Working with Templates and Documents

     Templates are pre-designed documents that contain content or formatting to be opened and used multiple times by one or more users. Templates help to protect original content from being changed by triggering new, unnamed documents when opened. Any document can become a template simply by saving it as a template.

The Document Template Option in the SAVE and SAVE AS.... Window

     When a document is saved as a template in Word, Word immediately jumps to specially configured Template Folder as the save location. Word understands that all templates in this Template Folder are to be treated as new, unnamed documents whenever opened.  

Specially Configured Default Template Folder

Word goes here automatically when you Save As a Template

     The Template Folder is where you should save all templates you intend to use on this computer. However, if you are creating a template to be transported and shared on different computers, there is no point in saving it in the default Template Folder, and the default Template Folder is sometimes hard to find because it is deeply buried five levels down in the folder structure. Simply change the Save In: location to the folder where all the rest of your files for this particular unit reside.

     Just know that when a template is out of its specially configured Template Folder, Word doesn't know to treat it special. Word would open it as the original template, rather than as a new, unnamed document, and one would be altering the original content. To open a template as a new, unnamed document outside of the specially configured Template Folder, one must click on the file to open Word, rather than using Word to open the file.

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Other Template Trivia

The Normal.DOT Template

     The Normal.DOT template file that you might see in your Template Folder is the default "blank page" template. It opens when you open a blank new document. You can create a new Normal.DOT template file  to set up special formatting and design or get rid of existing format and design that is applied to your blank document. You could add a background watermark or special margin formatting. Simply set up your new blank page as you like it and use Save As Template and overwrite your existing Normal.DOT file.

     Just know that what you do will affect every blank document you open from now until you change the Normal.DOT file again. If you want to experiment and then resort back to the existing default blank page, simply close Word and delete the Normal.DOT file. When Word opens, if it finds no Normal.DOT template file, it creates a new one.

Other Templates You May Use

      Microsoft packs the Office Suite with many company-made templates for resumes, invoices, and such. You may view existing templates provided by Microsoft by clicking on File >New in the top text menu of Word.

File >New

This will access existing templates

Educational Templates Available Online

 Microsoft provides an online template gallery for a variety of Office applications. It has many education templates and templates for teachers.

 Screenshot of some Online Templates

URL: officeupdate.microsoft.com/templategallery/

 
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