Hi Steve.
You want to build a very sophisticated document. Fortunately for you, Word is very capable of doing this. I am finding myself quite interested in helping you get this thing properly designed and functioning. It will take some serious work.
And yes, properly designed and set up, it would be a piece of cake to have code run through a whole folder of documents, checking each one for....whatever...flea allergic dermatitis. If found, pulls info out of THAT document, dumps that into a new document (or whatever), then goes on to the next file.
You could easily construct another document that could be parts of matching information, or the whole document with matching information.
I must point out that in many ways building a database is better, or even an Excel file. However, if your needs are simple, yes, it can be done with Word. The most important point is really, really, solid design; rock hard error trapping, and fast input.
Ok, so let me get this straight. You have default text that you want to have there? So if there is abnormalities you would either ADD to the default text, or CHANGE it. Then have your default text already there. You should not be writing it. Why? If it is default, have it in already.
As i stated, I am quite interested in helping you. I would need a precise list of default text, where they apply. On your userform you could always have a Default button that could inswert the default text. Or you can have the default text already there, and have a Remove Default button. Clicking it would reveal an input textbox for putting in non-default text.
These are DESIGN issues. These are user requirements that need to be discussed and their validity determined.
There are all sorts of things you could do. You could put command buttons for each of your major items. It may in fact be better to have multiple userforms, rather than one. It depends on how many items you are going to be processing. It depends on how much you are going to be returning to adocument to update. It depends on whether when you do a second (or third, or fourth....) exam if you want to append that information onto the initial document, or make a new one. If a new one, do you want the ability to pull in information from the previous ones. If so, do you want to only get relevant items, or all items.
And on and on. Do you see what I mean? These are design issues. Frankly, while not trivial, generally speaking, the coding part of a good input document is secondary to the design. I have seen many a input document with fancy do-dah coding...but the design was so bad...who cares if it was slick coding. It did not work for the people who used it. It did not do what it was "designed" to do. Or rather it did, but the design was bad.
if you want, PM me and we can discuss off-thread.
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