Create Dependent Drop-Down List in Word - Fillable Forms Microsoft Word

[@musicmusicalmusic]

This was by far the best instructional video on this topic. I watched so many other videos trying to understand how to use the dropdown menu

[@SharonSmith]

That is awesome to hear! So glad you found my video helpful. I try to be helpful and to the point. Thanks for watching!

[@timmandelcorn3321]

Ms. Smith, you are crushing it!! TY TY TY. Concise and informational. You are now my MS Word Excel goto.

[@SharonSmith]

I’ll so glad you like my videos! Thanks for the kind words! I appreciate it!

[@debbieburnette1582]

This was amazing! I've been spending a day on LinkedIn Learning trying to figure out how to do this exact thing and you taught me in minutes. Thank you!

[@SharonSmith]

That is great to hear! I'm so glad you found my videos helpful. Thanks for watching and for subscribing to my Channel!

[@geshauminskiy7781]

Thank you! Video is straight to the point with fantastic visuals, great editing. Wish all tutorials were this productive.

[@SharonSmith]

Thank you so much for the nice feedback, Gesha! I'm glad you find my videos helpful. Thanks for watching!

[@nancyv.7254]

Your videos are great! Very detailed and well explained. Thank you. I do have a question, what if there's only a portion of the document that is a drop down form, the remaining sections are free text field and can be modified? By Restricting Editing, no other changes to the entire document is possible. Is there a way to only restrict editing on the drop down?

[@ThatSavvySpecialEducator]

I'm wondering this as well!!! I usually use Google docs which makes it super easy to insert dropdown menus within a table. Microsoft Word seems behind the times in this area. I am using a MacBook Pro, and the developer ribbon options look different.

[@SharonSmith]

This video was inspired by one of my viewer's questions after watching my other videos on creating fillable forms. Thanks for the great questions and be sure to leave comments or share tips below. You can access my other fillable form videos Part 1 (kzbin.info/www/bejne/j5zXi2Z4Ytmsp9U) and Part 2 (kzbin.info/www/bejne/pJCxmpKcn5Jka5o) from my channel. A huge Thanks to all my subscribers! Thank you for watching!

[@anakjantans4]

Amazing

[@danielr4398]

This is great. Thank you. I have another problem in the same vein as this and I can't figure out how to do it. Do you know how to get text from a text-form-field to appear as a selection in a drop-down field box? For example, I have a form where the user has to fill in the names of their employees in text box fields. I then ask the manager to select the "best" or "hardest working" individual in their store. The goal is to have the names (as they were typed in the field) to appear in a drop-down box. I know it has to be a macro, but I don't know how. This has been driving me crazy for years. This has so may uses for so many different fields. Please help.

[@ecllalle]

Thank you for the tutorial and the VBA. However, i made this for a form in work today and I have to select the required option in the first drop down at least TWICE for it to load properly in the second drop down. I have quite a few options in each drop down. is it due to this? Is this quite limited on how many options to have? Or is there anything else i can look for?

[@nicoleh546]

Thank you so much for the informative video!! I had to play around because there were differences on Mac Word. For anyone else looking for Mac instructions: Adding Developer tab: Word (left of File) Preferences Authoring and Proofing Tools Ribbon & Toolbar Main Tabs Developer In Developer: Combo Box (in Ribbon) Options (in Ribbon) Visual Basic (in Ribbon) Insert Module Paste the code (edit) Protect Form (in Ribbon)

[@SharonSmith]

Thanks for sharing the info for Word for Mac! Thanks for watching!

[@rogersaunders5825]

@@SharonSmith Hi Sharon, thanks for the excellent video. I have a set of business names and associated addresses that I used your code to allow users to select the business name and the associated address would be displayed. I used a Windows machine to develop the solution and the result works perfectly on that laptop. On the MacBook Pro however, it does not. Only one address is shown (constantly). Is this a compatibility issue do you think?

[@ella7650]

Hi Sharon, Thanks for this video. Is it possible to have a bullet list in the child section? .Add " - A - B - C"

[@sheenageran8837]

Thank you Sharon. Can you enter in multiple items

[@SharonSmith]

Hi Sheena! Do you mean add multiple levels of dependent drop-downs? If so, here is another video that may be helpful: kzbin.info/www/bejne/a2XHhH2roMeYac0 Thanks for watching!

[@uncoverlight8605]

Great Tutorial... Thank you...Random Question... How do I increase character limit on Drop-Down Form Fields? Or get it to add more information if a field is selected?

[@SharonSmith]

In Word's legacy Drop-Down Form Fields, the character limit is set to 50 characters, and unfortunately, there’s no direct way to increase this limit. What are you looking to do? I have a video on how to make text or sections appear in a document based on a drop-down selection: kzbin.info/www/bejne/i3arloerq5qnfZI Not sure if this is what you are looking to do, but you may find it helpful! Thanks for watching!

