Microsoft KB Archive/187813

Knowledge Base

WD: How to Create an Automated Form with Fill-in Fields

Article ID: 187813

Article Last Modified on 5/7/2007

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APPLIES TO

• Microsoft Word 6.0 for Macintosh
• Microsoft Word 6.01 for Macintosh
• Microsoft Word 6.01 for Macintosh
• Microsoft Word 6.0 Standard Edition
• Microsoft Word 6.0a
• Microsoft Word 6.0c
• Microsoft Word 6.0 Standard Edition
• Microsoft Word 95 Standard Edition
• Microsoft Word 95a

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This article was previously published under Q187813

SUMMARY

This article describes how to create a simple form that automatically prompts a user to fill in information.

MORE INFORMATION

Follow these steps to create a template with automatic fill-in fields:

1. On the File menu, click New.
2. Select Blank Document. (In Word 6.x, select the Normal template.)
3. Under Create New, select Template (In Word 6.x, select New Template). Click OK.
4. Create the Fill-in Fields.
   
   There are two methods you can use to create fill-in fields: menus and keystrokes. Select the method best suited for you.
   
   Method 1: Creating a Field Using the Menus:
   
   
   1. Position the insertion point where you want to insert the text field.
   2. On the Insert menu, click Field.
   3. In the Categories list, select Mail Merge.
   4. In the Field Names list, select Fill-in.
   5. The FILLIN field is displayed in the Field Codes text box below the Categories list. Click inside of the text box to the right of the word FILLIN and type quotation marks around the prompt you want to display. For example, use the following syntax to display a prompt asking the user to enter their name:

      FILLIN "Please enter your first and last name."

   6. Click OK. You will see a sample of the prompt. Click OK to return to your document.
      
      NOTE: To view the field code you just inserted, press ALT+F9 (Windows) or OPTION+F9 (Macintosh).
   7. Repeat steps a-f for every place in the document where you want a fill-in field.

   Method 2: Creating a Field Using Keystrokes.

   1. Position the insertion point where you want to insert the field.
   2. Press CTRL+F9 (Windows) or COMMAND+F9 (Macintosh). Field braces, { }, appear in the document.
   3. Position the insertion point inside the field braces.
   4. Type the following, where <prompt> is what Word asks the user to type:

      FILLIN "<prompt>"

      NOTE: If you press F9 while the insertion point is still on the field, you can see a sample of the prompt that will be displayed. This step is not necessary to create the fill-in.
5. On the File menu, click Save As.
6. Name the template appropriately. NOTE: The template needs to be saved in the directory that contains your user templates. To locate where your User Templates are stored, on the Tools menu, click Options and click the File Locations tab.
   
   NOTE: In Word 6.x for the Macintosh, the template must be saved in the Microsoft Office:Templates folder and be accessed through the File:New command within Word for the Fillin fields to activate.
7. Create an Automated Macro that automatically updates the fields when you open a new document based on the template. To create the macro, follow these steps: Microsoft provides programming examples for illustration only, without warranty either expressed or implied. This includes, but is not limited to, the implied warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose. This article assumes that you are familiar with the programming language that is being demonstrated and with the tools that are used to create and to debug procedures. Microsoft support engineers can help explain the functionality of a particular procedure, but they will not modify these examples to provide added functionality or construct procedures to meet your specific requirements.
   1. On the Tools menu, click Macro.
   2. Type AutoNew for the Macro Name.
   3. In the Macros Available In list, select the template name you are using.
   4. Click Create.

   5. Type the following code:

      Sub Main
        EditSelectAll
        UpdateFields
        EndofDocument
      End Sub
                              

   6. On the File menu, click Close. When prompted to save changes to your template, click Yes.
   After you have finished creating all of the required fill-in fields, text for the template, and the macro to automatically run, close and save the template. On the File menu, click Close. When prompted to save changes to your template, click Yes.

Using the Template

To create new documents based on the new template, follow these steps.

1. On the File menu, click New.
2. Click to select your template.
3. Click OK.

Word creates a new document, automatically searches for all fill-in fields in the document and begins to prompt the user for input.

Additional Information

For additional information about creating online forms with form fields, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

187864 WD: How to Create an Online Form Using Form Fields

You can also use SET and ASK fields in conjunction with fill-in fields.

REFERENCES

"Microsoft Word User's Guide," version 6.0, Chapter 14 Forms

"Microsoft Word for Windows User's Guide," version 2.0, pages 480-484

Additional query words: fillin field fields forms auto keyboard merge automatic automatically

Keywords: kbinfo kbfield KB187813

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