OK, for this you will need a macro, and you're correct that a working
example is really the only way to show how to do it.
Download
http://jay-freedman.info/sampleform.zip and unzip the
template inside it into your Word Templates folder (the location is
shown in the Tools > Options > File Locations dialog). Then use File
New to create a document based on the template. The top of the
page is the working form, and the bottom part explains how it works.
To adapt the template for your use:
- Use the File > Open dialog, navigate to the Templates folder, and
open the template itself (rather than a document based on it).
- Click the lock icon on the Forms toolbar to unlock it.
- Move the fields around, change the text, add new fields, etc.
- If you change the names of the fields involved in the automatic
filling, you'll also have to change those names in the last few lines
of the macro.
- Put the correct data into the macro. [Note: The names listed in the
macro aren't actually used for anything; they're there to remind you
of the order to place the other data in. The names used in the form
are stored in the dropdown field, not in the macro.]
- Click the lock icon again to turn it on.
- Save the template.
--
Regards,
Jay Freedman
Microsoft Word MVP
Email cannot be acknowledged; please post all follow-ups to the
newsgroup so all may benefit.
On Mon, 15 May 2006 15:01:01 -0700, trailerparkboy
Thanks for your quick reply. I have checked those links and try and
determine what works best for me in this situation.
To answer your questions and be more specific, basically I have a
Word template that has some text fields. On this form there is a
drop down menu with the names of 3 people. When someone selects one
of those names, a few other fields will auto-populate with
information specific to that person (ie their e-mail address,
title, etc.)
The user won't need to modify the results. They should be able to
select a different person for a different result. People will be
saving this document, printing it, or e-mailing it.
If I had a simple sample document of this in action, that would be
ideal, so I could modify it to my needs. I did some searching in
this forum and found some info on adding a macro, but I'm worried
it would take me too long to get it working.
Thanks!
:
I'm not quite clear on what kind of 'content' you want, but you
might be looking for an AutoTextList field
(
http://www.word.mvps.org/FAQs/TblsFldsFms/AutoTextList.htm).
If that isn't it, maybe it's something like this:
http://gregmaxey.mvps.org/Toggle_Data_Display.htm
If I still haven't hit it, try explaining with a more specific
example of how you want the document to work. What phrases should
be in the dropdown (or maybe some other kind of list would do),
and what sort of 'content' should be in the text box or field (or,
again, something else may be appropriate)? After the content
appears, should the user be able to modify it? Should they be able
to pick something else in the dropdown if they don't like the
result? What should be the ultimate use of the document (printing,
emailing, extracting the results into a database, etc.)?
--
Regards,
Jay Freedman
Microsoft Word MVP
Email cannot be acknowledged; please post all follow-ups to the
newsgroup so all may benefit.
On Mon, 15 May 2006 14:06:02 -0700, trailerparkboy
Hello,
Is it possible to have a drop down menu in Word, and then
depending on which item the user selects, only content specific
to that item is displayed in a text box or field???
Thanks!
Let me know if I'm not making sense.