Forum Discussion
cedi0003
Nov 20, 2023Copper Contributor
Problem transferring my Word shortcuts to clean local installs of Word using custom .dotm -> AppData
Here are my circumstances: University campus where I am frequently changing between PCs, with the following properties Each PC I access has a shared intranet e.g., C:\Users\[myName] and my OneDr...
- Nov 20, 2023
Chris Woodman's utility is not an .exe file. His original is a .dot template and my updated version is a .dotm template.
Styles should be stored in document, not global templates. The Normal template is an exception but should not be a shared template. Look into using a Workgroup Templates folder to hold your document templates. You can copy styles from one template to another using the Organizer. You should also look into storing some style customizations in [Quick] Style Sets. See my article [Quick] Style Sets and Word Themes in Microsoft Word.
- You can set your Word Startup Folder to be any folder you want. You do not use templates in the startup folder as the basis for new documents. These are Global Templates that share many customizations with all other documents and templates when they are "loaded.." They are automatically loaded by being in the Startup Folder.
- When you double-click on a .dotx or .dotm template, it creates a new document based on that template and is attached to that template. See What is the relationship between a Microsoft Word document and its template? Keyboard shortcuts, macros, and QAT modifications in a document template are not inherited by the document but are available so long as the template is attached. The same modifications that are in a global template are available in all documents on a machine where that template is loaded. Styles in a template become styles in the document and travel with the document.
- Editing, renaming, and copying templates that contain keyboard shortcuts does not change the shortcuts.
- I keep my Normal.dotm, my User Templates Folder, my Workgroup Templates folder and my Startup Folder in folders on my computer which are synced to Dropbox. I have all of my computers synced to the same Dropbox folders but the settings for the file locations of those are the local files that are synced. I am not that trusting of cloud folders. In addition, I regularly backup my Normal.dotm file using a macro. Backup Normal.dotm template using a macro
- My custom building blocks are virtually all stored in global templates, not in the Building Blocks.dotx file nor the Normal.dotm file.
- See Word 2007 & Later Key Data File Locations for other files that you may want to be backing up, especially including language-specific custom dictionary files and AutoCorrect. See How to Backup/Copy/Move AutoCorrect Entries and Mastering the Spelling Checker by Suzanne Barnhill, MVP .
cedi0003
Nov 20, 2023Copper Contributor
Thankyou for your reply Charles.
- Re: dotm vs dotx, that's useful information, thankyou. I don't currently rely on any macros so I will probably revert to dotx
- So you're saying that, when moving between several machines, it's easier to leave normal.dotm alone and have a one or more dotx files with styles and keyboard shortcuts in them? Sub questions:
- Because of my university intranet setup, my Word startup folder (which I think is AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Templates?) is not shared across the many PCs I use. If I simply store them in a OneDrive folder and double click them to use them, will I be safe from losing my keyboard shortcuts?
- Does changing a dotx filename destroy the keyboard shortcuts associated with it?
- When I double click a dotx, it makes a new unsaved document. Will these documents reliably inherit the shortcuts of the dotx file that I double-clicked to create them? Including when moving across machines?
- Thanks for Chris Woodman utility. This will be handy on my laptop, but won't be an option at the university because they disallow exe files.
Charles_Kenyon
Nov 20, 2023Bronze Contributor
Chris Woodman's utility is not an .exe file. His original is a .dot template and my updated version is a .dotm template.
Styles should be stored in document, not global templates. The Normal template is an exception but should not be a shared template. Look into using a Workgroup Templates folder to hold your document templates. You can copy styles from one template to another using the Organizer. You should also look into storing some style customizations in [Quick] Style Sets. See my article [Quick] Style Sets and Word Themes in Microsoft Word.
- You can set your Word Startup Folder to be any folder you want. You do not use templates in the startup folder as the basis for new documents. These are Global Templates that share many customizations with all other documents and templates when they are "loaded.." They are automatically loaded by being in the Startup Folder.
- When you double-click on a .dotx or .dotm template, it creates a new document based on that template and is attached to that template. See What is the relationship between a Microsoft Word document and its template? Keyboard shortcuts, macros, and QAT modifications in a document template are not inherited by the document but are available so long as the template is attached. The same modifications that are in a global template are available in all documents on a machine where that template is loaded. Styles in a template become styles in the document and travel with the document.
- Editing, renaming, and copying templates that contain keyboard shortcuts does not change the shortcuts.
- I keep my Normal.dotm, my User Templates Folder, my Workgroup Templates folder and my Startup Folder in folders on my computer which are synced to Dropbox. I have all of my computers synced to the same Dropbox folders but the settings for the file locations of those are the local files that are synced. I am not that trusting of cloud folders. In addition, I regularly backup my Normal.dotm file using a macro. Backup Normal.dotm template using a macro
- My custom building blocks are virtually all stored in global templates, not in the Building Blocks.dotx file nor the Normal.dotm file.
- See Word 2007 & Later Key Data File Locations for other files that you may want to be backing up, especially including language-specific custom dictionary files and AutoCorrect. See How to Backup/Copy/Move AutoCorrect Entries and Mastering the Spelling Checker by Suzanne Barnhill, MVP .