Inserting Date

[mathomas100]

To keep track of when I create documents I insert a footer with the
date each time I create a new document. Is there any way I can get
word to do this automatically whenever I want to create a new
document? It's a pain to have to do it over and over again.

 

[Elliott Roper]

To keep track of when I create documents I insert a footer with the
date each time I create a new document. Is there any way I can get
word to do this automatically whenever I want to create a new
document? It's a pain to have to do it over and over again.

Stick a CREATEDATE field in your Normal template?
(more specific recipe depends on your version of Macintosh Word)

 

[Daiya Mitchell]

Stick a CREATEDATE field in your Normal template?
(more specific recipe depends on your version of Macintosh Word)

Except--that's not a good idea if you ever plan to use Envelopes or
Labels, as those are based on your Normal template and text in the
Normal template will screw them up---and next year when you go to do a
label you won't remember why it doesn't work.

Alternative 1)

Save the CreateDate field as an autotext, and put it on the
Header/Footer toolbar to enter it with less pain in each document.

Alternative 2)

Come up with a macro to put a createdate field in the footer in a
single-click, after putting the macro on a toolbar or assigning it a
keyboard shortcut.

Alternative 3)

Create a custom template with the createdate field in the footer, and
use that for all your documents. To prevent using a different template
from being just as annoying, you'll need to record a macro that creates
a doc based on that template. If you name the macro FileNewDefault (I
think), it will intercept Word's existing commands to create a new blank
document, so that you can continue to use the New Doc icon and cmd-N
without changing them. OR, you could name the macro anything and
re-assign cmd-N and customize the toolbar for those things to call your
macro.

 

[Elliott Roper]

Except--that's not a good idea if you ever plan to use Envelopes or
Labels, as those are based on your Normal template and text in the
Normal template will screw them up---and next year when you go to do a
label you won't remember why it doesn't work.

Alternative 1)

Save the CreateDate field as an autotext, and put it on the
Header/Footer toolbar to enter it with less pain in each document.

Alternative 2)

Come up with a macro to put a createdate field in the footer in a
single-click, after putting the macro on a toolbar or assigning it a
keyboard shortcut.

Alternative 3)

Create a custom template with the createdate field in the footer, and
use that for all your documents. To prevent using a different template
from being just as annoying, you'll need to record a macro that creates
a doc based on that template. If you name the macro FileNewDefault (I
think), it will intercept Word's existing commands to create a new blank
document, so that you can continue to use the New Doc icon and cmd-N
without changing them. OR, you could name the macro anything and
re-assign cmd-N and customize the toolbar for those things to call your
macro.

Good point Daiya! I like 3
I think I'd settle for pulling it from the gallery.
Then I pull all my envelopes and headed stationery from there already.

 

[Clive Huggan]

Except--that's not a good idea if you ever plan to use Envelopes or
Labels, as those are based on your Normal template and text in the
Normal template will screw them up---and next year when you go to do a
label you won't remember why it doesn't work.

<snip>

Even if the CREATEDATE is in a footer, Daiya? (I ask this because the
original poster said s/he wanted it in the footer).

If yes, then another question: even if the footer is a second-page-onwards
footer and there is no page break in the Normal template, i.e. a blank new
document opens up as a blank, one-page document, and doesn't show the footer
until text accumulates sufficiently to move to page 2?

Yours inquisitively ("Envelopes and Labels" being totally off my radar),

Clive
======

 

[Daiya Mitchell]

Even if the CREATEDATE is in a footer, Daiya? (I ask this because the
original poster said s/he wanted it in the footer).

As far as I know yes--I've not actually tested it, I picked it up from
the WinWord experts--but the usual request for default text *is* stuff
in the footer. I think the footer will actually mess up labels even
more, as it can't arrange the margins properly.

I guess I could test now, since I just scrapped my Normal anyhow [long
pause]---yep, went and tested. All screwed up. Text overlapping with
envelope addresses, a full page of labels pushes the last row onto a
second page.

If yes, then another question: even if the footer is a second-page-onwards
footer and there is no page break in the Normal template, i.e. a blank new
document opens up as a blank, one-page document, and doesn't show the footer
until text accumulates sufficiently to move to page 2?

Sneaky! But I tested, and still screwed up. Which is kinda aggravating,
actually. Now that I think about it, I think I had tested this before,
though not the Different First Page variation.

WinWord 2007 has a certain specific method in which Word does *not* use
the customized Normal but some other base for a new doc, so it's
possible Tools/Envelopes has also gotten smart about this, in that
version. Just guessing, though.

Daiya

 

[Clive Huggan]

Even if the CREATEDATE is in a footer, Daiya? (I ask this because the
original poster said s/he wanted it in the footer).

As far as I know yes--I've not actually tested it, I picked it up from
the WinWord experts--but the usual request for default text *is* stuff
in the footer. I think the footer will actually mess up labels even
more, as it can't arrange the margins properly.

I guess I could test now, since I just scrapped my Normal anyhow [long
pause]---yep, went and tested. All screwed up. Text overlapping with
envelope addresses, a full page of labels pushes the last row onto a
second page.

If yes, then another question: even if the footer is a second-page-onwards
footer and there is no page break in the Normal template, i.e. a blank new
document opens up as a blank, one-page document, and doesn't show the footer
until text accumulates sufficiently to move to page 2?

Sneaky! But I tested, and still screwed up. Which is kinda aggravating,
actually. Now that I think about it, I think I had tested this before,
though not the Different First Page variation.

WinWord 2007 has a certain specific method in which Word does *not* use
the customized Normal but some other base for a new doc, so it's
possible Tools/Envelopes has also gotten smart about this, in that
version. Just guessing, though.

Daiya

Thanks, Daiya. Very useful.

Clive
=====