the line unless I can be crafty enough to word the text so the
break
is
at
the end of a line.

Does anyone have any better approach to accomplish the same thing?
I'm
using Word 2003, but my client that will be using the forms has
Word
2002.

I'd really appreciate any ideas you may have. I'm not really a VB
programmer, and altough I understand a little of it, I was hoping
not
to
have
to go that direction.

Thank you,

Michele

[Suzanne S. Barnhill]

When the document (all of it) is protected, Tab goes to the next field.

--
Suzanne S. Barnhill
Microsoft MVP (Word)
Words into Type
Fairhope, Alabama USA
Word MVP FAQ site: http://word.mvps.org
Email cannot be acknowledged; please post all follow-ups to the newsgroup so
all may benefit.

"MJones" wrote in message
...
That sounds good Suzanne, except that the tab key just makes a tab. How
do
you get the tab to jump to the next field?

"Suzanne S. Barnhill" wrote:

As long as you tab into the text form fields, the text will be selected.
I
think it would be much more sensible to protect the entire form and
expect
users to know how to use it properly; I would find it extremely
confusing
and frustrating to fill in a form that had form fields that couldn't be
used
as such. (Actually, I've had this experience; I got a form that
contained
form fields but was not protected, and there were elaborate instructions
telling users how to open the Form Field Options dialog and change the
check
box from unchecked to checked!)

--
Suzanne S. Barnhill
Microsoft MVP (Word)
Words into Type
Fairhope, Alabama USA
Word MVP FAQ site: http://word.mvps.org
Email cannot be acknowledged; please post all follow-ups to the
newsgroup so
all may benefit.

"MJones" wrote in message
news
Remember, there are 30 letters and some of the field entries could be
several
lines long so tables won't work.

Also, I find that locking makes a big difference. The dropdown box
doesn't
dropdown unless its locked and the text boxes can't be locked or then
the
text in them won't go away when you click on them.

I got this idea from a website, I think an MVP. I'll try to find it
if
that
will help and I'll get back to you.

Thanks for your help so far.

"CyberTaz" wrote:

If what you want is something like:

Text Form Field Here Drop-Down Form Field
Here

I think you may be under a wrong impression about how Protection
works
in
forms. You don't need Section Breaks for this.

The protection feature determines whether a user can change things
about
the
document content/structure/formatting & can be regulated by the use
of
Section Breaks. Text Form Fields & Drop-Down Form Fields function
the
same
regardless of whether the section they're in is protected or not.
It's
just
that the Protect Form (Lock) button needs to be turned on in order
for
them
to function. IOW, there is a distinction between protecting the
*Form* &
protecting the *Document* containing the form controls.

For better control I'd suggest using a table (2 column, 1 row) with
the
Text
Form Field in one cell & the D-D Form Field in the second. Unless
you
need
them for other reasons, though, Section Breaks aren't required
unless
you
want people to change things (revise text, for example) in specified
areas
of the doc & its content *other than* using the form controls. When
you
click the Lock button the controls will be active regardless of what
type
they are. The user just can't delete any content, change margins,
move
tabs,
add content - other than in the provided controls.

--
Regards |:)
Bob Jones
[MVP] Office:Mac

"MJones" wrote in message
...
Hi Bob,

My basic problem is that I can't break in the middle of a line
without
having a line break.

I'm trying to break in between the dropdown box and the
replacement
text
boxes, and if that means in the middle of the line, then I need to
do
that
so
they both work properly.

Basically, if this idea won't work, I'm looking for another
strategy
to
accomplish this form letter request. It doesn't seem to be such a
wild
idea
to me and I'm hoping that someone would have run across it that
can
help.

Thanks for trying,

Michele

"CyberTaz" wrote:

I believe your only problem is that you are trying to insert the
section
breaks at the *end* of a paragraph. The insertion point can't be
moved to
the right of the marker, so the break is inserted *before* the
marker,
forcing it down - you can't have a section break in the 'midst'
of a
line
(without breaking the line). Put your insertion point at the
*beginning*
of
the line where you want the break to occur - IOW, always think of
secton
breaks as the *start* of a section, not as the *end* of one.

