Pages 5.0 - No mail merge?!

Here are the links for performing Mail merges with Pages 5.5:

Using AppleScript and a Contacts group:

<http://iworkautomation.com/pages/examples-mail-merge.html>

USING NUMBERS OR OTHER SPREADSHEET DATA:

<http://iworkautomation.com/pages/script-tags-data-merge.html>

Pages 5.5, which was installed on Oct 17 says in the release notes "AppleScript support for Mail Merge"

Any idea what that means?

Pages 5.5 includes new scripting support for locating and replacing text placeholders. In addition, text placeholders can be "tagged" in the application interface, with script identifiers by selecting the text placeholder to tag and entering its "script tag" in the the new Script Tag field available at the bottom of the More tab in the format sidebar. With this new ability, scripts can replace the text placeholders in a document with data from other sources, including Numbers spreadsheets.

But you don't have to write scripts to take advantage of this new feature!

To make it easy for non-scripters to perform Mail merges, and other automated data merging tasks, there is a free application, the Pages Data Merge application, available at: http://iworkautomation.com/pages/script-tags-data-merge.html

Watch the movie, follow the instructions, and give it a try!

In addition, if you want to work with contacts from the Contacts (Address Book) application instead of a spreadsheet, here's a link to an automation script for doing that:

<http://iworkautomation.com/pages/examples-mail-merge.html>

Cheers!

in response to Sal Soghoian

This is a good, but a little cumbersome solution and not as good as the solution in Pages 4. I miss also the possibly to use fields under some conditions. In your examples it would be useful to name the placeholder in the „scripttag“

I miss also a feature to indicate, if a template contains placeholders. It would be useful to identify this situation, for example by a comment in the template.

Remark: You are doing a great job with your automator work.

More than a year later nothing has changed. I was planning to step up with the new pages/numbers. Need mail merge for my invoices.Just keep om using Word/excel

Open this script in the Script Editor and save it to the system-wide Script Menu. Anytime you want to check to see if the front document contains text placeholders, select the script from the Script Menu:

tell application "Pages"

tell front document

set placeholderCount to the count of every placeholder text

display dialog "This document contains " & placeholderCount & " text placeholders."

end tell

end tell

For information about how to turn on the Script Menu, visit: <http://iworkautomation.com/script-menu.html>

Thank you for noticing the Automator work. The new Keynote collection was a lot of fun to develop: <http://iworkautomation.com/keynote/automator/index.html>

I never thought I'd say this but I'm getting more and more impressed with Microsoft every day and less impressed with Apple. They keep making things harder to do and keep removing features. I couldn't believe it when I went to do a mail merge today and I found out they removed the feature.

Although I am not satisfied with pages 5.0, but Microsoft Word is much, much worse: The Mac version does not run despite several Microsoft support on my iMac. In the Windows version of the operation is a disaster.

Sal,

I just came across a reference to your iWorkAutomation site in another thread on Mail Merge. Thank so much for your work.

Regards,

Jerry

Simply a huge disappointment.

But this is different! This is Apple!

Peter

Hi all,

Please remember that the best thing you can do to request this feature be added back, is to go to apple.com/feedback and submit the complaint requests there. In the future, this may be added back.

From: https://tidbits.com/article/14299

Print Mailing Labels and Use Mail Merge -- Most people are surprised to learn that Contacts can print mailing labels and envelopes using standard formats from Avery and Dymo, and that you can even create your own layouts for custom labels. Apple doesn’t trumpet the functionality, but instead buries it in the Print dialog.

To print labels or envelopes, first highlight the contacts to include in the print job. Then, choose File > Print, and click Show Details. Next, from the Style dropdown, choose a style: the choices include Envelopes, Mailing Labels, Lists, and Pocket Address Book. Once you have chosen a style, use the Layout and Label panes in the Print dialog to refine the layout and content of the mailing labels or envelopes. In the Layout pane you can set label dimensions, choosing from various standard sizes. In the Label pane you can specify a logo or other image to use, and choose a font.

