Automatically Formatting an ASCII File

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

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. Learn more about Allen...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Quicker Multiple Replace Operations

Need to replace a lot of the same characters very, very quickly? Here's a great way to do the replacement.

Discover More

Word Count in Multiple Selections

Getting a word count for an entire document is easy. What you may not know is that some versions of Word can also provide ...

Discover More

Using a Single Password for Multiple Workbooks

While password protecting a workbook does provide some security for the contents in the workbook, if you have several ...

Discover More

Learning Made Easy! Quickly teach yourself how to format, publish, and share your content using Word 2021 or Microsoft 365. With Step by Step, you set the pace, building and practicing the skills you need, just when you need them! Check out Microsoft Word Step by Step today!

More WordTips (menu)

Compound List Formatting

Word can help you do quite a bit of complex formatting to your lists, both bulleted and numbered. Using the steps ...

Discover More

Adding Automatic Lines

Want an easy way to add lines in your document? You can do it by making sure Word is using one of its AutoFormat features.

Discover More

Using Dot Leaders in a Paragraph

Adding dot leaders to your text is easy through the application of tab stops. This tip explains the steps you need to ...

Discover More

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.

Notify me about new comments ONLY FOR THIS TIP

Notify me about new comments ANYWHERE ON THIS SITE

Hide my email address

What is two minus 1?

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.