I am a novice (eejit..) macro / VBA user.

I have a template document in which I use fillin fields to prompt for
references, name and address lines and header lines.

I want to use a simple (taken me about four hours cutting and pasting and
testing and restarting so far!!) VBA routine to prompt for and set custom
document properties.  (Code to date set out below) and I also want to be
able to check an existing document when I reopen it to see if I want to
update the custom document properties.

This creates a problem though as the updating of document properties when
either the original or the update code causes the fillin fields to run,
twice, once before the prompt for the custom doc properties and once after
them (and again at print time!)

Is there a way to force the custom document properties to update BEFORE and
without affecting fillin fields?

There is one more silly quirk with what I have done to date and this is
that, as the docproperty fields in my template don't get updated until after
the initial display of an "Error doc property doesn't exist"
in BOLD the docproperty items end up bold when they are entered as they
pick up the formatting of the displayed field error.

See I told you I was an eejit!

Code:

Sub AutoNew()

Dim ClientRef As String
Dim FeeRef As String
Dim SecRef As String
Dim oStory As Range

ClientRef = InputBox("Enter Client reference (Letter and 6 numbers)",
"ClientRef", "")
FeeRef = InputBox("Enter Fee-Earner initials", "FeeRef", "")
SecRef = InputBox("Enter Secretary's initials", "SecRef", "")
'ActiveDocument.Variables("ClientName").Value = ClientName
ActiveDocument.CustomDocumentProperties.Add Name:="ClientRef",
LinkToContent:=False, Value:=ClientRef, Type:=msoPropertyTypeString
ActiveDocument.CustomDocumentProperties.Add Name:="FeeRef",
LinkToContent:=False, Value:=FeeRef, Type:=msoPropertyTypeString
ActiveDocument.CustomDocumentProperties.Add Name:="SecRef",
LinkToContent:=False, Value:=SecRef, Type:=msoPropertyTypeString
'ActiveDocument.BuiltInDocumentProperties("Author").Value = Author
For Each oStory In ActiveDocument.StoryRanges
oStory.Fields.Update
If oStory.StoryType < wdMainTextStory Then
   While Not (oStory.NextStoryRange Is Nothing)
   Set oStory = oStory.NextStoryRange
   oStory.Fields.Update
   Wend
   End If
   Next oStory
   Set oStory = Nothing
   End Sub

Sub AutoOpen()

Dim ClientRef As String
Dim FeeRef As String
Dim SecRef As String
Dim oStory As Range

On Error GoTo ExitSub
Update = MsgBox("Update Document Information? NB has no effect unless custom
document properties have already been set", vbYesNo)
If Update = vbYes Then
   ClientRef = InputBox("Enter Client reference(Letter and 6 numbers)",
"ClientRef", "")
   FeeRef = InputBox("Enter Fee-Earner initials", "FeeRef", "")
   SecRef = InputBox("Enter Secretary's initials", "SecRef", "")
   ActiveDocument.CustomDocumentProperties("ClientRef").Value = ClientRef
   ActiveDocument.CustomDocumentProperties("FeeRef").Value = FeeRef
   ActiveDocument.CustomDocumentProperties("SecRef").Value = SecRef

   'ActiveDocument.Variables("PolicyNum").Value = PolicyNum
   'ActiveDocument.BuiltInDocumentProperties("Author").Value = Author

   For Each oStory In ActiveDocument.StoryRanges
   oStory.Fields.Update
   If oStory.StoryType < wdMainTextStory Then
     While Not (oStory.NextStoryRange Is Nothing)
       Set oStory = oStory.NextStoryRange
       oStory.Fields.Update
     Wend
   End If
Next oStory
Set oStory = Nothing
End If
ExitSub:
End Sub

Any help would be much appreciated and I will not be in the least offended
if everyone wants to tell me how stupidly I have set about this project!

thanks

Nick Fluck