[@candicebeverly6527]

This is amazing! Is there a way to have one parent and 10-15 children? The children only are dependent on the first parent question.

[@XLnCADMalayalam]

Thanks for this Information. Didn't know that Dependent Drop Down Menus are possible in Word.

[@SharonSmith]

Glad you found this video helpful! Thanks so much for watching and taking time to leave a comment. Take care!

[@trisnoinnax3572]

Good tutorial and thank you. Is it possible to change the grey color of the legacy drop-down form tool?

[@SharonSmith]

Hello - the Legacy tool form fields gray shading can be turned off, but there are no other options to change the color of the form field properties. You can actually select the form field and then use the "Highlight" feature on the Home tab - Font area but you have limited color options there. Here is a video on how to turn off the gray shading in case you want to do that: kzbin.info/www/bejne/Y5LViYtverB9Zsk Hope this helps! Thanks for watching!

[@paulburns6110]

This is awesome thanks. As a mere stale pale male, who's fond of excel, I found it far too clunky for ease of use. The word option is a lot more streamlined. It's a game changer.

[@SharonSmith]

Glad you found my videos helpful, Paul! Thanks so much for watching!

[@omniscient420]

This video was super helpful but I'm having an issue. Once the code is edited and saved, when I restrict the document and test it, it functions fine on my workstation. Once I send the document, the second drop down option doesn't populate correctly, if at all. Sometimes, the dependant drop down populates as if another parent selection was chosen when it was not. I've made sure that the formatting of the Visual basic code is consistent, and everything aligns as it should. Any suggestions?

[@gilbernstein5862]

Very helpful video! Any idea if I can use a similar approach to perform auto text fill thorough the word doc based on a drop list chosen value ?

[@SharonSmith]

Here are two videos you may find helpful. This video is how to set up fields that will auto-repeat throughout your document: kzbin.info/www/bejne/lXzCeYZ-hatrabM and here is a video on how to make text or images appear based on a drop-down selection: kzbin.info/www/bejne/i3arloerq5qnfZI Thanks for watching!

[@bobglover3119]

Hi Sharon, this was a great video tut ty! If i want to make this form a PDF or available on a Sharepoint site, Do I need to save the module anywhere special? Do i need to do anything different with the form?

[@SharonSmith]

Hi Bob, you can save the file on SharePoint but when you create a fillable form in Word, the users filling it in also have to be able to access it in Word. If you need a fillable PDF form, you can use Adobe Acrobat DC or another PDF editor to create that. Unfortunately you can't just save a Word form as a PDF file type as the form fields won't work. Hope this helps! Thanks for watching!

[@tarahwilliams7325]

Hi Sharon, it looks like i'm a little late to the party, but i have a very specific question. I'm creating a (hopefully) dependent form. 1. Do you have to use all legacy controls throughout the entire form in order to make any portion dependent? I have date pickers throughout the form, but i noticed the date picker is not part of the legacy control family. 2. I need to be able to make dependents on a drop down. The end user will select the number of sessions they will need from the drop down (1-5). If they select 1 session, the form will populate the information they need to fill out for one session (a table). If they select that they need 5 sessions in the drop-down, it will need to open up all 5 tables to fill out information for each session, if that makes sense. The way i have it now, all 5 tables are open and it makes the document 8 pages. I don't want it to be 8 pages if it doesn't need to be. I have a mix of controls throughout the document.

[@daveflores7250]

Sharon, this was of great help and is much appreciated. But I have a issue where my child fields are coming up bold, how do I prevent this from happening?

[@c0urtzz1]

Thankyou so much, this is so helpful!!! Is there a way to include colouring as well in this code? In my word doc I have a table format, and I am trying to find a way to colourfill the boxes in depending on the first selection (so for this example if Active was selected how could I autofill the box green, and if Inactive was selected how could I tell it to autofill the box red)?

[@spartyonhaji]

thanks for the video...it's exactly what I was looking for and you even made the Visual Basic part painless!

[@SharonSmith]

Glad you found it helpful, Benjamin! Thanks for watching!

[@IrishMcCheez]

Your videos are very clear & understandable and I love the content! I have a question - maybe you could help? How do I add a dependent text box based on a drop-down list? For example, if they choose 'Other - Please explain.' I want the input text box to normally hide unless the 'Other' option is selected. I've spent 3 days trying to find the answer through Google & KZbin and don't understand why I haven't found an answer. Maybe I'm phrasing the question wrong. By the way, your thumbnails are the best! (The ones for your videos, not the ones on your actual thumbs.)

[@amandametz4888]

Does anyone have an answer for this?

