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Toolbox for WordPerfect
  

Macros, tips, and templates for Corel® WordPerfect® for Windows®
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 Page updated Nov 14, 2018

Addr2UC - "Convert Address to Upper Case"

Download ADDR2UC.ZIP (v1.01.02; 10/31/07; 22,762 bytes)

Compatible with WordPerfect 8 (c.1997) and later versions

Downloading, Documentation, Modifications, and Support

[Thanks to Marianne Greene for the idea behind this macro.]

The download file (see the left column) contains two macros

•  Convert address to upper case.wcm is a macro that inserts a letter's mailing address (stripped of certain punctuation marks) in WordPerfect's Format, Envelope dialog in UPPER CASE letters, to conform with suggested postal service guidelines.

•  Select address.wcm is primarily for macro writers. It simply selects the inside address in a letter if it is not already selected, and pops up a message dialog showing the address. It is based on the rule WordPerfect uses to find the mailing address on a page, but can copy up to eight address lines, not just the six lines specified by WordPerfect's rule.
Note: The Select address.wcm macro, as found in the download ZIP file, simply displays a dialog message. It should be modified to perform a more useful function according to your specific needs. It was included for macro writers who want to use a macro to perform some task using the address in a letter, such as copying the address to another page or document. Be sure to read the comments inside the macro.


For (non-merged) single envelopes -
[See the next section below for methods to produce merged labels or merged envelopes with upper case mailing addresses.]
Either
•  play the Convert address to upper case.wcm macro inside a letter document that contains the recipient's address on page 1
or
•  select the inside (recipient's) address block in the letter and then play the macro.
The second method is useful if the address is inside a table or box, or there are multiple delivery addresses on the page, or the address is less than three lines long.

If you use the first method, the macro will automatically search for an address in the letter, which typically consists of a block of three to eight lines of text on page 1 (each line ending in a hard return) and the last line of the block ending with two hard returns.

Sometimes this automatic address method won't work -- through no fault of the macro -- for the following reasons.

First, you shouldn't type a letter with three or more consecutive information (text) lines at the top of page 1, above the recipient's mailing address. If you do, WordPerfect may get confused (it uses a certain rule to find the mailing address). In such a case, use your mouse to select the recipient's address before playing the macro. A better solution is to put multiple-line letterhead information in a header, text box, or watermark. See the author's LETTERHD for a sample letterhead that uses a text box at the top.
 
Second, multiple RE: or SUBJ: lines below the recipient's address could be erroneously selected by the macro instead of the address. WordPerfect's own built-in envelope feature often has trouble with multiple RE: lines, too. One solution is to get in the habit of using Format, Paragraph, Indent instead of ending each reference or subject line with a HRt so that these lines will wrap to a single, terminal HRt. Another solution is to first select the recipient's address with your mouse, then play the macro.

Note

If you play this macro on an old letter you opened up just to produce a printed envelope, please be aware that the macro makes a minor and temporary change to whatever document is open at the time the macro plays:

It temporarily converts the recipient's address to upper case so that the Envelope dialog can "grab" it in the new upper case format.

When the Envelope dialog is dismissed, the address is restored to its original format. However, if you then attempt to close the document without saving these temporary changes -- the likely case -- you will get WordPerfect's standard warning ("Save changes...?") that displays whenever a document has been modified. Simply answer "No" to close without saving and preserve the file's original creation date.

Tips
☼  PUNCTUATION MARKS: See the redlined User Modifcation Area in the macro's code to change or add punctuation marks that should be omitted from the mailing address. The macro's default is to remove just commas and periods ("full stops"), which follows the recommendations of the United States Postal Service. If you want to add or change these defaults, open the macro for editing (just like any other document) and follow the instructions in the redlined area. For users in the United States, see here for USPS "Addressing Tips and Tools."

☼  IF ADDRESSES ARE IN TABLES: If you use addresses inside tables in the letter you should select the address before playing the macro. The macro skips over tables during automatic searches for an address.

☼  QUICK ACCESS TO THE MACRO: You may want to assign this macro to a toolbar button for easy access. See here.

☼  SET YOUR DEFAULT ENVELOPE FONTS: You may want to use a sans serif font -- one that doesn't have those little "tails" on some letters -- on envelopes that use both upper case and no punctuation. Otherwise they may be hard for people to read.

To set address defaults for all envelopes:
Click on Format, Envelope. In the Mailing address area, click the Font button and select Arial, Verdana, Futura or similar sans serif font. For the mailing address, 11- or 12-point size works well.
For the return address, 8-point size works well. Also, you can use a QuickWord (but only in later versions of WP9, and in WP10+) in the return address area. The QuickWord will expand when the envelope is printed or appended. This is a good way to have graphics (such as your logo) or font changes in the return address area. For more on this, click here.


For merged labels or envelopes -
When you want to convert addresses on multiple items such as merged address labels or merged envelopes, try one of these methods.
 
Method 1. First process your data file into upper case and remove punctuation. Then merge the resulting data into your merge form.

•  Open your merge data or table file. (Make a backup of this file first.)
•  Click Edit, Select All, then click Edit, Convert Case, Upper Case. All text in the file should now be in upper case letters.

•  Remove commas and periods ("full stops") in this file with Edit, Find and Replace. In the Find: field, type a comma or a period. In the Replace field, use <nothing>. Then press the Replace All button. Repeat for other punctuation to remove.

 •  Save your data or table file (perhaps with a different name) and then merge the data with your form (labels, envelopes, etc.). Note that you may need to reduce the font size on your form for the mailing address before merging to labels, since all upper case text can take up more horizontal space on a label than normal upper/lower case text.

Method 2. A simpler process compared to the above method is to use an embedded macro in your form file to automatically convert addresses into upper case, remove punctuation, and (optionally) add a POSTNET barcode [note: There is controversy about whether bar codes work to speed single items of mail. See here for more on this].

Download a two-page file that explains the method and includes a sample merge form file for standard address labels. (The sample form can be easily modified for a variety of labels or envelopes.)

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