Microsoft KB Archive/212343

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WD2000: Error Using Text Data Source with ODBC Driver

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ID: Q212343

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The information in this article applies to:


 * Microsoft Word 2000

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SYMPTOMS
When you use a text file as a data source in a mail merge, or when you click the Database command on the Insert menu, you may receive one of the following error messages:

External table isn't in the expected format.

Field1|Field2|Field3|Field4|Field5 isn't a valid name.

Syntax error in FROM clause.

Word was unable to open the data source.

CAUSE/WORKAROUND
The following are possible causes and workarounds for the error messages listed in the "Symptoms" section of this article.

Case 1
CAUSE: The option to hide file extensions is selected (turned on) in Windows.

WORKAROUND: Use one of the following methods.

Method 1: Use the Select Method option
Open the Open Data Source dialog box using one of the following methods:


 * On the Database toolbar (on the View menu, click Toolbars, and then click Database), click Insert Database.

-or-
 * In the Mail Merge Helper (on the Tools menu, click Mail Merge), click Get Data, and then click Open Data Source.

Select the database file you want to use, click to select the Select Method check box and then click OK.

In the Confirm Data Source dialog box, click Text Files, and then click OK.

NOTE: There is a Text Files via ODBC (*.txt, *.csv) entry if the ODBC text converter is installed. Do not select this option.

Method 2: Turn off the option to hide file extensions

 * 1) Right-click Start.
 * 2) On the shortcut menu, click Explore.
 * 3) In Windows Explorer, on the View menu, click Folder Options.
 * 4) Click the View tab.
 * 5) Click to clear the Hide extensions for known file types check box and then click OK.
 * 6) Close Windows Explorer.

Case 2
CAUSE: The data source text file is open on a different computer.

NOTE: This problem may occur if you are working in a network environment.

WORKAROUND: Close the data source text file on the other system, and then restart your mail merge in Word.

Case 3
CAUSE: The data source text file is opened by a different text converter than the one you are using. For example, your data source text file may be opened by your mail merge main document using the Text File via ODBC converter. If it opens a different mail merge main document without closing the first mail merge main document, when you try to attach the same data source text file using the Text Files converter, you will receive the following error message:

Word was unable to open the data source.

WORKAROUND: Close the other mail merge main document, and then restart your mail merge in Word.

Case 4
CAUSE: The ODBC Text driver installed by Microsoft Office for Windows does not support the delimiter that you used to separate text in your data source text file. Some known delimiters that the ODBC Text driver does not support are:


 * Tab Delimited
 * Tilde ( ~ ) Delimited
 * Pipe Delimited

WORKAROUND: Use one of the following methods.

Method 1: Rename the data source text file extension
Rename the extension of your tab-delimited text file to an "unrecognized" extension. For example, if your tab-delimited text file is named Address.txt, rename the file to Address.too.

Method 2: Use a comma-delimited text file as your data source instead of a tab-delimited data source
NOTE: If a comma-delimited text file does not resolve the problem, use the Method 2 workaround in Case 1.

STATUS
Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in the Microsoft products listed at the beginning of this article.

Additional query words: data datafile delimiters insert

Keywords : kberrmsg kbother kbdta kbmerge wd2000

Version : WINDOWS:2000

Platform : WINDOWS

Issue type : kbbug

Technology :