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Creating "Fill-In" type fields in Word 2003
Greetings,
Using Word 2003 sp2 in Windows XP sp2. I've been asked to use a PDF file with heavy tables/lines and limited text to create a 'form our users can fill out and save electronically' I use Acrobat and so can create "data fields" in that program, but the end-users don't have Acrobat and so we've opted to use Word. No biggie, should be workable. Converting to Word has been... unpleasant. So I hit on the idea of saving the PDF as a JPG and using it as a background. That way I figured I could put in some 'data entry' fields in the right places and people can fill out the form. The difficulty is that text boxes are not real familiar to our end-users who would likely move them and/or delete them while trying to enter text. .. I tried a "Text Form Field" but that's based on the formatting of the document text (It seems I have to put it on a line, and hitting 'Tab' simply moves the cursor one tab-space), so I won't end up with something they can open, fill in a field, hit 'Tab' to get to the next field, and go from there. Ultimately, I suppose I could create an 'invisible' table with appropriate cells locked, but that's a rather heavy, clunky way to work. Is there a way to insert something similar to the Text Form Field that doesn't rely on the actual paragraph formatting? I need something I can place anywhere, regardless of text formatting (There won't BE any text on this document, just the background and the fields). Ideally, I'd want to be able to have them open the document and find the cursor in the first field, then when they fill it out and hit Tab or Enter, it would go to the second field and on from there. I think I was able to do this in WordPerfect, but I've not used it in years. Any ideas?? I figure there's some rather obvious thing I'm just missing! Thanks, Shane |
#2
Posted to microsoft.public.word.newusers
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Creating "Fill-In" type fields in Word 2003
Hi Shane
I'm not sure why you would think tables as clunky as a table set with fixed column widths and fixed row heights would be appropriate and robust. Insert text boxes making sure that they are set for an appropriate number of characters so that they don't exceed the table cells but are sufficient for the required information. You could even use the drop down box with fixed choices where applicable. Once saved and protected as a table, users only have access to the text boxes and it will be as robust as any other option. If you bookmark the text boxes, you can automate information retrieval too. -- Terry Farrell - MS Word MVP "Shane" Shane•Varnadore@DoYouLikeGreenEggsAndSpamBoweBell Howell.com wrote in message ... Greetings, Using Word 2003 sp2 in Windows XP sp2. I've been asked to use a PDF file with heavy tables/lines and limited text to create a 'form our users can fill out and save electronically' I use Acrobat and so can create "data fields" in that program, but the end-users don't have Acrobat and so we've opted to use Word. No biggie, should be workable. Converting to Word has been... unpleasant. So I hit on the idea of saving the PDF as a JPG and using it as a background. That way I figured I could put in some 'data entry' fields in the right places and people can fill out the form. The difficulty is that text boxes are not real familiar to our end-users who would likely move them and/or delete them while trying to enter text. . I tried a "Text Form Field" but that's based on the formatting of the document text (It seems I have to put it on a line, and hitting 'Tab' simply moves the cursor one tab-space), so I won't end up with something they can open, fill in a field, hit 'Tab' to get to the next field, and go from there. Ultimately, I suppose I could create an 'invisible' table with appropriate cells locked, but that's a rather heavy, clunky way to work. Is there a way to insert something similar to the Text Form Field that doesn't rely on the actual paragraph formatting? I need something I can place anywhere, regardless of text formatting (There won't BE any text on this document, just the background and the fields). Ideally, I'd want to be able to have them open the document and find the cursor in the first field, then when they fill it out and hit Tab or Enter, it would go to the second field and on from there. I think I was able to do this in WordPerfect, but I've not used it in years. Any ideas?? I figure there's some rather obvious thing I'm just missing! Thanks, Shane |
#3
Posted to microsoft.public.word.newusers
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Creating "Fill-In" type fields in Word 2003
Well, nothing about tables in general is clunky or unweildy. I don't have
