Macro Enabled Documents vs. Templates

[Connie]

Re: Word (using 2007, but applies to any version)

I've always created macro enabled templates. Today, however, I needed to
launch one from the web and found no easy way to do this since the .dot(m)
opens rather than runs. I converted the template to a document, changed
the AutoNew sub to an AutoOpen and voila, it runs all the code just fine
from a standard web link.

So, that got me thinking -- if I need to make them documents to run them
easily from the web, why not use those documents in Word too and maintain
only one set of forms? If I launch them from a protected network directory
so the users can't change the original, and all the code runs, is there any
downside to doing this?

Thanks for any thoughts.

 

[Bob Buckland ?:-\)]

Hi Connie,

Linking to a template via a link works a bit differently than double clicking it in a File folder. If you were to download a .docM
file and double click it on the computer it would open. You can use the technique here to use a web link to a .dot or .dotm file to
have it create a new file from a template.
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/278627/en-us?FR=1

For some more technical details in what Word 2003 and 2007 changed in the way they handle things for Web collaboration on documents:
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/838028/en-us?FR=1

=============
Re: Word (using 2007, but applies to any version)

I've always created macro enabled templates. Today, however, I needed to
launch one from the web and found no easy way to do this since the .dot(m)
opens rather than runs. I converted the template to a document, changed
the AutoNew sub to an AutoOpen and voila, it runs all the code just fine
from a standard web link.

So, that got me thinking -- if I need to make them documents to run them
easily from the web, why not use those documents in Word too and maintain
only one set of forms? If I launch them from a protected network directory
so the users can't change the original, and all the code runs, is there any
downside to doing this?

Thanks for any thoughts. >>
--

Bob Buckland ?
MS Office System Products MVP

*Courtesy is not expensive and can pay big dividends*

 

[Connie]

Bob, I tried and tried that method and simply could not get it to work.
Have you succeeded doing this? I'm using Office 2007 and IE6 with an
always possible dash of operator error.

Thanks so much for your reply!

Connie

 

[Connie]

I had tried that and failed - I forgot the lnk extension.

Thanks for making me look at it again!

Connie

 

[Connie]

Sorry to bother you again.

I've thought about this a little more. I still think it will be cumbersome
for our users to have to make a shortcut to every template we are going to
distribute on our Intranet and then manually type in the path. Would there
be a downside to using the macro enabled documents from a protected
directory like I mentioned in the original post?

Thanks again!

Connie