Multi user template continues to be saved over.

bmjsingleton86 · #1 12-28-2018, 09:36 AM

I have several (30 or so) letters that my entire team uses. Currently I have all of the letters hyperlinked to a spreadsheet (for ease of use) and the letters hosted on our shared drive. However, certain person are "saving" over the template vs. saving as. I have tried locking the content, saving as a template (.dotx) and neither prevents the user from just saving over the item.

Its really time consuming to have to 'refresh' the letters after someone has saved data into the 'template'.

What can I do to prevent them from saving into the doc, or force a 'save as'?

macropod · #2 12-28-2018, 01:29 PM

Templates in Word are saved in the .dot, .dotx or .dotm formats. Your description suggests you've been using documents saved in the .doc, .docx and/or .docm formats and calling them templates, which they are not. Your description also suggests that, even when you'd used the dotx format, your current process opens the template for editing, rather than creating a new document from it. Without changing your use of documents, you could apply the Windows read-only attribute to them, meaning they could not be saved over.

Charles Kenyon · #3 12-28-2018, 08:12 PM

Try creating desktop shortcuts to your templates. Then link to those shortcuts instead of to the templates. That may create new documents based on the .dotx templates.

Unless you have display of extensions turned on in Windows, something that says it is .dotx may still be a .docx file. (Template icons look like pads of paper, documents look like a single sheet.)

Stefan Blom · #4 12-30-2018, 06:42 PM

If you have a hyperlink that points to a template file, most likely the template is being opened for editing, which explains why it is being modified.

Charles Kenyon · #5 12-31-2018, 02:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stefan Blom

If you have a hyperlink that points to a template file, most likely the template is being opened for editing, which explains why it is being modified.

I remembered that as a way to get a new document based on a hyperlinked template. My memory was wrong. Sorry.
This used to work, but no longer.

bmjsingleton86 · #6 01-24-2019, 08:50 AM

Thank you all for the responses. Let me ask this then, I have access to Our SharePoint page, our Shared drive and Word. What are the steps I need to take to save our letters as templates, and still present them through the spreadsheet. We have many new team members and the spreadsheet is necessary for the users to know which letter is for which situation.

TIA.

Charles Kenyon · #7 01-24-2019, 11:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bmjsingleton86

Thank you all for the responses. Let me ask this then, I have access to Our SharePoint page, our Shared drive and Word. What are the steps I need to take to save our letters as templates, and still present them through the spreadsheet. We have many new team members and the spreadsheet is necessary for the users to know which letter is for which situation.

TIA.

If instead of the spreadsheet, you could use a Word macro-enabled document, you could use a MacroButton Field.
https://superuser.com/questions/9960...e-new-document

Otherwise, you could make the templates read-only.

Otherwise, you could use macro-enabled templates with a macro that creates a new document based on the template and closes the the template. (See next post.)

Charles Kenyon · #8 01-24-2019, 11:47 AM

Here is a macro that, if placed in a macro enabled template, will create a new document based on the template and close the template if someone opens the template.

Code:

Sub AutoOpen()
      ' Prevent opening of template with macros active
      ' Creates a new document based on the template instead of opening the template
      ' 24 January 2019
      ' Charles Kenyon
      '
      If ActiveDocument.Name = ThisDocument.Name Then
          Documents.Add (ThisDocument.FullName)
          ThisDocument.Close SaveChanges:=False
      End If
  End Sub

I've attached such a template.
Note, to open such a template for editing, you must hold down the Shift key when opening it.

It would need to be stored in a trusted location such as the Workgroup Templates folder. If you place it somewhere not OK'd for macros, then it will open ordinarily and if macros are enabled, the macro would run.

macropod · #9 01-24-2019, 03:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bmjsingleton86

What are the steps I need to take to save our letters as templates, and still present them through the spreadsheet.

As I said in post #2:

Quote:

Originally Posted by macropod

Without changing your use of documents, you could apply the Windows read-only attribute to them, meaning they could not be saved over.

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