the option of fixed column widths or row heights as the table has to conform to a previously-created setup and many of the places for writing information are not laid out in an easy grid format. I'll end up having to cover the entire page with a table, then use lots of merges and splits to get the cells in the right places and the right sizes. I can do it, but it got me curious about whether or not one can create form-fields that can be placed like text-boxes. Shane "Terry Farrell" wrote in message ... Hi Shane I'm not sure why you would think tables as clunky as a table set with fixed column widths and fixed row heights would be appropriate and robust. Insert text boxes making sure that they are set for an appropriate number of characters so that they don't exceed the table cells but are sufficient for the required information. You could even use the drop down box with fixed choices where applicable. Once saved and protected as a table, users only have access to the text boxes and it will be as robust as any other option. If you bookmark the text boxes, you can automate information retrieval too. -- Terry Farrell - MS Word MVP "Shane" Shane•Varnadore@DoYouLikeGreenEggsAndSpamBoweBell Howell.com wrote in message ... Greetings, Using Word 2003 sp2 in Windows XP sp2. I've been asked to use a PDF file with heavy tables/lines and limited text to create a 'form our users can fill out and save electronically' I use Acrobat and so can create "data fields" in that program, but the end-users don't have Acrobat and so we've opted to use Word. No biggie, should be workable. Converting to Word has been... unpleasant. So I hit on the idea of saving the PDF as a JPG and using it as a background. That way I figured I could put in some 'data entry' fields in the right places and people can fill out the form. The difficulty is that text boxes are not real familiar to our end-users who would likely move them and/or delete them while trying to enter text. . I tried a "Text Form Field" but that's based on the formatting of the document text (It seems I have to put it on a line, and hitting 'Tab' simply moves the cursor one tab-space), so I won't end up with something they can open, fill in a field, hit 'Tab' to get to the next field, and go from there. Ultimately, I suppose I could create an 'invisible' table with appropriate cells locked, but that's a rather heavy, clunky way to work. Is there a way to insert something similar to the Text Form Field that doesn't rely on the actual paragraph formatting? I need something I can place anywhere, regardless of text formatting (There won't BE any text on this document, just the background and the fields). Ideally, I'd want to be able to have them open the document and find the cursor in the first field, then when they fill it out and hit Tab or Enter, it would go to the second field and on from there. I think I was able to do this in WordPerfect, but I've not used it in years. Any ideas?? I figure there's some rather obvious thing I'm just missing! Thanks, Shane |
#4
Posted to microsoft.public.word.newusers
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Creating "Fill-In" type fields in Word 2003
Of course, I never really meant Text Boxes but meant Text Form Fields
located in place inside table cells (which I suspect you guessed otherwise what is the point of protecting the document as a form!). The secret of using a table for this is to make sure that you insert a single table with sufficient rows and columns to accommodate every place you need to insert a Form Field. Then adjust column widths and row heights and fix them. Finally, merge cells where needed to straddle where extra width is needed for the form field. Avoid cell splitting or merging column cells: if you stick to just merging adjacent cells, the table is unlikely to corrupt. Once the document is Protected as a Form, the tables are inaccessible and the users are unlikely to make a mess of the form filling g. Terry "Shane" Shane•Varnadore@DoYouLikeGreenEggsAndSpamBoweBell Howell.com wrote in message ... Well, nothing about tables in general is clunky or unweildy. I don't have the option of fixed column widths or row heights as the table has to conform to a previously-created setup and many of the places for writing information are not laid out in an easy grid format. I'll end up having to cover the entire page with a table, then use lots of merges and splits to get the cells in the right places and the right sizes. I can do it, but it got me curious about whether or not one can create form-fields that can be placed like text-boxes. Shane "Terry Farrell" wrote in message ... Hi Shane I'm not sure why you would think tables as clunky as a table set with fixed column widths and fixed row heights would be appropriate and robust. Insert text boxes making sure that they are set for an appropriate number of characters so that they don't exceed the table cells but are sufficient for the required information. You could even use the drop down box with fixed choices where applicable. Once saved and protected as a table, users only have access to the text boxes and it will be as robust as any other option. If you bookmark the text boxes, you can automate information retrieval too. -- Terry Farrell - MS Word MVP "Shane" Shane•Varnadore@DoYouLikeGreenEggsAndSpamBoweBell Howell.com wrote in message ... Greetings, Using Word 2003 sp2 in Windows XP sp2. I've been asked to use a PDF file with heavy tables/lines and limited text to create a 'form our users can fill out and save electronically' I use Acrobat and so can create "data fields" in that program, but the end-users don't have Acrobat and so we've opted to use Word. No biggie, should be workable. Converting to Word has been... unpleasant. So I hit on the idea of saving the PDF as a JPG and using it as a background. That way I figured I could put in some 'data entry' fields in the right places and people can fill out the form. The difficulty is that text boxes are not real familiar to our end-users who would likely move them and/or delete them while trying to enter text. . I tried a "Text Form Field" but that's based on the formatting of