--
HTH |:)
Bob Jones
[MVP] Office:Mac

"MJones" wrote in message
...
Hi,

I'm creating about 30 standard letters. Each letter will have
some
dropdown
boxes and some sections where you click and replace text; I'll
call
these
the
'replacement text boxes'. The text that is replaced in the
replacement
text
boxes is stuff like 'manager's title' or 'employee improvement
you
would
like
them to exhibit'. So users know what goes in the box, I've
added
these
helpful comments as default text in the Text Form Field Options
window.

I've got it working with one aggrevation.

For the replacement text boxes, I do not protect/lock the
sections.
That
way, when users click in the boxes, the helpful comment text
that's
there,
is
replaced by the user's text. Good that works.

For the dropdown boxes, I need to protect/lock the sections so
the
boxes
will drop down. I'm using continuous section breaks around
these
boxes.
Good they work.

The aggrevation is that continuous section breaks force a new
line
after
them. This is a problem when I have both a dropdown box and a
replacement
text box on the same line. Sometimes, there will be a return
in
the
middle
of the line unless I can be crafty enough to word the text so
the
break
is
at
the end of a line.

Does anyone have any better approach to accomplish the same
thing?
I'm
using Word 2003, but my client that will be using the forms has
Word
2002.

I'd really appreciate any ideas you may have. I'm not really a
VB
programmer, and altough I understand a little of it, I was
hoping
not
to
have
to go that direction.

Thank you,

Michele

[MJones]

Yes, I just figured that out. Doesn't seem very user friendly though.

I know my users are going to click in the box, especially because some of
the 300 stock forms that I'm customizing for them requires them to click in
the box to enter data in certain sections.

The users will stumble on the forms, new people will join the company, etc.,
so they can't all be trained. The forms need to be intuitive.

I'm trying to add a text box in the top corner, but unlike Excel, I can't
see how to set the text box not to print.

Hum. Anyway, thanks again for your help. You've helped me several times
before and I'm always very appreciative.

"Suzanne S. Barnhill" wrote:

When the document (all of it) is protected, Tab goes to the next field.

--
Suzanne S. Barnhill
Microsoft MVP (Word)
Words into Type
Fairhope, Alabama USA
Word MVP FAQ site: http://word.mvps.org
Email cannot be acknowledged; please post all follow-ups to the newsgroup so
all may benefit.

"MJones" wrote in message
...
That sounds good Suzanne, except that the tab key just makes a tab. How
do
you get the tab to jump to the next field?

"Suzanne S. Barnhill" wrote:

As long as you tab into the text form fields, the text will be selected.
I
think it would be much more sensible to protect the entire form and
expect
users to know how to use it properly; I would find it extremely
confusing
and frustrating to fill in a form that had form fields that couldn't be
used
as such. (Actually, I've had this experience; I got a form that
contained
form fields but was not protected, and there were elaborate instructions
telling users how to open the Form Field Options dialog and change the
check
box from unchecked to checked!)

--
Suzanne S. Barnhill
Microsoft MVP (Word)
Words into Type
Fairhope, Alabama USA
Word MVP FAQ site: http://word.mvps.org
Email cannot be acknowledged; please post all follow-ups to the
newsgroup so
all may benefit.

"MJones" wrote in message
news Remember, there are 30 letters and some of the field entries could be
several
lines long so tables won't work.

Also, I find that locking makes a big difference. The dropdown box
doesn't
dropdown unless its locked and the text boxes can't be locked or then
the
text in them won't go away when you click on them.

I got this idea from a website, I think an MVP. I'll try to find it
if
that
will help and I'll get back to you.

Thanks for your help so far.

"CyberTaz" wrote:

If what you want is something like:

Text Form Field Here Drop-Down Form Field
Here

I think you may be under a wrong impression about how Protection
works
in
forms. You don't need Section Breaks for this.

The protection feature determines whether a user can change things
about
the
document content/structure/formatting & can be regulated by the use
of
Section Breaks. Text Form Fields & Drop-Down Form Fields function
the
same
regardless of whether the section they're in is protected or not.
It's
just
that the Protect Form (Lock) button needs to be turned on in order
for
them
to function. IOW, there is a distinction between protecting the
*Form* &
protecting the *Document* containing the form controls.

For better control I'd suggest using a table (2 column, 1 row) with
the
Text
Form Field in one cell & the D-D Form Field in the second. Unless
you
need
them for other reasons, though, Section Breaks aren't required
unless
you
want people to change things (revise text, for example) in specified
areas
of the doc & its content *other than* using the form controls. When
you
click the Lock button the controls will be active regardless of what
type
they are. The user just can't delete any content, change margins,
move
tabs,
add content - other than in the provided controls.

