What is an empty template

[David Thielen]

Hi;

If a template is created as empty, does it still have all of the
normal.dot formatting and override normal.dot? If so, on install my
installer needs to make the special template as a copy of the user’s
normal.dot.

thanks - dave

 

[Howard Kaikow]

Depends on how you create the "empty" template.

If you do a File | New, then save the document as a template, the template
gets all the styles from Normal, but none of the autotext, toolbars or
macros. So nothing in Normal is getting overridden.

In my case, I keep around two copies of the Normal template that would be
created if I were to rename the current Normal template.
I save one copy as NormalClean2003.dot.
I then remove ALL the Autotext from the other copy and save it as
NormalCleanNoAutoText2003.dot.
In each copy, the only styles are Default Paragraph Font, No List, Normal
and Table normal.

I almost always create my new templates using a copy of the
NormalCleanNoAutoText2003.dot file.

 

[Charles Kenyon]

Why are you making a copy of the user's normal.dot?

 

[David Thielen]

Why are you making a copy of the user's normal.dot?

Maybe there is a better solution to this problem. I have an add-in
that adds a top level menu to Word. However, for most users I figure
that they usually will not need my add-in and at those times I don't
want it using up space on their top menu.

So I figure that I look for a template I give them and if the template
is there, I add my menus. I use nothing in the template, I just use
it's existence as the trigger. But that means I don't want the
template to change anything from normal.

??? - dave

 

[David Thielen]

What's autotext?

thanks - dave

 

[Charles Kenyon]

What's AutoText? Look in help. Tremendously useful. You can also have an
AutoText list field. http://word.mvps.org/FAQs/TblsFldsFms/AutoTextList.htm

Have the menu on a custom toolbar in your Add-In. Use an AutoExec macro in
your Add-In to test for the presence of your other template. (Not sure why
you are using the separate template if it is not a document template) If the
template is present then make your toolbar visible, if not have it be
invisible.