Mail Merge Error

[clapag22]

When trying to do a mail merge in word, I get this error after I choose the data source (an Access DB) but BEFORE the list of tables/queries pops up:

Word could not re-establish a DDE connection to Microsoft Access to complete the current task.

According to the MS web site and MS Technet, this error occurs when a table name or query namehas a double-quote(&quot in it.

But it my case, I am not even getting the list of tables and queries before this error pops up so obviously I am not picking a table or query with a double-quote. Besides, I don't have any tables or queries with double-quotes (or single for that matter) in them.

Any clue on what else this may be?

TIA
Craig

 

[DougP]

Maybe Just Maybe all of the functions were not installed in the original Office Install. try re-installing it Completely.

If you have a complete install, then try making a simple mail merge to a very simple database on your crive and see if it works
OK just one record of "John B Customer" to pop up in Word with NO other text.

let us know!!!


DougP, MCP

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[clapag22]

Sorry, should've mentioned this before... There's (at least) two mail merges in this particular Access DB and one continues to work fine while the one I mentioned fails.

 

[EM98]

I am also having this problem. I am trying to create a mail merge in Word to connect to a query in one of my databases. I am also getting the message, "Word could not re-establish a DDE connection to MS Access to complete the current task" I have other databases and when I try to connect to those, it works fine. By the way, I have created several mail merges to this particular database in the past but it has only recently started giving me this message. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

 

[psemianonymous]

Mailmerge is a nasty hack that needs to be fixed so that it actually works.


What this means is that I don't know of a good solution. What I did for my most recent project was to export the data in question to a text file, then use that text file as the data source instead of the Access database. Mail merge seems to work (or not work) at random.


Sorry.


Pete

 

[EM98]

Thanks for the suggestion. That is a temporary fix. However, I need this merge to be linked to my query so that any new information will automatically merge into the document the next time it is opened. Also, I merge so often that it would be too inefficient to continually transfer the info to a text file.

 

[dkuzminski]

This problem occurred in my office, too, but my research indicates that the problem could lie with Microsoft. Apparently, the later versions of Word and Access now require a new product, Microsoft Query, in order to handle a mail merge using data from Access going to Word.

Old Word documents regularly used in mail merge are supposed to remember where to get data in the new software, but I've already seen several such documents forget all too easily where to go for data. I haven't been able to reconnect any documents that lost their connections.

Anyway, look in Word at an existing document using mail merge from Access for an icon called the Mail Merge Helper. If it's there, you can still link. If it's missing, you might need Microsoft Query to re-establish the linkage. We have it on order at present so I can't advise on whether it will actually resolve this issue.

 

[dkuzminski]

The information I posted may not be correct. Upon trying to order a copy of Microsoft Query as was stated was needed in one of the Microsoft FAQs on their site, we learned there is apparently no such product. This left us scratching our heads as to what Microsoft meant in their FAQs. We now think it might be the name of some function or feature that has to be selected when Word is installed. We are still investigating this as we can't do mail merges at all. My apologies to anyone else who might have tried ordering that as we did.

 

[JackOfAllSoftware]

dkuzminski,

Microsoft Query is an "Add-In" piece of software that comes with MS Office... you should already have it on your machine, unless it was not installed with MS Office for some reason. What it does is provide very basic support for queries of external databases by MS Office applications. I have used it with MS Excel... it is a somewhat finicky application, in my opinion.

On my work machine with MS Office 2002, its main filename is MSQRY32.EXE

Steve

 

[jenip]

I got the same message in a Word 97 merge document. The document worked fine with an Access 2000 table, and all I wanted to do was change the location of the Access table. Strangely enough, the solution was to rename the normal.dot template, then open Word (to create a new one). I was then able to open the document, get data source, and change the location of the mdb.