[@kopaantwerpen3863]

Super helpful. Is there a way to do this without restricting other edits, though? I want to be able to do this in a document where I can also type things, but now it looks like either you have to restrict edits so the drop-down boxes work, or you can edit in other ways but then the drop-downs don't work. What about forms where you also want people to write things?

[@SharonSmith]

Hello - there is a way to restrict only parts of your document. Here is a video on how to do that: kzbin.info/www/bejne/jqTLZ4eha919eJo Hope this helps! Thanks for watching!

[@kopaantwerpen3863]

@@SharonSmith Thank you so much, Sharon!

[@surianisuhaimi3782]

HI, i am so happy i actually did it and thanks to you. It's been so helpful. Hers's the thing, i wanna ask, if the line statement is too long and it went off paper margin, how can i make the line in two rows.

[@brittanybecker5288]

Hi Sharon! Thank you so much for putting this video together. I keep receiving an error that states "Compile Error: End With Without With" , any suggestions on how to fix? Thank you for your time!

[@SharonSmith]

Hello! The error message "Compile Error: End With Without With" typically occurs when you have an End With statement without a corresponding With statement in your VBA code. If you are using the code I provided in the description of the video, it should have the With statement properly structured. However, the issue might be related to the way your code is formatted or some invisible characters or any changes you may have made to customize the code for your needs. To resolve this issue, you can try these steps: 1) Make sure there are no extra spaces or line breaks that might be interfering with the With block. Make sure to check the code is indented correctly. Also check spelling of any changes to the code. 2) Check that there are no invisible characters, especially at the beginning or end of your code. Sometimes, copying and pasting code can introduce unwanted characters. 3) Try deleting the With and End With lines and retyping them to ensure they are correctly matched. Here's some code with potential formatting issues corrected: Sub PopulateddStatus() Dim xDirection As FormField Dim xState As FormField On Error Resume Next Set xDirection = ActiveDocument.FormFields("ddStatus") Set xState = ActiveDocument.FormFields("ddSurvey") If ((xDirection Is Nothing) Or (xState Is Nothing)) Then Exit Sub With xState.DropDown.ListEntries .Clear Select Case xDirection.Result Case "Active" .Add "Completed" .Add "In Progress" .Add "Not Started" Case "Inactive" .Add "Do Not Engage Employee is Inactive" End Select End With End Sub If the error still persists, consider creating a new subroutine and copying the code into the new subroutine to ensure that there are no hidden issues in the original subroutine. I hope this helps you out! Thanks for watching my videos!

[@meyanyusuf312]

Thank you, how do I add code if the option is others and the user needs to type the option

[@olibriusc3133]

Hi, I am trying to create a drop down menu with previously filled value in text form as drop down options. How could I do that ? Thank you very much for your time. (for exemple I would have a fillable that would be "name of person 1" and a second would be "name of person 2" and in the drop down menu I would have the choice between both name that were entered.)

[@lovelace0586]

Great, that was my want, thank you.

[@SharonSmith]

Glad to help! thanks for watching!

[@GordonMackay-o1g]

Hi Sharon, great tutorial. Have you got something on toggling the visibility of a table based on a checkbox value or from a line of text from a dropdown list in Word? I've tried the VBA scripting posted elsewhere which doesn't seem to work

[@SharonSmith]

Hello! Yes, you can make text, images, tables, etc. appear based on a drop-down list selection. Here is a video on how to do that: kzbin.info/www/bejne/i3arloerq5qnfZI However the same technique does not work for checkboxes. I wish it did, but hoping Microsoft may enhance that functionality someday. For now, you would have to just use a drop-down list selection. Hope this helps with what you are trying to do! Take care!

[@GordonMackay-o1g]

Hi Sharon, thanks for that, just noticed your reply as I'm back at work and will follow your video link. Our Gov dept has come away from PDF's of late using LiveCycle Designer to develop fully interactive PDF's so Word and VBA is a new venture for me due to form collaboration and opening in a browser etc. One other Q as a follow on to toggling the visibility of a table, is there then a get around or a new instance type of script via a button or drop down to add or subtract more of the same table? Thanks in advance for your help @@SharonSmith

[@p-cide4857]

You are just too good Sharon. Thanks for the resource. You now have a new subscriber. I normally build this kind of form in Adobe Acrobat and Livecycle, now trying to explore MS Word.

[@SharonSmith]

Hi P-cide! Thanks so much for subscribing to my channel and watching my videos. I'm so glad you find them helpful. Yes, as long as your users can open your form in MS Word, it is a great option to create fillable forms. I appreciate you taking time to leave a comment! Take care!

[@othomiley4120]

Thank you Sharon, This helped me a lot. My script was much longer than this one but the basis was perfect.

[@SharonSmith]

Glad to help! Thanks for watching!!

