How do I make note cards from an inventory in excel?

[Guest]

I am currently working on a detailed inventory, but also want to make a
hard-copy version from the list in excel in the form of individual note cards
for each entry? Are there any shortcuts I could take through excel or any
other Office programs so that I could just click and print rather than do
everything manually?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you.

 

[Doug Kanter]

I am currently working on a detailed inventory, but also want to make a
hard-copy version from the list in excel in the form of individual note
cards
for each entry? Are there any shortcuts I could take through excel or any
other Office programs so that I could just click and print rather than do
everything manually?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you.

I can't help with the software/mail merge part of this, since it's not my
forté, but I have a suggestion for the end result. If you're talking about
something like index cards, Avery makes those in printable sheets.

Here's one:
http://www.avery.com/us/Main?action=product.HierarchyList&node=10210830&catalogcode=WEB01

I've used their business card sheets and they work flawlessly, at least in
my printer. Microsoft Word already contains formatting (in Tools, Envelopes
and Labels) for many Avery products. You choose the product number, and the
formatting's done for you. If the product isn't listed, the Avery products
come with extremely easy formatting instructions so you can create a custom
(and permanent) setting for the card or label on your computer.

If someone else here can help you copy the data to Word and set up a mail
merge to labels (meaning, the cards, in this case), you're in business.

 

[Guest]

You don't have to copy the data to Word, if you do a Mail Merge, you can pick
the excel sheet as the data source. Tell it you are doing labels, and you
should be able to pick the Avery number off a list. It's really pretty easy.

 

[Doug Kanter]

I didn't know that!

You don't have to copy the data to Word, if you do a Mail Merge, you can
pick
the excel sheet as the data source. Tell it you are doing labels, and you
should be able to pick the Avery number off a list. It's really pretty
easy.

 

[Guest]

Thank you to both of you. I have been able to setup the mail merge and the
notecards. However, I am unable to include the category titles on each
notecard. For example, (It's a chemical inventory):

Note card reads:

Acetic Acid, Glacial; Vinegar Acid
C2H4O2
60.05
Keep Cool, Toxic
Under the Hood
Fisher A38-500
6 bottles

But I want:

Name: Acetic Acid, Glacial; Vinegar Acid
Formula: C2H4O2
Formula Wt: 60.05
Storage: Keep Cool, Toxic
Location: Under the Hood
Co./Catalog #: Fisher A38-500
Supply: 6 bottles

Thanks again for any assistance and/or suggestions.

 

[Doug Kanter]

Fisher's still around? I used to get stuff from them when, as a kid, my
friends and I were trying to blow up my basement.

 

[Dave Peterson]

Can you just type in the category, then include the field from the excel
database?

Here are a couple of links about using mail merge:
http://www.mvps.org/dmcritchie/excel/mailmerg.htm
http://www.mvps.org/word/FAQs/MailMerge

The first is from David McRitchie and the second is by Beth Melton and Dave
Rado.

 

[Guest]

Thank you for the links, they were very helpful. However, I have one final
question to which I can't find the answer. I have formulas in excel with
subscripts in the cells. After making the mail merge they subscripts are
lost. How do I maintain the formatting from during the merge from excel to
word?

Although I can't show the subscripts here... I want the 2,4, and 2 in C2H4O2
to keep the subcript when being imported into word.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks.

 

[Dave Peterson]

I don't know if you can actually keep that kind of format.

Debra Dalgleish posted this to a similar question about formatting
dates/decimals.

There's an article on the Microsoft web site that might help you:

Answer Box: Numbers don't merge right in Word
http://office.microsoft.com/en-ca/assistance/HA011164951033.aspx

And if you prefer the old Mail Merge helper, Word MVP Suzanne Barnhill
has instructions here:

http://sbarnhill.mvps.org/WordFAQs/CustomizingWord2002.htm

about half way down the page.


========
I've never tried that with sub/superscripts. I don't know if it'll work.

I would think that MSWord would have to be pretty smart to do this. You may
want to post in one of the MSWord newsgroups for real answers.