ewm@cbnews.ATT.COM (edward.w.mcfarland) (04/06/89)
I am in the market for a word processing software package that has the capability to automatically merge a file of names and addresses to the blank area where the name and address would go on a form contained in another file. MSDOS programs like PC-Write do this sort of thing and I would appreciate finding a package for the C64 that could do the same. Anyone know of one? Thanks Ed McFarland ewm@mvusa.ATT.COM
izot@f171.n221.z1.FIDONET.ORG (Geoffrey Welsh) (04/07/89)
> From: ewm@cbnews.ATT.COM (edward.w.mcfarland) > Message-ID: <5429@cbnews.ATT.COM> > > I am in the market for a word processing software package that has the > capability to automatically merge a file of names and addresses to the > blank > area where the name and address would go on a form contained in another > file. > MSDOS programs like PC-Write do this sort of thing and I would appreciate > finding a package for the C64 that could do the same. Anyone know of one? PaperClip has form-letter capabilities. -- Geoffrey Welsh - via FidoNet node 1:221/162 UUCP: ...!watmath!isishq!171!izot Internet: izot@f171.n221.z1.FIDONET.ORG
davef@brspyr1.BRS.Com (Dave Fiske) (04/08/89)
In article <5429@cbnews.ATT.COM>, ewm@cbnews.ATT.COM (edward.w.mcfarland) writes: > > I am in the market for a word processing software package that has the > capability to automatically merge a file of names and addresses to the blank > area where the name and address would go on a form contained in another file. I'm sure there are others that do this, but the one I happen to have is Fleet System 2 (I have an older version--they now offer Fleet System 2+ for the 64 and Fleet System 3 for the 128). I had never used this feature until last fall when I had to print addresses on the back of flyers to be mailed out. I made up a file which would print the addresses in the right place on the page, and put in the special characters (I think they call them Variable Blocks, or something) where the names and address lines should drop in. I had the mailing list in a separate sequential file. The only problem I had was that some addresses had 3 lines and some had 4, and Fleet System would not recognize a blank line (even if there were actually a bunch of blank spaces in it) as data to be dropped in. I had to go through the mailing list and add some asterisks onto a new line for every 3-line address. This wouldn't have been so bad, except that the sequential file which had the mailing list was too big to fit into Fleet System 2 at once, so I had to use a BASIC program to split it into two files. That's the biggest drawback to Fleet System 2. You can only hold a document up to about 4 pages in memory. This is fine if you're just starting something, since you can make the file in several parts, and there is a feature that lets you link files in Fleet System. But if you want to edit some big file that you had around before you got Fleet System 2, you have to write your own utility to divide the file into pieces small enough for Fleet System to handle. I would imagine the C-128 version is not as bad, since more memory is available. I don't know if the Fleet System 2+ version has tackled this problem. Other than this, it's pretty amazing how much they managed to squeeze into this package. Important features for me are: ability to read and save files in CBM ASCII format, ability to save a file to disk with all the Printer Codes included, and support of the User Port parallel interface for connecting the printer (this lets me hook up my "good" printer, which has a Centronics port, without unhooking my "Commodore"-type printer, which is on the serial port). -- "FLYING ELEPHANTS DROP COW Dave Fiske (davef@brspyr1.BRS.COM) PIES ON HORRIFIED CROWD!" Home: David_A_Fiske@cup.portal.com Headline from Weekly World News CIS: 75415,163 GEnie: davef
hxh@hal.UUCP (Howard Hermann) (04/08/89)
In article <5429@cbnews.ATT.COM>,ewm@cbnews.ATT.COM (edward.w.mcfarland writes:
>
> I am in the market for a word processing software package that has the
> capability to automatically merge a file of names and addresses to the blank
> area where the name and address would go on a form contained in another file.
In article <5707@brspyr1.BRS.Com>, davef@brspyr1.BRS.Com (Dave Fiske) writes
>
> I'm sure there are others that do this, but the one I happen to have is
> Fleet System 2 (I have an older version--they now offer Fleet System 2+
> for the 64 and Fleet System 3 for the 128).
> I had never used this feature until last fall when I had to print
> addresses on the back of flyers to be mailed out. I made up a file
The process that you are describing doesn't seem to be so much a mail merge,
as just printing out labels, with a lot of [CR]'s between each one.