[@rafa1126]

Sharon, thankyou for your awesome video! I'm trying to do one more dependent, how do I add a third conditional drop-down linked at the second answer?

[@SharonSmith]

Hi Rafael! Here is a video that may help you do that for multiple level dependent drop-downs: kzbin.info/www/bejne/a2XHhH2roMeYac0 Thanks for watching!

[@JuanFernandoPazCaicedo]

hi there, thanks for explaining. Its is possible To create a dependent list from a dependent list. I mean I need to create a credit line that has a code and each code has some products it

[@SlightlyVertigo]

Hi Sharon. Great video. I was curious if there is a way to "Restrict Editing" only in the drop down menus while still allowing other area of the document to be edited/filled in? I have a doc I want to provide Dependent Drop Down Menus to allow for quicker data entry, but still need some areas to allow for manual entry. For example: For SOP creation - Parent DD = Department & Child DD = Roles, but then allowing for manual entry of process in separate field.

[@SharonSmith]

Hi James! Here is a video that may help you on how to lock only part of your document: kzbin.info/www/bejne/jqTLZ4eha919eJo I hope this helps! Thanks for watching!

[@A_Box]

Hello Sharon. I have aquestion: Is it possible to insert paragraphs as items for the combobox? What I want to do is have a drop down menu that lets me choose from 2 or more paragraphs.

[@joseescott4954]

This is an amazing video. I have a question...how to I add in Visual basic the blank field and it not being dependent? Hope this makes sense.

[@BaGaBwithaB]

Awesome video. I do Building INspections and my problem is that I am unable to use the values from the same drop-down multiple times within the same cell of the table in MS Word. Can you kindly suggest any solution to this. If you have any video on this, kindly refer me to that please. I give you an example of my problem. I go to inspect a house and I find a defeat. So to define that defect in few different ways, I have values in my drop down. With normal drop down list, you can only use one value at a time from the same drop down menu. However, If I am able to use that same drop down menu to populate the same cell, with multiple value from the drop down menu, that will will make my life easy and less prone to other legal issues I may face.

[@rogermccollough5310]

Great video Sharon! Someone may have already asked this question and if so I apologize. I have a hierarchy that I want to follow through with multiple drop downs one after the other. So if I select from A it gives me a selection in B. and what I select in B gives ne a selection in C... etc. How do I incorporate that into this code or is it in a new module? Thanks

[@SharonSmith]

Hi Roger! Here is a video on multiple levels of dependent drop-down lists: kzbin.info/www/bejne/a2XHhH2roMeYac0 I hope this helps with what you are trying to accomplish. Thanks for watching!

[@lorenzofavale1697]

Hi Sharon, really helpful video. I have a question: if I add too many answers to a case, they will not be displayed and there’s no scroll botton. Do you know how can I solve this problem?

[@SharonSmith]

Hello! Unfortunately Word has some limitations in how many list options can be created. You may be running into this issue. Thanks for watching my videos!

[@852Henshin]

Dear Sharon, Q1) I am confused in the 3 types of control: Content control, Legacy control & ActiveX Control. Q2) Under which condition should I use which control ?

[@dereckdowler5491]

This video was a great help. Is there a way to import the dependent drop down values from an excel sheet as opposed to typing them into an Add method? Thank you in advance.

[@chrisnaidoo4596]

Thanks for these great videos! One question: 1 - Can I create a drop down list where the user can select multiple options using check box selection for the Parent field/s and dependent on which field/s are checked, then a corresponding section of required fields needs to be displayed and so on....? Example is Section A, Section B, etc.

[@derricklett3652]

Hi Sharon. Enjoying your video as a new subscriber. What version of Word are you using to create this form?

[@SharonSmith]

Hi Derrick! I'm glad you enjoyed this video. I use Office 365 so it is the latest version of Word (2019 I believe). I have some other videos in my Word playlist on How to Create Fillable Forms you may find helpful. Thanks so much for watching and leaving a comment.

[@marieferrante4962]

Hi Sharon! This video was SO helpful, I'm really loving your channel!! Quick question, if I'm making a table that has 12 rows and each row needs to contain a dependent drop-down list, how can I copy and paste to each row so that I don't have to go through the VBA 12 times. Thank you!!!

[@SamHolmes06]

Thanks for the video! Is there a way of having it so when you click an item from the dropdown list, it displays sections of text in the word document that would normally be hidden when not selected? Thanks

[@SharonSmith]

Hi Sam, here is a video that shows a way you can make text (or images) appear based on a user's drop-down selection. Hope you find it helpful for what you are looking to do. Thanks for watching! kzbin.info/www/bejne/i3arloerq5qnfZI

[@dfrazier4604]

Hello! Great video. I was wondering if you have a video that tells you how to create a fillable questionnaire that if you answer Yes it will add additional questions to be answered or provide a box to provide answers other than yes/no. Thank you!

