I am getting very confused about the different ways to store document metadata for a Word 2010 document and be able to display it identically in several places within a document and in some cases make it editable from one place within the document whilst updating everywhere else it appears.

I have come across document properties, custom document properties, fields codes, quick parts and content controls and I suspect one of these will let me do what I want, but which? I'm getting rather muddled over which is best for what.

Getting specific, I am trying to create a template for a set of documents which are subject to manual revision control and document numbering. When someone creates a new document in the set, I want them to type in a title and a 2-digit document number (maybe on the title page, maybe in a pop-up box, whichever works best). I then want to automatically generate a full document number consisting of the set number (fixed at 004), the 2-digit document number, and a 2-digit revision number (which initially starts at 00). The full document number and document name will be repeated in the page headers, but as view-only (i.e. I don't want the user to be able to edit the name or number in the headers - I want them to have to edit it where it appears on the title page, then for all the other copies to update themselves automatically).

I've spent a while messing around with field codes, content controls, document properties, etc. and I can't seem to fathom out what will work best. Advice, please?

I can create a custom document property then make it appear in the document as a field code, but then I don't think it's editable within the document at all. I can do Insert > Quick Part > Document Properties and insert things like document author in several places, and it seems like changing one instance will update the rest, but Word 2010 only seems to let you do that for a limited set of document properties and not any custom ones you create. I can insert a content control using the Developer tab, and I get a box I can type in, but then what? Not got a clue how to use that.



So can anyone help me make sense of what all these different things are and which one will let me do what I want?