Insert function fields, tables & clickable URLs

This adapted macro creates checkboxes and text fields in documents that also contain function fields, tables or clickable URLs.

If your document is to contain other function fields in addition to footnotes, such as tables of contents or clickable links (“::url”), or if the expressions ”{□}” or ”{…}” are to be placed in tables, it is necessary to use an appropriately adapted macro. In the following we provide you with a sample code:

Sub CreateContentControls()
 Dim CheckboxStrg As String
 Dim TextboxStrg As String
 Dim myRange As Range
 Dim Testrange As Range
 Dim myPara As Paragraph
 Dim StartPos As Long
 Dim EndPos As Long
 Dim Password As String
 Dim Deletepath As String
 Password = "1234"
 CheckboxStrg = "{" & ChrW(&H25A1) & "}"
 TextboxStrg = "{...}"
 Offset = 0
 For Each myPara In ActiveDocument.Paragraphs
 StartPos = InStr(1, myPara.Range.Text, CheckboxStrg, vbTextCompare) - 1
 Do Until StartPos = -1
 Set myRange = myPara.Range
 Set Testrange = myPara.Range
 Testrange.SetRange Start:=myRange.Start, End:=myRange.Start + StartPos + 1
 Offset = Testrange.ContentControls.Count * 2
 EndPos = StartPos + Len(CheckboxStrg)
 myRange.SetRange Start:=myRange.Start + StartPos + Offset, End:=myRange.Start + EndPos + Offset
 myRange.Select
 myRange.Text = ""
 myRange.ContentControls.Add (wdContentControlCheckBox)
 StartPos = InStr(StartPos + 1, myPara.Range.Text, CheckboxStrg, vbTextCompare) - 1
 Loop
 Next
 For Each myPara In ActiveDocument.Paragraphs
 StartPos = InStr(1, myPara.Range.Text, TextboxStrg, vbTextCompare) - 1
 Do Until StartPos = -1
 Set myRange = myPara.Range
 Set Testrange = myPara.Range
 Testrange.SetRange Start:=myRange.Start, End:=myRange.Start + StartPos + 1
 Offset = Testrange.ContentControls.Count * 2
 EndPos = StartPos + Len(TextboxStrg)
 myRange.SetRange Start:=myRange.Start + StartPos + Offset, End:=myRange.Start + EndPos + Offset
 myRange.Select
 myRange.Text = ""
 myRange.ContentControls.Add (wdContentControlText)
 StartPos = InStr(StartPos + 1, myPara.Range.Text, TextboxStrg, vbTextCompare) - 1
 Loop
 Next
 Application.ActiveDocument.Protect wdAllowOnlyFormFields, Password:=Password
 Deletepath = ActiveDocument.FullName
 ActiveDocument.SaveAs2 FileName:=Left(ActiveDocument.Name, Len(ActiveDocument.Name) - 5) & ".docx", FileFormat:=wdFormatDocumentDefault
 Documents.Open (Left(ActiveDocument.Name, Len(ActiveDocument.Name) - 5) & ".docx")
 Kill (Deletepath)
End Sub

ATTENTION: Since the macro searches each paragraph individually for the expressions, it is important that there are only expressions OR function fields or hyperlinks (“::url”) in a paragraph. If this is not the case, display problems may occur. In addition, care must be taken that the marking of the check boxes and text fields with the expressions ”{□}” or ”{…}” always occurs within a paragraph and not across several paragraphs.

Run the macro: see How to insert and run a Word macro.