[@SharonSmith]

Thank you, I'm glad you liked this video! I don't have another video yet with those more advanced features. I will let you know when I have new ones out. I also started a playlist on my channel for videos related to filling in forms. I'll look into this and see if I can make a video on this topic soon. Thanks so much for watching and taking time to leave a comment. Much appreciated!

[@dickbratcher1250]

Hi Sharon, this video was very helpful. I'm trying to create a dependent drop down list in a repeating section in Word 2016. This isn't working, which I assume is because there are then multiple instances of the parent and child drop down list. Is there a way to get the functionality I want, which is to be able to add rows to a table that allow selection of different parent and child list items in each row?

[@mahmudmirza3451]

If I have say about 5 set of 2 dropdown boxes in the same document and I need all 5 to be doing the same dependent selection then how can I avoid having 5 subroutines with the same functionality? I mean is there a way to check which set of dropdown boxes (out of of 5) is in-use so that only those 2 are updated? I know in VB6 you can call a subroutine with index so is there something similar?

[@renyirish]

This is incredibly helpful!!! Thanks a lot for your straight forward explanation!

[@SharonSmith]

Glad to help! Thanks for watching!!

[@belindaschouten3060]

An what if I want the depending drop down only to show one option and that option has to show directly fter chosing dropdown 1. For example you chose Active then €200,- and if you chose inactive then €300,- is that possible. I have tried a drop down but that I have to update the field and I have tried a form field but then the field does not sumup anymore, because at the end some amounts have to sum up, with a drop down that works but as a field with a code in it not. thanks a lot nice videos!

[@mandyreno9564]

This was SOOO helpful!!! Thank you so much for sharing this in an easy to understand and straightforward video. You saved me sooo much time trying to code.

[@SharonSmith]

Hi Mandy, thank you! I'm so glad you found it helpful. I have another video on multiple level dependent drop-downs in case you are interested: kzbin.info/www/bejne/a2XHhH2roMeYac0 Thanks for watching and taking time to leave a nice comment, I appreciate it!

[@denverdanny3381]

i guess im asking randomly but does anyone know a trick to get back into an instagram account?? I stupidly forgot my login password. I would love any help you can give me

[@landennixon9532]

@Denver Danny Instablaster ;)

[@denverdanny3381]

@Landen Nixon I really appreciate your reply. I found the site through google and I'm in the hacking process atm. Looks like it's gonna take a while so I will get back to you later with my results.

[@denverdanny3381]

@Landen Nixon it worked and I now got access to my account again. I'm so happy! Thanks so much you really help me out :D

[@roopeshtube]

Thanks for video. I have a requirement of disabling the dropdowns based on the value selected value in the parent dropdown. I have say three values in the first down and accordingly three another drop down lists with associated values in each drop down list. If I select the first value in the parent drown ( say the value is A), then only the drown named A should be selectable and remaining drop downs ( Say B&C) should not be selectable.

[@maverick19_]

If one selects an option from a dropdown list, can it automatocally create another template? Like an employee list, I selected Tom so Tom must be in a new template & so on.

[@mrkj1294]

Great video! But I have question regarding the "Restrict Editing". Can I not restrict the form? I would like the drop down capability but without the restriction, is that possible? My "secondary" drop down is dependent of the "primary" drop down. Is this possible in word without restrictions? I am also using the latest office.

[@SharonSmith]

Hello Rajat! If you use legacy tool form fields, you do have to restrict editing and protect the form for users to be able to fill in the form. Here is a video you may find helpful on only restricting the part of your document that contains form fields: kzbin.info/www/bejne/jqTLZ4eha919eJo Also, here is another video on creating multiple level dependent drop-downs: kzbin.info/www/bejne/a2XHhH2roMeYac0 Hope this helps! Thanks so much for watching my videos!

[@blacksteedeyes]

Hi, if I have a certain form it have an original information and I would like to ask other to add on certain parts without allowing him to do changes to the original document how we can do that?

[@heidizeiders6088]

Is there away to not restrict the form so I can make changes to other parts of the document??

[@SharonSmith]

Hello Heidi! Here is a video that shows how to lock only part of your document so edits can be made to other parts of the document: kzbin.info/www/bejne/jqTLZ4eha919eJo Hope this helps! Thanks for watching!

[@saberab3257]

Thanks. Very helpful. Is there a way to have this feature on part of a document that has dependable fillable forms but leave the rest of the document editable with free text? Thanks

[@SharonSmith]

Hello! Here is a video you may find helpful that shows how to lock/restrict only part of your Word document that has the form fields and the rest of the document can be open for editing. I hope this helps! kzbin.info/www/bejne/jqTLZ4eha919eJo Thanks for watching!