--
Regards |:)
Bob Jones
[MVP] Office:Mac

"MJones" wrote in message
...
Hi Bob,

My basic problem is that I can't break in the middle of a line
without
having a line break.

I'm trying to break in between the dropdown box and the
replacement
text
boxes, and if that means in the middle of the line, then I need to
do
that
so
they both work properly.

Basically, if this idea won't work, I'm looking for another
strategy
to
accomplish this form letter request. It doesn't seem to be such a
wild
idea
to me and I'm hoping that someone would have run across it that
can
help.

Thanks for trying,

Michele

"CyberTaz" wrote:

I believe your only problem is that you are trying to insert the
section
breaks at the *end* of a paragraph. The insertion point can't be
moved to
the right of the marker, so the break is inserted *before* the
marker,
forcing it down - you can't have a section break in the 'midst'
of a
line
(without breaking the line). Put your insertion point at the
*beginning*
of
the line where you want the break to occur - IOW, always think of
secton
breaks as the *start* of a section, not as the *end* of one.

--
HTH |:)
Bob Jones
[MVP] Office:Mac

"MJones" wrote in message
...
Hi,

I'm creating about 30 standard letters. Each letter will have
some
dropdown
boxes and some sections where you click and replace text; I'll
call
these
the
'replacement text boxes'. The text that is replaced in the
replacement
text
boxes is stuff like 'manager's title' or 'employee improvement
you
would
like
them to exhibit'. So users know what goes in the box, I've
added
these
helpful comments as default text in the Text Form Field Options
window.

I've got it working with one aggrevation.

For the replacement text boxes, I do not protect/lock the
sections.
That
way, when users click in the boxes, the helpful comment text
that's
there,
is
replaced by the user's text. Good that works.

For the dropdown boxes, I need to protect/lock the sections so
the
boxes
will drop down. I'm using continuous section breaks around
these
boxes.
Good they work.

The aggrevation is that continuous section breaks force a new
line
after
them. This is a problem when I have both a dropdown box and a
replacement
text box on the same line. Sometimes, there will be a return
in
the
middle
of the line unless I can be crafty enough to word the text so
the
break
is
at
the end of a line.

Does anyone have any better approach to accomplish the same
thing?
I'm
using Word 2003, but my client that will be using the forms has
Word
2002.

I'd really appreciate any ideas you may have. I'm not really a
VB
programmer, and altough I understand a little of it, I was
hoping
not
to
have
to go that direction.

Thank you,

Michele

[Graham Mayor]

I think I would be inclined to simply use macrobutton fields and training to
impress upon your users to leave the standard text alone. Does
http://www.gmayor.com/Macrobutton.htm help?

Better still create a userform Word MVP FAQ - Userforms
http://word.mvps.org/FAQs/Userforms.htm - that gathers your variable data
then inserts that data or information based on that data via the form. This
way you can probably get away with fewer templates and the users will not
have to mess with the document, only the userform..

--

Graham Mayor - Word MVP

My web site www.gmayor.com
Word MVP web site http://word.mvps.org



MJones wrote:
Yes, I just figured that out. Doesn't seem very user friendly though.

I know my users are going to click in the box, especially because
some of the 300 stock forms that I'm customizing for them requires
them to click in the box to enter data in certain sections.

The users will stumble on the forms, new people will join the
company, etc., so they can't all be trained. The forms need to be
intuitive.

I'm trying to add a text box in the top corner, but unlike Excel, I
can't see how to set the text box not to print.

Hum. Anyway, thanks again for your help. You've helped me several
times before and I'm always very appreciative.

"Suzanne S. Barnhill" wrote:

When the document (all of it) is protected, Tab goes to the next
field.

--
Suzanne S. Barnhill
Microsoft MVP (Word)
Words into Type
Fairhope, Alabama USA
Word MVP FAQ site: http://word.mvps.org
Email cannot be acknowledged; please post all follow-ups to the
newsgroup so all may benefit.

"MJones" wrote in message
...
That sounds good Suzanne, except that the tab key just makes a tab.
How do you get the tab to jump to the next field?

