Task Pane customization: which path to follow???

[ricaforrica]

Greetings!

I have an Oracle application for hospital management. One of the main modules is the clinical process, where the doctor controls all the info related to his patient.
At the end of the appointment, the doctor can generate a MSWord report, which is automatically filled with some info from the database.

But "the customization must improve to higher levels" (at least, that's what my boss told me)! So I developed custom command bars: one with autotext entries, other with typical commands such as save, quit or export data and a final one with info from the database. It is all working well, but now the goal is to use the task pane to present the controls and info I created in command bars.

I'm using word 2002 and the only thing I achieved was to insert some links, based on data from my BD, into the different sections of the "New Document" Task Pane. Found nothing about inserting controls into it! So now I asked for a 2003 installation and started searching on the net: vsto, smart documents, smart tags, ibf, vba... too many paths have I found, I clearly need some guidance or I will be eternally doomed in office darkness!!!

I thank all of you who can give some tips (and examples, please!) on this kind of customization...
Hope to hear from you soon,

Ricardo Pinto

 

[misscrf]

I think the task pane is only for links, even if the link acts as a command button in a sense. Look at the task pane for mail merge. It is all links (hyperlinks to actions and such)

One thing you could do to get the appearance that you seem to want, would be to use pictures as your "links" and they would look like buttons.

Personally I find many want to turn the task pane off, but if that is part of the project, you might work on having it timed to create animation that talks to the user in a sense. Kind of like the office assistant, but useful.

hope that might help.

misscrf

It is never too late to become what you could have been ~ George Eliot

 

[ricaforrica]

Hello!

Thanks for your reply

Did you actually inserted picture links into the task pane? I'm using the following code and I don't think I could insret pictures with this:

Application.NewDocument.add (Filename, FileSection, DisplayName, Action)
with "C:\test.doc", msoOpenDocument, "Mylink", msoEditFile for instance

(I can also use Application.RecentFiles.add("c:\test.doc") but this is more limited)

How would I do for inserting pictures?
Thanks in advance,

Ricardo Pinto

 

[fumei]

I am not sure you CAN do this, into the Task Pane. The Task Pane customization is rather limited. If you DO get your own controls into a Task Pane write a article here!!. I don't think you can.

If you could, go back, and explain what exactly you are trying to do???

There may be another process that works for you. However, I am really unclear about what the purpose, and the reason fo your question. Are you trying to communicate something to the user? What? When is it needed?

Have you tried making your own Assitant Balloons?

Gerry

 

[ricaforrica]

Hello Gerry!

What I need to do is have a totally customized report:

--> without the default menu bar (file, edit, view,...), replaced by a menu bar with large buttons
--> with a command bar which has some autotext entries (so that the user doesn't need to go to insert->autotext->autotext)
--> and I have to present some data from the database, namely the list of the other pending reports for that doctor/patient. Currently I also have it in a command bar

I did this, but the final goal is to have this info on the task pane. In VBA, as you said, "the Task Pane customization is rather limited". That's right: the only thing I could do was to add a new document and it showed up in the "New Document" task pane.

However, in word 2003 it is possible to have more control of the task pane. The possibilities are Visual Studio Tools for Office Actions Pane, Smart Documents, Smart Tags, Information Bridge Framework and the Research Services... and more, perhaps!

I'm currently searching on these technologies and maybe I would post when I get results!!!

Regards,

Ricardo

Ps: What do you mean with Assistant Baloons??

 

[fumei]

Most of those features with 2003 are, correct me if I am wrong, only available if you are using Sharepoint Services (that is, using a SharePoint Portal) Are you?

This was one of the reason why we did not upgrade to Office 2003, as we do not have license for Sharepoint Services.

Assistant balloons are custom "balloons" - just like the Offic Assistant displays. These in fact use the Office Assistant to display them. You can have list and actionable items from user choices. They pop up, like the Office Assistant, and are, of course just as annoying.

Except...shrug....some people actually LIKE the Assistant.

Gerry

 

[ricaforrica]

Well, as I'm currently starting this development (defining requirements, searching technologies), I don't really can guarantee you that... But I'm open to all possibilities: if a Sharepoint license is necessary, I will talk to my boss..

About the balloons, can I create them from VBA? What can I do with it?

We'll keep in touch,

Ricardo

Ps: But now that I think better, I believe we have already the Sharepoint license (I'm new in the company )