If, however, you need to add barcodes or intricate graphics to your labels, look to other applications. For example, Labels & Addresses ($49.95) from BeLight Software gives you much more printing flexibility, including personal and corporate templates, creative fonts, hundreds of images, and the capability to print postcards and a variety of label shapes. As an added bonus, the software can begin printing mailing labels in the middle of the page, so you can make use of partially used label sheets.

Labels & Addresses also solves the problem of how to create a single address label for multiple contacts who share an address, such as married couples, a need that often arises when printing labels for holiday cards. For more information about that, read Jeff Carlson’s “Labels & Addresses Restores Holiday Card Sanity” (12 December 2008).

Dedicated label printers, such as the LabelWriter printers from Dymo and Smart Label Printers from Seiko, print your labels in long strips, so that you don’t wind up wasting unused labels at the bottom of the sheet. They support a vast array of label sizes, and while they come with their own software, it’s often better to rely on Labels & Addresses.

If, instead of using labels, you frequently need to print directly on envelopes, I suggest you take a look at Ambrosia Software’s EasyEnvelopes ($9.99), which also integrates with Contacts.

You can also create mailing labels, envelopes, and directories inside your favorite word processor. Both Pages ’09 and Microsoft Word recognize Contacts as a data source for mail merge — unfortunately, the just-released Pages 5 no longer supports mail merge. Any fields on a contact card can be included in form letters and phone list directories as well.

Well here I will stick in a comment

Yes I got Pages 5 for free.

But when I read up about it Apple make out it is as good a Microsoft Word and has most of same functions.

I don't use mail merge much but was about to start. You see I had learned how to create sequentially numbered raffle tickets on Word.

Feeling great about that I decided (I am new to Apple ) I would use this project to learn how to use same tools and or find them in Pages.

Well I looked and hunted and I did search on Pages Help for mail merge with nothing coming up at all.

So as I do when Help is no help I googled it and found this forum.

I actually wanted to swap to Apple software and not stick with Word I wanted to experience that Apple feeling of long term users who loved not just the machine but the programs that were designed specifically for it.

I do love my late 2014 Mac Air but not so sure about programs yet.

I already deleted a new mail folder I had just created only to find doing so deleted ALL the folders in the Mail program. [very glad I got had Apple care that day]
Now I find a simple word processor program has not a mail merge capability. I am beginning to think Microsoft have spoiled me for my expectations were high and so far Mac software is behind the times.

Problem is Apple has opted to go cross platform so had to simplify stuff to do it. Apple knows Microsoft Word is the business go to program so now it doesn't care since there is a MS Office for Mac. It provides the platform we the consumer buy the software we want.
Then Apple slipped up, they gave out the perception that their old much liked office suite of programs/apps was being given to customers free. They did not bother to say it was a cut down version. Poetic licence at its worst.

I was actually looking forward to using it but now I am not sure I need bother to go into it deeper till Apple make it the quality program it used to be for like most new users I do not have the luxury of deleting it and returning to an older version.
As one or two folk did mention is absolutely TRUE.
When I first stumbled across problems I actually went looking to see if yes this was actually the lower level program and there was a Pro version in App store. Well as a newbie I couldn't see it if it was there and not being familiar with Apple software was wary of buying yet another dud/modified program.
I gave up.
I went looking for apps for my raffle tickets originally for Pages but you think any Google links for them. Nope. Constantly Word was coming up for templates and then the gem of a video how to do what I was trying to do.

So as a switcher I am now in two minds. I will enjoy having a nice portable machine with a lovely long battery life and the magnetic power connection but when it dies I may be a switcher back to Windows. I did love my ultrabook but found the screen was a bit small if on it for a long time at my desk.
I love the touch screen on my Toshiba 2 in 1 so if Windows 10 will run my software and data CDs it is highly likely I will move to touch screen Windows laptop or even a Tablet computer.

I am glad some of you can return to your previous Pages but alas that is not an option for many of us.