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MIcrosoft word 10 mail merge problem.

Anonymous
2023-06-06T09:05:31+00:00

I am trying to use Word 10 to merge address details from an Excel 10 spreadsheet into a letter that I have written in Word.

I have used this mail merge procedure many times over the years on my previous desktop computer which ran on windows 7. Since I upgraded the system to a new desktop using windows 10, I have not been able to re-produce the merge. I get to the stage in the mail merge procedure where I am asked to browse - I can find the Excel spreadsheet that has the required details, but when I press "open" it defaults to a blank page. So the mail merge system is not recognising the Excel spreadsheet or any other spreadsheet.

I have tried the internet to see whether there may be any solutions there, but none of the suggestions work.

Has anyone in the Community had this problem and perhaps knows of a solution?

Microsoft 365 and Office | Word | For home | Windows

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  1. Doug Robbins - MVP - Office Apps and Services 322.9K Reputation points MVP Volunteer Moderator
    2023-10-31T00:36:52+00:00

    Click Cancel when that message comes up and on any other messages, then go to the Start Mail Merge dropdown in the Start Mail Merge section of the Mailings tab of the ribbon and select Normal Word Document. Then from the same drop down, select Letters and then use the Select Recipients facility to browse to and select the data source.

    If you are still having a problem, contact me at the address in my signature.

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  2. Doug Robbins - MVP - Office Apps and Services 322.9K Reputation points MVP Volunteer Moderator
    2023-06-06T09:32:02+00:00

    If in Word, under File>Options>Advanced>General, you have a check mark in the box for "Confirm file format conversion on open", try removing that check mark. If you need that option set for some other reason, make sure that you use the OLE DB Database Files method of connecting to the data source. You may need to check the Show All box in the dialog that appears.

    If you are still having a problem, if you send me a copy of the mail merge main document and the data source, referencing this thread in the covering email message, I will investigate the issue.

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  3. Anonymous
    2023-10-30T21:04:48+00:00

    I have a user who is having a similar problem. She is trying to Retire her Desktop 'Tower' PC and our Desktop Support Team has set her up with a laptop using Windows 10. Her Desktop and Apps were Saved and Restored to the laptop. This was back in May. She can't retire her Desktop 'Tower' PC because Mail Merge is Not Working on her laptop and she's had Several people assisting her for the last 5 months and nobody can figure out what the problem is.

    When she opens up the 'Letter' (word.doc) on her Tower... the Letter opens up with the Merged Data inserted perfectly.

    When she opens up the same 'Letter' on her Laptop... she gets the following error message:

    D1E31974.doc is a mail merge main document. Word cannot find its header source, P:\TSA\TSA.dat

    ALL of us who have attempted to assist her have Confirmed that the header file Is exactly where it says. When we click on 'New Source'... and browser to the location of the header file... as soon as we Select it... it Immediately Fails... as if we Cancelled everything and it's wanting us to start over.

    Does Anybody have Any Clues what could be causing this or what needs to be done to resolve this issue. She is having to Keep her Old 'Tower' for the sole purpose of creating the Daily Letters.

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  4. Anonymous
    2023-06-07T03:38:32+00:00

    Hello,

    Thank you for the prompt reply. I had already tried that suggestion as it was available on line. It does not solve the problem.

    I am not sure what you want me to send you. As I stated, I have prepared a letter in word 10 and I am trying to insert names and addresses into it from an excel 10 spreadsheet that I have set up with names and addresses. I have used this spreadsheet ( as an excel 2001 spreadsheet) for probably 10 years or so through word 2001 mail merge.

    When I upgraded my desktop, I updated word and excel to the 2010 versions. Now when I use mail merge for letters, I can find the above mentioned letter, I click on "browse" to search for the addresses etc, I can find the excel spreadsheet that contains the addresses, but when I click on "open", it all disappears back to a blank word 10 screen.

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