WD: How to Determine Where Word Looks for Templates

ID: Q138059

The information in this article applies to:
  • Microsoft Word for Windows 95, versions 7.0, 7.0a
  • Microsoft Word 97 for Windows

SUMMARY

This article describes how Setup sets the template path and how you can change where Word looks for templates.


MORE INFORMATION

When you click New on the File menu, Word looks in the following places to decide which templates to display in the File New dialog box:

  1. User Templates path or Workgroup Templates path


  2. Word program folder


The same search path is used when Word is installed as part of Microsoft Office for Windows 95 or Microsoft Office 97 for Windows.

User Templates Path

If you installed Word as a stand-alone program, Word first looks for the User Templates path. This path is listed on the File Locations tab, which you can examine by choosing Options from the Tools menu. If no folder is specified here (if the folder was deleted, moved, or renamed during the current Word session), Word displays the message "Do you want to create the directory now?" If you answer "No," Word looks in the program folder for the templates.

Workgroup Templates Path

If you performed a workstation setup of Word, Word first looks for the Workgroup Templates path. This path is listed on the File Locations tab. To examine the path, click Options on the Tools menu. If the folder does not exist (it was deleted, moved, or renamed during the current Word session), Word displays the message "Do you want to create the directory now?" If you answer "No," Word looks in the program folder for the templates.

Word Program Folder

This is the last place Word looks for templates. Word stores any templates in its Program folder if it cannot find the path specified by the User Templates path or Workgroup Templates path and if you have answered "No" to the prompt "Do you want to create the directory now?"

How to Change Where Word Looks for Templates

User Templates

To specify a new template location, follow these steps:

  1. On the Tools menu, click Options.


  2. Click the File Locations tab.


  3. Click User Templates and click Modify.


  4. Type the new path that you want Word to use.


  5. Click OK and then click Close.


When Word 7.0 is first installed, Setup points this setting to the MSOffice\Templates subfolder. When Word 97 is first installed, Setup points this setting to the Program Files\Microsoft Office\Templates subfolder.

Workgroup Templates

To specify a new workgroup template location, follow these steps:

  1. On the Tools menu, click Options.


  2. Click the File Locations tab.


  3. Click Workgroup Templates, and then click Modify.


  4. Enter the new path that you want Word to use for locating its shared templates.


  5. Click OK and then click Close.


When Word is initially installed, this setting is left blank by Word Setup during a stand-alone setup. During a workstation setup, this setting is set to where the Word templates were installed on the network server during the administrative setup.

Changing Template Locations Using the Microsoft Office Shortcut Bar

Microsoft Word and Microsoft Office for Windows share a common template path. The User Templates path is set to MSOffice\Templates (Microsoft Office 7.0) or Program Files\Microsoft Office\Templates (Microsoft Office 97) and the Workgroup Templates path is left blank by both Office Setup and Word Setup in a stand-alone installation. In the case of a workstation installation, the User Templates path is set to the local user's MSOffice\Templates folder for Word 7.0 or Office 7.0 (and Program Files\Microsoft Office\Templates for Word 97 or Office 97), and the Workgroup Templates path is set to the shared administrative installation templates directory on the network server.

Because Office and Word share a common template path, when you change the User Templates path or the Workgroup Templates path from Office or from Word, the change will be reflected in the other programs.

To Change the Template Location Using the Office Shortcut Bar

  1. Double-click a blank area of the Microsoft Office Shortcut toolbar.

    The Customize dialog box appears.


  2. Click the Settings tab.


  3. Select the item to change (for example, User Templates Location), and click Modify.


  4. In the Setting line, type the new path for the templates.


  5. Click OK, and then click OK again.


Additional query words: 7.0 word7 word95 winword word8 word97

Keywords :
Version : WINDOWS:7.0,7.0a,97
Platform : WINDOWS
Issue type : kbhowto


Last Reviewed: September 22, 1999
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