Automatically Formatting an ASCII File

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated July 11, 2020)
This tip applies to Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003


1

One of the biggest problems in formatting what was previously an ASCII file is modifying it so there are only hard returns at the end of paragraphs. Most ASCII files have a hard return at the end of every line of the file, and two hard returns at the end of every paragraph. If you have an ASCII file that is formatted like this, such as something you downloaded off the Internet, the following macro will be invaluable. It formats an entire file so there are only hard returns at the end of paragraphs.

Sub ConvertASCII()
    Fmt "^p^p", "{|}"
    Fmt "^p", " {@}"
    Fmt " {@}", " "
    Fmt "{@}", " "
    Fmt "{|}", "^p"
End Sub
Sub Fmt(sFromWord, sToWord)
    Set myRange = ActiveDocument.Content
    myRange.Find.ClearFormatting
    myRange.Find.Execute FindText:=sFromWord, _
      ReplaceWith:=sToWord, MatchCase:=0, _
      Replace:=wdReplaceAll
End Sub

You should run the ConvertASCII macro. It calls the Fmt macro several times to replace various combinations of return characters to get toward the desired result.

Note:

If you would like to know how to use the macros described on this page (or on any other page on the WordTips sites), I've prepared a special page that includes helpful information. Click here to open that special page in a new browser tab.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (187) applies to Microsoft Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. ...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Removing Entire Paragraphs from Your Document

If you need to get rid of a lot of paragraphs in a document, it's easy to do as long as the document relies on styles for ...

Discover More

Highlight Words from a Word List

Do you need to highlight certain words in a document, and aren't quite sure how to go about it? Using the techniques ...

Discover More

Starting Microsoft Graph

Microsoft Graph is a simplistic graphic tool that you can use to quickly add graphs to your document. Here's how to start ...

Discover More

Comprehensive VBA Guide Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) is the language used for writing macros in all Office programs. This complete guide shows both professionals and novices how to master VBA in order to customize the entire Office suite for their needs. Check out Mastering VBA for Office 2010 today!

More WordTips (menu)

Adding Borders to Paragraphs

Want to draw attention to a particular paragraph? A great way to do it is with a border. Word allows you to easily add ...

Discover More

Aligning Borders with the Page Margins

Add a border to a paragraph and you may find that it extends to the left and right of the regular text margins. To pull ...

Discover More

Adjusting Space Before

If you need to adjust the space that appears before a paragraph, there are several ways you can approach the adjustment. ...

Discover More
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

View most recent newsletter.

Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

What is five minus 0?

2023-12-04 15:06:32

Bill Jeffrey

Re formatting an ASCII file - paragraph marks. Assuming you are doing this as a one-off, and not habitually, Word's FIND and REPLACE can do the same thing without the bother of creating a macro. Just FIND ^p^p and REPLACE it with a tilde, for example. Then FIND ^p and REPLACE it with a space. Then FIND the tilde and REPLACE it with ^p (or with ^p^p if you want a blank line between paragraphs). Add ^t in the REPLACE field if you want a tab at the beginning of the paragraph.


This Site

Got a version of Word that uses the menu interface (Word 97, Word 2000, Word 2002, or Word 2003)? This site is for you! If you use a later version of Word, visit our WordTips site focusing on the ribbon interface.

Videos
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

View the most recent newsletter.