[@RobinsonsWorld2020]

Very informative video. First time watching dependant drop-down list and vb coding for word.!!

[@SharonSmith]

Thank you so much! I'm glad you liked it. You have a great channel and I like your new channel art. Thanks for watching!

[@RobinsonsWorld2020]

Sharon Smith Thank you for your comment. Sorry, you won’t understand my language, it is Malayalam. If you like, please subscribe my channel. I have few videos in English too !

[@MrHoyle88]

Can I make a dependent drop down using the content control drop down list? If not, how can I use the legacy drop down but NOT restrict the entire form. There are other areas on the form that the user will need to type in.

[@sudarshangupta5635]

can the background color of drop down be changed to white??

[@bilaljalal2012]

I have a word document with table droplist, and I need to know how to populate the content selected to another place in the table ?

[@maryanndetrizio4372]

Is there a way to create a multiple drop down list in word that is nondependent? I need a user to select all applicable options in my drop down list. Thank you. Your channel is super helpful.

[@iuhoosierssoccer3011]

I have a document that not only needs dependent drop down fields, but also for the user to edit other fields and even write in information. Is there a way to activate the dependent drop down fields without having to protect the document so that the only editing the viewer can conduct are in the fill-in fields? I need the viewer to be able to edit the entire document.

[@CinemaInsight]

Hello Sharon, I just need to know How to create a dropdown menu for the particulars column and auto-fill in the Unit Rate column. Thank You!

[@mibar739]

Hi this video is useful but i have a question though. How do i make the same exact thing but at the same time also allowing anyone to edit the document. Because there are other areas that i would need the user to fill in their details.

[@SharonSmith]

Hello, this video may be helpful to you. It shows how to only lock part of a Word form document: kzbin.info/www/bejne/jqTLZ4eha919eJo Thanks for watching!

[@oliviaduong9493]

Hi Sharon, I am attempting to link text/image to a dependent drop down. Is that possible? It doesn't seem to be working for me.

[@robmosley1482]

Sharon your videos are great, they have been a big help. I do have a question though. Is it possible to remove a section of your form based on the way a user selects an item from a drop-down list?

[@SharonSmith]

Hi Rob, thanks for watching my videos! Glad you find them helpful. I'm researching how to do this. Please be sure to subscribe and click the bell to receive notifications so you'll know when I post new videos. Thanks so much!

[@robmosley1973]

Allready did 😉 Thank you.

[@SharonSmith]

Hi Rob - my latest video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/i3arloerq5qnfZI will show how to make text appear based on a user's drop-down list selection. May not quite be what you are looking to do, but thought you might find this helpful! Thanks!

[@SharonSmith]

Great - thanks!!

[@robmosley1482]

@@SharonSmith Thank you, Sharon! Watching now.

[@stagweekenders2528]

I have a question. I want to create an application form with a dropdown menu that includes different countries. When UK is selected, it will show a different set of questions to fill in, another different set for Germany, US etc. is this achievable?

[@hhampton]

I have several Yes/No questions on the form I am working on where if the person answers "Yes" they need to give details. If they answer "No" they would go on to the next question without further comment. Is there a way to do this with dependent drop-down boxes? Or is there another, better way?

[@schapman5308]

Is there a way to make a horizontal "drop-down list"?

[@iriselbers4705]

Hi, I love the clear ways you explain everything. Question: if there is just one option, is there a way to have this automatically pop up instead of having to click and select the one option?

[@SharonSmith]

Hi Iris! Are you referring to having text appear based on filling in a form field? If so, I have a video on this topic: kzbin.info/www/bejne/jICzh5SOh8-Gmas I also have a video on how to link text to appear based on a drop-down selection. If there is only one, you can set the the option to default as the first choice: kzbin.info/www/bejne/i3arloerq5qnfZI. I hope this helps! Thanks for watching!

[@belindaschouten3060]

yes I want this too :-)

[@saberab3257]

Hi. Is there a way that different editable text can appear, in response to an option that is selected? Hope that makes sense! Thanks

[@GurinderSingh-cw7ot]

I'm making a form in Microsoft Word using tables. Can I make it so that if someone clicks yes, it shows certain cells, but if they click no, it hides the cells? Like a dynamic table? Thanks.

[@SharonSmith]

Hello - yes, you can do this using legacy drop-down lists linked to field code. Here is a video on my channel that shows the basis on how to do this: kzbin.info/www/bejne/i3arloerq5qnfZI In my KZbin Course on creating fillable forms in Word, it is a paid course and you get a course workbook and the form templates with the functionality built in (table(s) appearing based on a selection) in case you are interested in that (kzbin.info/aero/PLb80efKTbWuNzAyHVMYrPOS7itBm5gWVs). I hope this helps! Best of luck in building your document, and thanks for watching my videos!

