Import a Word text file into Access - Help and How-to

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Import a Word text file into Access

Applies to: Microsoft Office Word 2003

Follow these steps when your Microsoft Word document contains tables, and you want to import those tables into Microsoft Access. In Word, save a copy of the file as a comma- or tab-delimited (delimited text file: A file containing data where individual field values are separated by a character, such as a comma or a tab.) unformatted text file.
How?
1. If the data is already saved in comma-delimited or tab-delimited format, skip ahead to step 3.
2. If the data is in a table, convert the table to text.
  How?
  
  Select the rows or table (table: One or more rows of cells commonly used to display numbers and other items for quick reference and analysis. Items in a table are organized into rows and columns.) that you want to convert to paragraphs.
  
  On the Table menu, point to Convert, and then click Table to Text.
  
  Under Separate text with, click Commas or Tabs.
3. Make sure the delimited text file has the same type of data in each field and the same fields in every row.
4. On the File menu, click Save As.
5. In the File name box, enter a new file name.
6. In the Save as type list, click Plain Text, and then click Save.
  Note If you are prompted that formatting will be lost, click OK.
Switch to Microsoft Access, and then open a new or existing database.
In the Database window, click Tables on the Objects bar.
On the File menu, point to Get External Data, and then click Import.
In the Files of type box, click Text Files.
Click the text file that you want to import, and then click Import.
Follow the directions in the Import Text Wizard dialog boxes.
To see more options or to change specifications, such as the field separator character (separator characters: Characters you choose to indicate where you want text to separate when you convert a table to text, or where you want new rows or columns to begin when you convert text to a table.), click Advanced in the first wizard dialog box. Doing so starts the Import Specification dialog box. To save your new specification for later use, click Save As.