Word ? Powerpoint? Creating cat profiles automatically from database

Madpanda

I need to create profiles similar to the ones you find on petfinder for ~30 cats from scratch. I have the data about them already. I think there is a way to automate some of this instead of manually creating each one.

What i'd like to do is put the data into excel or access, in a format like this

Name | Description | Declawed | Age | Breed | Sex

And have a template pull that information and fill it out. Ideally doing things like If declawed = Y then display declawed icon here, or if Sex = female change Name color to pink.

I can probably knock this all out in a night or two of doing it the manual way but it seems like there is a smarter way to do it using libreoffice or ms office. Super bonus points if the solution uses google docs somehow and I can show non computer literate people how to use it.

CelestialBadger

To a document? Mail merge?

Caelum Militis

You reference PetFinder, so are you using one of the assorted shelter databases out there?

Since you have the data already, it seems like it would be an extra step to put it from whatever format you have it, to Exce/Access, then to a template. You may be able to skip that middle part with something like Crystal Reports ($55 on TechSoup if you're a non-profit), and go straight from source data -> printout.

bowen

Yeah crystal reports if you want a PDF/Printed document.

You'll likely need something else to slap it on a website.