[@maverick19_]

Thanks for the awesome content Sharon, appreciated. Please advise how can I create a multiple dropdown list. For e.g I want to have multiple employee names on the dropdown list without going in each time to seperately create/add them. Am I able to perhaps export the employee list into the dropdown list? Thanks,

[@zbxg]

Wow! This is awesome! Can you also change the color of the dropdown? TIA.

[@SharonSmith]

Hi Zeke! Thank you! Glad you found my video helpful. Yes, you can format the text color of a legacy tools form field by selecting the form field and then on the home tab under the font area, you can select a different font color. For the font color to show up, you have to turn off the legacy tool form field shading (this video shows you how to turn off the shading): kzbin.info/www/bejne/rJLKqINrf9ipbc0 When you are done formatting your form and you start enforcing protection to "filling in forms" you can test that this works for you. You'll see that users can select from the drop-down and whatever font color you set will appear. Hope this helps! Thanks so much for watching!

[@user-epslesvou]

Hi veru useful video, but if i want to wriye a document and i have 4 or 5 field i want to fill in the document and i have excel file in which there are the data. for example i have a number of TEAMS and i select one team from a drop down menu . When i select the team in excel i have some data for that team for example number of players or the id number of the team. All this information i want to fill in the document. Is that possible?

[@Riodejenny]

This is fantastic. Is there a way that you can make a selection window that will populate a separate table into the document? For example, if I want to Select a major of a student and then the selection prompts a specific table to be populated with information specific to that major for courses by semester?

[@SharonSmith]

Hello! Here is a video you may find helpful that shows how you can make text appear based on a user's drop-down selection using legacy tool form fields: kzbin.info/www/bejne/i3arloerq5qnfZI Sounds like this may assist with what you are trying to do. Hope this helps! Thanks for watching my videos.

[@kamoyfarrington3139]

This video was a huge blessing, thanks for posting! I have an issue and hoping you can help me. I'm creating an interview guide, where a manager can select a competency and then select one of the loaded questions specific to that competency (dependent drop-down). Some of my interview questions are long and when selected, they continue on the same line and I cannot see the end of the sentence. How do I force the sentence to go to the next line?

[@SharonSmith]

Hi Kamoy! Thank you so much for your nice comments and I'm so glad you found my videos helpful. I did some research to try and solve your issue, however I have not found that it is possible in Word to have text wrap from within the drop-down selection. From what I have read, there are not many easy solutions out there that offer the ability to have paragraph-like drop-down answers (longer than one line) in Word, but it also seems to be an issue in other solutions as well. One thing you might consider if you know Excel very well, you may be able to create your form in Excel. You can design the format of the spreadsheet by merging cells and using borders and you can hide tabs that might contain your data. I'm working on tutorials on Excel forms in the near future and perhaps this can help you. I wish you luck with your form! Thanks again for watching and taking time to leave a comment!!

[@imkurteh]

Can this be done with the ActiveX/Content-Control style dropdowns?

[@myzgirl2012]

is there a way for a user to select a 'short name' in the drop down list but have it populate the field (or another field perhaps) with full details without having to select presented options from a second drop down list? Trying to use a drop down list to select "Typical Office" and have the field return a full description of "Typical Office" working environment. Can this be done using dependent drop down lists as shown in the video or is there another way to populate a field with full details other than a 2nd drop down? Thank you very much -

[@SharonSmith]

Hello! I believe there is a way to do it with Word VBA macro programming, but I would have to research how to do it. If I come across a way to do this, I will be sure to let you know. Thanks so much for watching my videos. Best of luck with your form!

[@p-cide4857]

One question as well, can we create a Reset button, especially for Calander. Thanks

[@SharonSmith]

Hello - to my knowledge you can program a reset macro if you use legacy tools form fields, but if may work for you to save your document as a template and have users select File - New when they want to use a blank document. This video reviews this option: kzbin.info/www/bejne/nau3pmdsYr9onpI I hope this helps! Thanks so much for watching!

[@MichelleBrown-rx3hd]

how do I edit the vbs code after I saved it? your videos have saved me truly!! makes creating forms so doable!

[@SharonSmith]

Hello! You can go back to the Developer tab, select Visual Basic to open the VB editor again. Select your Module that you want to edit and make your changes. Click Save, and then you can close out again and test your changes. I hope this helps! Thanks for watching and for subscribing to my Channel!

[@michaelb9129]

Is it possible to create a list of numbers in a specific range in a dropdown box (in the non-legacy controls). For example, if I wanted to create a dropdown list for a user to select a quantity ranging from 1-1000, is it possible to quickly and easily generate that list of options without manually inputting all 1000 different numbers into the list?

