docproperty (Word 2002)

[ChrisPr]

Any helpful hints on how to read one or more docproperties from a document(s) into a second document.
I want to make a table listing the 'title' and 'last modified' properties of a number of files.

I'm not clever with macros, but there has to be a 'field' that can be bullied into doing it - possibly!

TIA

ChrisP

[HansV]

I doubt that this can be done without VBA (macros). In a field, you can only refer to document properties within the current document, not to a property of another document.

[Hetty]

Hi Chris

Are you just trying to see rather than do anything unusual with a list of all these files with the last modified date? If you just need to print out a list showing file names and mod dates, in a specific folder or drive then try Karen's Directory Printer. http://www.karenware.com was a recommendation from the Lounge a long time ago when I needed to have a breakdown of folders and contents. Karen's Directory printer has loads of options, easy to use and FREE. It prints out as an easy to read list or you can save it as a txt file and manipulate the info from there. Haven't tried it on 2002 but it is worth checking out.

[jscher2000]

To go the macro route, you will either need to open all of those files or, to read the properties without opening them, use this: Dsofile.exe Lets You Edit Office Document Properties from Visual Basic and ASP (Microsoft Knowledge Base Article - 224351).

[AlanMiller]

Hi Chris

This is a somewhat offbeat take on the problem, but it might just be of some value. I used a shell extension called FileTip from PC Mag some time back.

<hr>FileTip is an extension to Windows Explorer that displays information tooltips when you place the mouse cursor over a filename in an active window. Microsoft Office provides a similar feature for Word, Excel and PowerPoint files. To distinguish tooltips created by FileTip from other tooltips, FileTip prefixes the tooltip text with the heading "FileTip:". A configuration utility lets you add extensions to different file types. Also, the utility's open architecture enables developers to add new FileTip Extension DLLs without changing FileTip itself. <hr>

The point being that the C++ source code is supplied and it may just be possible to find how the docprop information is gleaned, and use that method for your own purposes. Just <img src=/S/2cents.gif border=0 alt=2cents width=15 height=15> worth of alternative possibility.

Alan

[macropod]

Hi Chris,

As Hans said, you can't use a field to get a DOCPROPERTY from another document. You can, however retrieve bookmarked text from another document. So, if you create a DOCPROPERTY field in the source document and place that inside a SET field (with a bookmark), you can then use an INCLUDETEXT field in another document to retrieve the DOCPROPERTY from the source document.

In your source document create a nested field like:
{SET BkMrk {DOCPROPERTY "Author"}}
using whatever DOCPROPERTY attribute you're after. Then save the source document.

In your target document create a field like:
{INCLUDETEXT "[Drive:][Path]SourceFileName.doc" BkMrk}
and the required DOCPROPERTY from the source document will appear.

Cheers

[ChrisPr]

Thank you one and all for some useful suggestions - even if I am not up to most of them :-) I think it will be the Macropod route until something else turns up.

FWIW I am trying to make a file tracking list for an HTML Help project. I expect RoboHelp and the like all have this sort of stuff built in, but I am not a rich man :-)

Once again, thanks.

ChrisP