the document text (It seems I have to put it on a line, and hitting 'Tab' simply moves the cursor one tab-space), so I won't end up with something they can open, fill in a field, hit 'Tab' to get to the next field, and go from there. Ultimately, I suppose I could create an 'invisible' table with appropriate cells locked, but that's a rather heavy, clunky way to work. Is there a way to insert something similar to the Text Form Field that doesn't rely on the actual paragraph formatting? I need something I can place anywhere, regardless of text formatting (There won't BE any text on this document, just the background and the fields). Ideally, I'd want to be able to have them open the document and find the cursor in the first field, then when they fill it out and hit Tab or Enter, it would go to the second field and on from there. I think I was able to do this in WordPerfect, but I've not used it in years. Any ideas?? I figure there's some rather obvious thing I'm just missing! Thanks, Shane |
#5
Posted to microsoft.public.word.newusers
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Creating "Fill-In" type fields in Word 2003
Terry,
"Avoid cell splitting or merging column cells: if you stick to just merging adjacent cells, the table is unlikely to corrupt." AHH.. that one I'll HAVE to remember! Thanks! Shane "Terry Farrell" wrote in message ... Of course, I never really meant Text Boxes but meant Text Form Fields located in place inside table cells (which I suspect you guessed otherwise what is the point of protecting the document as a form!). The secret of using a table for this is to make sure that you insert a single table with sufficient rows and columns to accommodate every place you need to insert a Form Field. Then adjust column widths and row heights and fix them. Finally, merge cells where needed to straddle where extra width is needed for the form field. Avoid cell splitting or merging column cells: if you stick to just merging adjacent cells, the table is unlikely to corrupt. Once the document is Protected as a Form, the tables are inaccessible and the users are unlikely to make a mess of the form filling g. Terry "Shane" Shane•Varnadore@DoYouLikeGreenEggsAndSpamBoweBell Howell.com wrote in message ... Well, nothing about tables in general is clunky or unweildy. I don't have the option of fixed column widths or row heights as the table has to conform to a previously-created setup and many of the places for writing information are not laid out in an easy grid format. I'll end up having to cover the entire page with a table, then use lots of merges and splits to get the cells in the right places and the right sizes. I can do it, but it got me curious about whether or not one can create form-fields that can be placed like text-boxes. Shane "Terry Farrell" wrote in message ... Hi Shane I'm not sure why you would think tables as clunky as a table set with fixed column widths and fixed row heights would be appropriate and robust. Insert text boxes making sure that they are set for an appropriate number of characters so that they don't exceed the table cells but are sufficient for the required information. You could even use the drop down box with fixed choices where applicable. Once saved and protected as a table, users only have access to the text boxes and it will be as robust as any other option. If you bookmark the text boxes, you can automate information retrieval too. -- Terry Farrell - MS Word MVP "Shane" Shane•Varnadore@DoYouLikeGreenEggsAndSpamBoweBell Howell.com wrote in message ... Greetings, Using Word 2003 sp2 in Windows XP sp2. I've been asked to use a PDF file with heavy tables/lines and limited text to create a 'form our users can fill out and save electronically' I use Acrobat and so can create "data fields" in that program, but the end-users don't have Acrobat and so we've opted to use Word. No biggie, should be workable. Converting to Word has been... unpleasant. So I hit on the idea of saving the PDF as a JPG and using it as a background. That way I figured I could put in some 'data entry' fields in the right places and people can fill out the form. The difficulty is that text boxes are not real familiar to our end-users who would likely move them and/or delete them while trying to enter text. . I tried a "Text Form Field" but that's based on the formatting of the document text (It seems I have to put it on a line, and hitting 'Tab' simply moves the cursor one tab-space), so I won't end up with something they can open, fill in a field, hit 'Tab' to get to the next field, and go from there. Ultimately, I suppose I could create an 'invisible' table with appropriate cells locked, but that's a rather heavy, clunky way to work. Is there a way to insert something similar to the Text Form Field that doesn't rely on the actual paragraph formatting? I need something I can place anywhere, regardless of text formatting (There won't BE any text on this document, just the background and the fields). Ideally, I'd want to be able to have them open the document and find the cursor in the first field, then when they fill it out and hit Tab or Enter, it would go to the second field and on from there. I think I was able to do this in WordPerfect, but I've not used it in years. Any ideas?? I figure there's some rather obvious thing I'm just missing! Thanks, Shane |
#6
Posted to microsoft.public.word.newusers
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Creating "Fill-In" type fields in Word 2003