[@basmabayoumi2732]

Thank you for such a video. If there were categories to certain services and each service has few points as details, how would I create a sub-DD list under the service category's list?

[@Beyar90]

Thanks for this! I'm wondering, instead of making the second field a dependent drop-down, can you just make it a dependent field (i.e. it will populate with a value depending on which drop-down was selected on the first field?).

[@c0urtzz1]

I think what you are looking for is explained really well in one of her videos called "How To Link Text or Images To A Drop-Down List Selection in MS Word - Create Fillable Forms" :)

[@Beyar90]

@@c0urtzz1 Thank you! That was exactly what I was looking for

[@SharonSmith]

Glad you found what you were looking for! Thanks so much for watching my videos!

[@SharonSmith]

Thank you for referring to my other video! Glad it was helpful. Thanks for watching!!

[@ofergoren2301]

GREAT!!! Professional and helpful! Thank you! Could you tell me how to create a numbered list in a "Free text" field -- every time the user hits Enter

[@Elemalele]

What about multiple-select options in the drop down menu? Is that possible? If so, then how? Thank you.

[@SueChenTranslationpluss]

Very helpful tips. Thank you very much!!!!!!

[@SharonSmith]

You are very welcome! Thanks for watching!

[@nathandobratz7071]

Great video. Extremely well thought out and user friendly.

[@SharonSmith]

Thank you so much Nathan! Glad you found my videos helpful. Thanks so much for watching and taking time to leave a nice comment. Take care!

[@wolfgangkohler2508]

Hi Sharon. Great Videos. I have a question. The answer is probably in one of your videos and I overlooked it. I would like to create a Drop down box or content box where the amount in a dollar value entered in this box will be transferred automatically to the next 3 boxes. For example - In a bank funds deposit form.There are 4 spots that I have to enter the same amount. How can I make it that whatever amount goes into box 1 will be the same as the amount that will appear in remaining boxes. Thanks for now. Hope it makes sense

[@SharonSmith]

Hello! Here is a video that might help you do this: kzbin.info/www/bejne/jICzh5SOh8-Gmas Hope this helps! Thanks for watching!

[@wolfgangkohler2508]

@@SharonSmith Thanks so much. That sure helps. Only problem is that I can't put any active x controls inside a text box. Won't let me. The text box is in the perfect spot for filling out cheques or deposit slips that's why I don't want to get rid of them

[@paulinewan7538]

Is there a way to use an excel list for the drop down field options? My context - i have a database of items with specific names/serial numbers (>100 items) and i need to populate selected item from this only database into a document

[@matthewparkes2336]

How do u link a combobox out come to a text box if selected yes , text box appears to specify

[@gameerzzz4140]

Hi ma'am. How can we Create table of different line and columns. And I appreciate how you explain everything very simple.

[@dirksmeets9189]

Do the answers of the questions filled out in the child field eventually? Also, can I add more child fields?

[@SharonSmith]

Hi Dirk, here is a video on how to create multiple levels of dependent drop-downs. I hope this helps with what you are looking to do. Thanks for watching! kzbin.info/www/bejne/a2XHhH2roMeYac0

[@wellingtonramsey9775]

Can I do the same with a PDF form? I added the form field in MS word and converted to PDF, scanned the PDF doc for form fields and now I am editing them to add custom options. However, I need to add a dependent drop-down list.

[@TheCoupleholicCanada]

Hello Sharon thank you for such an informative videos. If you can make a video on how to auto-populate information to another page by selecting drop-down options in MS word which is VBA enabled. For example table with drop-down is on first page and have macros, how we can have the same information copied over to the 4th page of the same word file. Looking forward for the same. Thanks

[@eliweiss8859]

Great and informative video Sharon. Thank you for sharing. I was wondering if you can help lay it out a little further for me. I am trying to create a Word form (a Fax cover sheet actually) where I would have a drop-down of several recipient names and I am trying to have their phone # and fax # auto-populate or auto-fill based on the name selection. Is that possible?

[@SharonSmith]

Hi Eli! I would recommend you create your fax cover sheet template in Excel instead of Word in order to easily auto-populate phone # and fax # based on a selected name from a drop-down field. You can merge cells as needed to format your page so that when printed, you wouldn't know it was an Excel spreadsheet. You would use Data Validation to create your name selection drop-down and then use VLOOKUP to populate cells for Phone and Fax based on the name the user selects. I will work on a video to show how to do this. It would be difficult to try and create this in Word. Thanks so much for watching my videos! Take care!

[@tutuh9816]

this was great. I need a dropdown list for a user to select which state they are from. Is there a way to do this without having to type in all 50 states?

[@emd102]

A great & useful idea, unfortunately, it didn't work for me because of the Arabic words. Do you have a workaround to solve that?