OL98: How to Import a Word Mail Merge Data Source File (180087)


The information in this article applies to:

  • Microsoft Outlook 98
  • Microsoft Word 97 for Windows
This article was previously published under Q180087

SUMMARY

You can build Contacts for Microsoft Outlook 98 from a file of names and addresses used in Microsoft Word 97 as a mail merge data source file. This article describes how to accomplish this task.

MORE INFORMATION

If the Word data source file is in the form of a comma-delimited text file, it is ready for direct importing into Outlook. See the "To Import a Comma Delimited File" section in this article.

If the data source file is in the form of a Word table, you must first convert it to a comma-delimited text file and then import it. You must ensure that the field labels for the Word table exactly match the Outlook internal field names. You must manually map these fields; see the Reference section below for a Microsoft Knowledge Base article that describes this procedure.

NOTE: There must be no embedded commas in the data.

To Convert a Word Table to Comma-Delimited Text

  1. In Word, on the File menu, click Open.
  2. Select the mail merge data source file, and then click Open.
  3. On the Table menu, click Select Table.
  4. On the Table menu, click Convert Table to Text.
  5. Click Commas, and then click OK.
  6. On the File menu, click Save As.
  7. In the Save As Type list, select Text Only with Line Breaks, type a name for the file, and then change the file extension from .txt to .csv, for example, "text.csv" including the quotation marks.
  8. Click Save, and then close Word.

To Import A Comma-Delimited File

  1. In Outlook, on the File menu, click Import And Export.
  2. Select Import from another program or file and then click Next.
  3. Select Comma Separated Values (Windows) and then click Next.
  4. Type name of, or browse to the comma-delimited file, and then click Next.
  5. Select the Contacts folder to receive the imported records, and then click Next.
  6. Select, Import <file name> into the <folder name> folder, and then click Finish.

REFERENCES

For more information on Field Mapping in Outlook 98, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

182728 OL98: Field Mapping for Importing Not Available

Modification Type:MajorLast Reviewed:7/30/2001
Keywords:kbhowto kbinfo kbusage KB180087
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