It might be a good idea for you to read the series of Forms tutorials by
Dian Chapman that are linked from http://word.mvps.org/FAQs/Customizat...nTheBlanks.htm and especially the forms tutorials by Dian Chapman that this article links to. I think you'll see that forms in Word work similarly to those in Acrobat. -- 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. "Shane" Shane•Varnadore@DoYouLikeGreenEggsAndSpamBoweBell Howell.com wrote in message ... Greetings, Using Word 2003 sp2 in Windows XP sp2. I've been asked to use a PDF file with heavy tables/lines and limited text to create a 'form our users can fill out and save electronically' I use Acrobat and so can create "data fields" in that program, but the end-users don't have Acrobat and so we've opted to use Word. No biggie, should be workable. Converting to Word has been... unpleasant. So I hit on the idea of saving the PDF as a JPG and using it as a background. That way I figured I could put in some 'data entry' fields in the right places and people can fill out the form. The difficulty is that text boxes are not real familiar to our end-users who would likely move them and/or delete them while trying to enter text. . I tried a "Text Form Field" but that's based on the formatting of the document text (It seems I have to put it on a line, and hitting 'Tab' simply moves the cursor one tab-space), so I won't end up with something they can open, fill in a field, hit 'Tab' to get to the next field, and go from there. Ultimately, I suppose I could create an 'invisible' table with appropriate cells locked, but that's a rather heavy, clunky way to work. Is there a way to insert something similar to the Text Form Field that doesn't rely on the actual paragraph formatting? I need something I can place anywhere, regardless of text formatting (There won't BE any text on this document, just the background and the fields). Ideally, I'd want to be able to have them open the document and find the cursor in the first field, then when they fill it out and hit Tab or Enter, it would go to the second field and on from there. I think I was able to do this in WordPerfect, but I've not used it in years. Any ideas?? I figure there's some rather obvious thing I'm just missing! Thanks, Shane |
#7
Posted to microsoft.public.word.newusers
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Creating "Fill-In" type fields in Word 2003
Suzanne,
Thanks for the info, actually, a LOT more than I had realized was there. The more I know about macros, the happier I am with Word. Coolness. I learned much. My difficulty is that in Acrobat I can put in a field that is placed without regard to text. I can use the Forms toolbar to click/drag a text box anywhere and then when someone opens it, they can enter information then hit Tab to go to the next one. The only real difference is that they use a separate cursor to create the fields than they do to enter data. I guess that's the big difference, eh? Yeah, I know, Acrobat not Word.. but still.. a guy can dream, right? :-) Hey, if I ever figure out a way, I'll post it! Shane "Suzanne S. Barnhill" wrote in message ... It might be a good idea for you to read the series of Forms tutorials by Dian Chapman that are linked from http://word.mvps.org/FAQs/Customizat...nTheBlanks.htm and especially the forms tutorials by Dian Chapman that this article links to. I think you'll see that forms in Word work similarly to those in Acrobat. -- 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. "Shane" Shane•Varnadore@DoYouLikeGreenEggsAndSpamBoweBell Howell.com wrote in message ... Greetings, Using Word 2003 sp2 in Windows XP sp2. I've been asked to use a PDF file with heavy tables/lines and limited text to create a 'form our users can fill out and save electronically' I use Acrobat and so can create "data fields" in that program, but the end-users don't have Acrobat and so we've opted to use Word. No biggie, should be workable. Converting to Word has been... unpleasant. So I hit on the idea of saving the PDF as a JPG and using it as a background. That way I figured I could put in some 'data entry' fields in the right places and people can fill out the form. The difficulty is that text boxes are not real familiar to our end-users who would likely move them and/or delete them while trying to enter text. . I tried a "Text Form Field" but that's based on the formatting of the document text (It seems I have to put it on a line, and hitting 'Tab' simply moves the cursor one tab-space), so I won't end up with something they can open, fill in a field, hit 'Tab' to get to the next field, and go from there. Ultimately, I suppose I could create an 'invisible' table with appropriate cells locked, but that's a rather heavy, clunky way to work. Is there a way to insert something similar to the Text Form Field that doesn't rely on the actual paragraph formatting? I need something I can place anywhere, regardless of text formatting (There won't BE any text on this document, just the background and the fields). Ideally, I'd want to be able to have them open the document and find the cursor in the first field, then when they fill it out and hit Tab or Enter, it would go to the second field and on from there. I think I was able to do this in WordPerfect, but I've not used it in years. Any ideas?? I figure there's some rather obvious thing I'm just missing! Thanks, Shane |
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