"Suzanne S. Barnhill" wrote:

As long as you tab into the text form fields, the text will be
selected. I think it would be much more sensible to protect the
entire form and expect users to know how to use it properly; I
would find it extremely confusing and frustrating to fill in a
form that had form fields that couldn't be used as such.
(Actually, I've had this experience; I got a form that contained
form fields but was not protected, and there were elaborate
instructions telling users how to open the Form Field Options
dialog and change the check box from unchecked to checked!)

--
Suzanne S. Barnhill
Microsoft MVP (Word)
Words into Type
Fairhope, Alabama USA
Word MVP FAQ site: http://word.mvps.org
Email cannot be acknowledged; please post all follow-ups to the
newsgroup so all may benefit.

"MJones" wrote in message
news Remember, there are 30 letters and some of the field entries
could be several lines long so tables won't work.

Also, I find that locking makes a big difference. The dropdown
box doesn't dropdown unless its locked and the text boxes can't
be locked or then the text in them won't go away when you click
on them.

I got this idea from a website, I think an MVP. I'll try to find
it if that will help and I'll get back to you.

Thanks for your help so far.

"CyberTaz" wrote:

If what you want is something like:

Text Form Field Here Drop-Down Form Field
Here

I think you may be under a wrong impression about how Protection
works in forms. You don't need Section Breaks for this.

The protection feature determines whether a user can change
things about the document content/structure/formatting & can be
regulated by the use of Section Breaks. Text Form Fields &
Drop-Down Form Fields function the same regardless of whether
the section they're in is protected or not. It's just that the
Protect Form (Lock) button needs to be turned on in order for
them to function. IOW, there is a distinction between protecting
the *Form* & protecting the *Document* containing the form
controls.

For better control I'd suggest using a table (2 column, 1 row)
with the Text Form Field in one cell & the D-D Form Field in the
second. Unless you need them for other reasons, though, Section
Breaks aren't required unless you want people to change things
(revise text, for example) in specified areas of the doc & its
content *other than* using the form controls. When you click the
Lock button the controls will be active regardless of what type
they are. The user just can't delete any content, change
margins, move tabs, add content - other than in the provided
controls.

--
Regards |:)
Bob Jones
[MVP] Office:Mac

"MJones" wrote in message
...
Hi Bob,

My basic problem is that I can't break in the middle of a line
without having a line break.

I'm trying to break in between the dropdown box and the
replacement text boxes, and if that means in the middle of the
line, then I need to do that so
they both work properly.

Basically, if this idea won't work, I'm looking for another
strategy to accomplish this form letter request. It doesn't
seem to be such a wild idea
to me and I'm hoping that someone would have run across it that
can help.

Thanks for trying,

Michele

"CyberTaz" wrote:

I believe your only problem is that you are trying to insert
the section breaks at the *end* of a paragraph. The insertion
point can't be moved to the right of the marker, so the break
is inserted *before* the marker, forcing it down - you can't
have a section break in the 'midst' of a line (without
breaking the line). Put your insertion point at the
*beginning* of
the line where you want the break to occur - IOW, always think
of secton breaks as the *start* of a section, not as the *end*
of one.

--
HTH |:)
Bob Jones
[MVP] Office:Mac

"MJones" wrote in message
...
Hi,

I'm creating about 30 standard letters. Each letter will
have some dropdown
boxes and some sections where you click and replace text;
I'll call these
the
'replacement text boxes'. The text that is replaced in the
replacement text
boxes is stuff like 'manager's title' or 'employee
improvement you would
like
them to exhibit'. So users know what goes in the box, I've
added these helpful comments as default text in the Text Form
Field Options window.

I've got it working with one aggrevation.

For the replacement text boxes, I do not protect/lock the
sections. That
way, when users click in the boxes, the helpful comment text
that's there,
is
replaced by the user's text. Good that works.

For the dropdown boxes, I need to protect/lock the sections
so the boxes
will drop down. I'm using continuous section breaks around
these boxes.
Good they work.

The aggrevation is that continuous section breaks force a new
line after
them. This is a problem when I have both a dropdown box and a
replacement
text box on the same line. Sometimes, there will be a return
in the middle
of the line unless I can be crafty enough to word the text so
the break is
at
the end of a line.

Does anyone have any better approach to accomplish the same
thing? I'm using Word 2003, but my client that will be using
the forms has Word 2002.

I'd really appreciate any ideas you may have. I'm not really
a VB programmer, and altough I understand a little of it, I
was hoping not to
have
to go that direction.

Thank you,

Michele