Microsoft Word 2007 brings some changes to how Mail Merge works. On top of this, Windows XP Service Pack 2 and Service Pack 3 change some settings that effect mail merges that depend on Dynamic Data Exchange (DDE). By default, Word 2007 also turns off the ability to connect to documents that are on a server.  This document will walk you through the steps you need to make your old mail merge procedures work in Office 2007.

Choosing a Communication Protocol

Mail merges usually consist of two documents, an Excel spreadsheet or Access database, and a Word document. When you initiate a merge, Word needs a way to communicate with Excel or Access, so that it can request and receive the data from the file containing your merge data. There are two main protocols that can be used for this communication: DDE and Object Linking and Embedding (OLE).

DDE is an older technology that trasfers the data in a text format; most mail merges that we see on campus are set up to use DDE to transfer. OLE is a newer technology that uses a binary format to communicate. There are trade-offs with each technology, and unfortunately you need to understand them before you do your mail merge.

DDE

• DDE will bring your data over as it's formatted in Excel or Access. If you have data formatted as zip codes or currency, they'll flow seamlessly into your document.
• DDE only works with the first Excel worksheet in your workbook. If you have more than one worksheet you must use OLE.
• DDE is slower than OLE, though in small merges you won't notice much difference.

OLE

• OLE does not preserve data formatting. If you are importing zip codes or currency you will need to do some work within Word to format the data correctly.
• OLE lets you choose which worksheet in a workbook you want to use.
• OLE is faster than DDE.

Enabling Communication with a Document on a Sever

If your merge data is not on your local hard drive (for instance, if it's on newmisserver), you must tell Word that you "trust" the location where it resides. This is true for both DDE and OLE connections. You do this through the Trust Center:

• In Word 2007, select Office Button-->Word Options and click on "Trust Center" in the left panel.
• Click the "Trust Cetner Settings" button on the right panel.
• In the panel on the left, select "Trusted Locations"
• Check the box "Allow trusted locations on my network (not recommended)"
• Select "Add new location..." and browse to the folder containing your data. You may want to also enable trusting of subfolders.
• OK your way out of the Trust Center and Word Options.
• These settings are "sticky": they will stay set until you change them.

Next Steps

The links to the left detail what you need to know to make an OLE or DDE mail merge successful in Word 2007.