Automate the printing of shipping labels

[TTEX]

I am looking for a way to make the generation of box labels more automatic
and don't have a clue how to approach the problem.

We ship out product with a label on each box. The labels come 2 to a
letter-size page and have the customer name, product name and quantity in
each box. The quantity in each box is generally the same except for the
last box.

I would like to be able to type the customer name, description and the
number of labels to print and have Word do the formatting and print the
correct number of labels. I'm sure this is a common problem. Does anyone
have a template I can plug in or something similar?

[Graham Mayor]

This should be a fairly straightforward mail merge application. How you go
about it depends on your labels. Are they pre-printed or blank? Are you
sending multiple labels to a single customer, or single labels to multiple
customers? Do you have the customers details logged in a data file or are
you entering them from the keyboard as you go?
Let us have some more information.

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Graham Mayor <gma...@eidosnet.co.uk>
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"TTEX" <how...@timesavertemlates.com> wrote in message
news:244113350EE1248C.1B83A3D2...@lp.airnews.net...

[TTEX]

We print multiple labels to a single customer. We enter the information as
a shipment is ready - usually 3-5 times a day. the customer information is
available in Peachtree but is not readily available, except by exporting a
data file.

The shipping labels are a blank, 1/2 page format with nothing but the
customer name, product name the word 'quantity' the quantity shipped.
Usually, most of the boxes are for the same quantity but the last box will
always contain a different amount.

I would like to put an icon on everyone's desktop with this Word document on
it so they can print in a consistent format as fool-proof as possible. Our
accounting software doesn't accommodate this, obviously.

Thanks for the help.

Graham Mayor <gma...@eidosnet.co.uk> wrote in message
news:8dh5qd$sm0$8...@quince.news.easynet.net...

[Graham Mayor]

Word is easy to set up where there are several identical labels, or where
there are several different labels. Setting up a solution to printing
several different labels to the same customer can be more problematical. The
ideal solution would be to use a vba solution to create a 'wizard' to
identify the number of labels, the different last label data and create a
temporary data file from which the labels would be merged, but given the
fact that this message has popped up in the newusers group, tends to suggest
that this might be beyond you - but re-address it to one of the vba groups
and you might find someone willing to suggest the code required.

In the meantime, may I suggest a work-around. You'll need a new document
with a 3 wide by two deep table.
In the 3 top row cells of the table, enter Customer, Product, Quantity.

In the second row enter the customer name, the product in question and the
number of items in the first package.

Move your cursor to just below the table and go to table/insert/rows above
and you will be prompted for a number. This is one less than the total
number of labels. Copy the second row of the table - the one with the
customer data, select the rest of the table and hit paste. The data will be
copied to the remaining rows. Edit the bottom right cell to reflect the
different last record.

Save the file as - for example - customer label data.doc

Now run the mail merge wizard.
1. Select create/mailing labels - new main document
2. Get Data/Open Data Source and pick the document you have just saved
3. Setup main Document - pick your label format from the list, or select new
label to create your own custom format if necessary.
4. Layout your first two fields on separate lines with any fixed text in the
box, right clicking to apply formatting. For the quantity field, you want to
include the fixed text word 'Quantity'. To save wasted labels, on the next
line press CTRL+F9, which will insert a pair of curly brackets - field
markers - {}. Every time you see the curly brackets in the line following,
you press CTRL+F9. The result should look like:

{IF {Mergefield Quantity} <> "" "Quantity: {Mergefield Quantity}" ""}

Don't worry if the line wraps due to space limitations in the window.

You can select any or all of the lines and right click to apply any
paragraph, or typestyle formatting you require.

Select OK and your merge source document will be created. Merge to a new
document to test the results. You should get as many labels as lines in your
table. If all is well, you can delete that document and save the merge
source document as a template. If not, go back and try again, or edit the
appearance of the merge source document directly, without altering any of
the fields - there are after all only two labels to edit.

Save and close all the documents so you know where you are up to.

Now when you wish to prepare a set of labels for a customer, you open the
data file, edit the table and save it. Then open a new document based on
the template, the data file is already attached. Merge to the printer.
--

<>>< ><<> ><<> <>>< ><<> <>>< <>>< ><<>
Graham Mayor <gma...@eidosnet.co.uk>
The five ages of man:
Lager.. Aga .. Viagra .. Saga .. Gaga
<>>< ><<> ><<> <>>< ><<> <>>< <>>< ><<>

"TTEX" <how...@timesavertemlates.com> wrote in message

news:8D4E10A24E715320.F2B673AD...@lp.airnews.net...

[TTEX]

thanks for the advice. I can use this and look up a VBA class somewhere.

Graham Mayor <gma...@eidosnet.co.uk> wrote in message

news:8dka5l$61b$2...@quince.news.easynet.net...