How can I update multiple documents?

[hawc2k2]

I must be missing something. I am trying to make a template that can be used
for multiple documents. I want this template's layout, letterhead text,
graphics and any other formatting to be used for a letterhead. The only
graphic is the company logo.

When I create a new document from this template and then modify the
template, the layout changes are not reflected in the document I created from
the template. I also have many other documents that I would like to apply
this template to. When I try applying the template to these other documents,
the styles are copied but none of the layout, graphics or text are applied.

Is there any way to create a master template that can be applied to new and
old document that will insert a completely new page layout? I'm used to using
HTML programs that let you modify a template which in turn modifies all the
pages based on that template, including the graphics, tables, and all other
templated layout features. I'm using Word 2002. Any help would be appreciated.

 

[Anne Troy]

Sorry. No. You'd probably need quite a bit of VBA code to alter all of your
documents in this manner, unless they were all created exactly the same.
*******************
~Anne Troy

www.OfficeArticles.com

I must be missing something. I am trying to make a template that can be used
for multiple documents. I want this template's layout, letterhead text,
graphics and any other formatting to be used for a letterhead. The only
graphic is the company logo.

When I create a new document from this template and then modify the
template, the layout changes are not reflected in the document I created from
the template. I also have many other documents that I would like to apply
this template to. When I try applying the template to these other documents,
the styles are copied but none of the layout, graphics or text are applied.

Is there any way to create a master template that can be applied to new and
old document that will insert a completely new page layout? I'm used to using
HTML programs that let you modify a template which in turn modifies all the
pages based on that template, including the graphics, tables, and all other
templated layout features. I'm using Word 2002. Any help would be

appreciated.

 

[Jay Freedman]

I must be missing something. I am trying to make a template that can be used
for multiple documents. I want this template's layout, letterhead text,
graphics and any other formatting to be used for a letterhead. The only
graphic is the company logo.

When I create a new document from this template and then modify the
template, the layout changes are not reflected in the document I created from
the template. I also have many other documents that I would like to apply
this template to. When I try applying the template to these other documents,
the styles are copied but none of the layout, graphics or text are applied.

Is there any way to create a master template that can be applied to new and
old document that will insert a completely new page layout? I'm used to using
HTML programs that let you modify a template which in turn modifies all the
pages based on that template, including the graphics, tables, and all other
templated layout features. I'm using Word 2002. Any help would be appreciated.

Sorry, Word just doesn't work that way. A new document receives its
content (if any), styles, and page layout from its template, and then
the umbilical cord is severed. You can force styles to update from a
modified (or other) template, but nothing else. It most definitely
does *not* work like your HTML programs.

More explanation is at
http://www.shaunakelly.com/word/attachtemplate/index.html.

 

[hawc2k2]

Sorry, Word just doesn't work that way. A new document receives its
content (if any), styles, and page layout from its template, and then
the umbilical cord is severed. You can force styles to update from a
modified (or other) template, but nothing else. It most definitely
does *not* work like your HTML programs.

More explanation is at
http://www.shaunakelly.com/word/attachtemplate/index.html.

 

[hawc2k2]

Hi Jay,

Thanks so much for your reply. At least I will stop spending my time trying
to figure out if this can be done. My main intent was to update my fathers
business documents with his new letter head but it sounds like this has to be
done manually. Thanks again!

 

[hawc2k2]

Hi Anne,

Thanks so much for the reply. I do some VBscripting but haven't gotten into
VBA yet. My main goal was to automate the updating of my fathers business
letterhead throughout his documents, but it sounds like it is easier to do it
manually.

This may be a crossover to the programming forum but I'm a little confused
by something I read a while back that Office was using XML extensively. I was
hoping this would give me tha ability to mark certian aspects of documents as
data and then apply a stylesheet or template to them that would update all
the other elements. Does anybody know anything about this?

Does 2003 offer any of the functionality I'm looking for? Thanks again!

 

[Charles Kenyon]

If you save your content as AutoText entries in your template and display
that content in your template (and resulting documents) as AutoText fields
and update the fields, you can get the update content in old documents.

I create new templates for each form letter, I never create a new document
from an old document (instead of a template) more than once. Because I want
my saved letters to be what I sent out, I do not have saved letters update
to new content. I do have the templates those letters are based upon grab
new content from a central location, though, when a new document is created
from them. This could be done with AutoText and macros, I use bookmarks in a
primary template combined with AutoNew macros.
--
Charles Kenyon

Word New User FAQ & Web Directory: http://addbalance.com/word

Intermediate User's Guide to Microsoft Word (supplemented version of
Microsoft's Legal Users' Guide) http://addbalance.com/usersguide

See also the MVP FAQ: http://www.mvps.org/word which is awesome!
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