You could avoid the problem you describe, of skipped empty lines, by using a
database instead. Most databases, such as Pocket Filer2, will offer "math"
and "logic" capabilities as part of their print files. For example, one base
I use has fields for: name, title, company, street, city, etc. Some entries
do not use the title and company fields, and others do. It was a simple
matter to write a print file to do labels to all 700 records. Each label had
6 lines, plus one for space to next. The print file was instructed to enter
any first field on line one of the label, the next on line two, etc., and if
any fields were skipped, to print the next field on the next line. In other
words, not to skip any lines in an address. At the end of the address, the
printer would skip the necessary lines, (one or more) to bring it to the top
of the next label. In this way, all labels were printed without skipped lines
within the addresses.
To answer the original question, my vote would, naturally, go for Pocket
Writer2, as the word processor of choice for mail merging. One of its nice
features when using mail merge, is the ability to cut-off empty spaces within
fields, so that something like: "New York , NY 10016", will actually
print out as: "New York, NY 10016". PW2 also allows for automatic entry of
today's date in all correspondence forms, quick entry of, and no need to type
out "address to" portion of letter", "boiler plate" letters, and paragraphs to
be joined, and just about everything that I have needed from a WP. [By the
way, Digital Solutions will shortly be coming out with Pocket Writer3, an
enhanced version of PW2. Among its new features will be batch file capability!
Especially welcome for loading and re-saving stuff from the REU. They are now
accepting orders, for delivery Spring '89].sekora-jay@CS.YALE.EDU (Jay Sekora) (04/11/89)
In article <5429@cbnews.ATT.COM> ewm@mvusa.ATT.COM (edward.w.mcfarland) writes: > > I am in the market for a word processing software package that has the >capability to automatically merge a file of names and addresses to the blank >area where the name and address would go on a form contained in another file. >MSDOS programs like PC-Write do this sort of thing and I would appreciate >finding a package for the C64 that could do the same. Anyone know of one? > I just printed out 60 job application letters and labels using The Write Stuff WP for the 64. I am very happy with it. It's got zillions of amazing features (tm), and can hold a document up to about 15 double-spaced pages. It's also got an 80-column graphic preview mode, whose legibility depends on the quality of your TV or monitor, but it's certainly good enough to figure out where pages break and so on. 2 mild disadvantages: it doesn't have a spelling checker, and it has it's own keyboard routine (it doesn't use the ROM keyscan routine), which is a little picky - e.g., if you press two keys at as-close-to-exactly-the-same- time as you can get, it doesn't always catch both of them. It does have a Dvorak keyboard option, and it'll read (and write) lots of different WP file formats (Paperclip, SpeedScript, true ASCII, etc.). It's also very customi- zable. To get it to do labels, I just told it the pages were 12 lines (two inches) long, set the top and bottom margins to 1 line (doesn't work with 0), and spaced my address and the ``fill markers'' (space for the mail-merge data) appropriately so I got my return address and the destination addresses on alternating labels (fan-fold labels). If you want The Write Stuff to make full use of all your special printer features (assuming you have something fancier/more complicated than a 1525 or a daisywheel) you'll have to be fairly comfortable wading through the printer manual to find the proper codes. Once you've got the program cus- tomized for your printer, though, it's quite easy to use. The Write Stuff was developed and is marketted by Busy Bee Software. I think they advertise in RUN magazine. If you want their address and current prices (I think the C64 version is about $25.00), mail me and I'll let you know. >Thanks You're welcome; good luck. > >Ed McFarland ewm@mvusa.ATT.COM ____________________________________________________________________________ DISCLAIMER: Everything I say is the| sekora-jay@yale.UUCP absolute and utter truth, but Yale | {backbone}!yale!sekora-jay doesn't necessarily know this. | sekjaya@yalevm.BITNET | 6455 Yale Station, New Haven, CT 06520
sekora-jay@CS.YALE.EDU (Jay Sekora) (04/11/89)
P.S. to my previous posting:
The Write Stuff does allow you to link files, so you're not limited to 15pp.
And I do know how to spell ``marketed''. :-)
____________________________________________________________________________
DISCLAIMER: Everything I say is the| sekora-jay@yale.UUCP
absolute and utter truth, but Yale | {backbone}!yale!sekora-jay
doesn't necessarily know this. | sekjaya@yalevm.BITNET
| 6455 Yale Station, New Haven, CT 06520jerry.yoner@canremote.uucp (JERRY YONER) (04/15/89)
I would recomend Paperclip III. You can do what you want, it has a dictionary, and you can do sorting, telecomunications and alot of other stuff. You can put it on the 1581 disk drive, all yoou have to do is configure the program to 1 dual drive and the 1581 must be device 8. Hope this helps. Jerry. --- MaS Relayer v1.00.00 Message gatewayed by MaS Network Software and Consulting/HST Internet: jerry.yoner@canremote.uucp UUCP: ...!tmsoft!masnet!canremote!jerry.yoner