Page of labels with the same values

[Alain Delmotte]

When creating labels, for example on a A4 paper with 2 columns of 8 rows you normally get 16 different labels.

It is sometimes needed to produce a full page of 16 identical labels, the next page with 16 identical labels of the second person, and so forth.

How do I tel FMPro to use the same value for the 16 labels?

Thanks

[Vaughan]

The easiest way is to copy the fields for one label and paste them where each label is, so it appears 16 times.

[spb]

IN FM's label layout format, one label is a record. I do something similar by scripting the duplication of a record sixteen times. Enter your info, click the dupe button, fifteen more appear, plus a blank record ready for inputting the info to appear on the second batch of sixteen.

You could also script the appearance of sixteen blank records, enter into whichever record you happened to be on, then script a replace to fill the blanks. If you go this route, make sure that your latest batch of blanks is a found set.

I do all this with several buttons placed directly on top of the label fields, and set to not print.

You could do it your way, Vaughan, using a standard layout, but the jiggering & measuring involved in lining up the fields with the labels gives me the sweats!

Steve Brown

[ESpringer]

OK, for overkill and variety here's a compromise quickie if on any one day you just want a set or two without layout hassles (assuming you already have a label format that lines up right), and if control over how many (like one and a half full sheets of labels) matters:

Create a placeholder calc field (alas, can't be global) to hold the record # or other unique ID of the record you want to print, on any given occasion.

Now, set up a self-join relation between each record and the target record that matches its placeholder field, and duplicate your existing label layout, substituting the relationally-defined fields.

Then (assuming your database is big enough) get ANY set of records selected that has the same cardinality as the set of labels you want to print (so you can choose 16 one time, 20 another, etc.) Set the placeholder field in one record to the record ID you want to print, use the Replace command so that all showing records have this value in the placeholder field.

"OK, you thirty records, now I want each of you to print a label for Smith... Now 15 of you for Wong..."

The advantage would be that once you set this up, (1) If you have multiple or changing label formats, you don't have any hassle adjusting (2) you don't have to worry about creating extra records that must then be deleted (especially thorny if you have auto-generated serial numbers or some such).

To script: set global fields to hold "how many" labels to print, and which record IDs, then use a script to loop: omit desired number, show omitted, fill placehold fields with first target value, print, show all, go on to the next...

A merely academic exercise in hypothetical ways to kin a scat? Perhaps...

[spb]

That's interesting. It occurred to me after I posted above that you may want to print your labels out of your primary database, where you may not want to casually create 16 blank records. In this case, your solution looks pretty good.

But I do all my label printing in a separate database that always opens with zero records. It has multitudes of layouts for many kinds of specialty labels. I have scripts & buttons to import into this the info I need from the primary databases. That way I can mess around with the data all I want. Once labels have been printed, I delete all records. This database is the only example in my experience where it is not unwise to place a "delete all records, perform without dialog" button in a prominent place!

Steve Brown

[Alain Delmotte]

Thanks to all for your replies, it will many people here.

Alain

Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium

[Vaughan]

"Once labels have been printed, I delete all records."

Steve, have you come cross any problems when used in a multi-user evironment yet?

[BobWeaver]

One way around this problem in a multi-user environment is to tag all these related records with a user name or session ID, and then do a find on the user name/session ID, then print and delete the found set only.