Create Your Own Custom Word Templates

If you don't like Arial font, you never need to use it again, even when writing a new document in Word version 2002. You can create a template of your favorite font styles and sizes and use it whenever you want—it's nearly as easy as creating a new document. For example, you can create a document template in which Comic Sans, not Arial, is the default font.

To create a custom template:

1.            On the View menu, select Task Pane.

2.            If the New Document task pane is not visible, select it from the drop-down menu in the upper right corner of the task pane.

3.            In the New Document task pane, click General Templates.

4.            In the Templates dialog box that appears, select the General tab, and click Blank Document once to select it (this will be the base for your new template).

5.            Under the Create New section, click Template, and then click OK.

6.            In the new template, add any text and graphics you want to appear in all new documents that you base on the template, and delete any items you don't want to appear.

7.            Make the changes you want to the margin settings, page size and orientation, styles, and other formats. For example, change the font to Comic Sans.

8.            On the File menu, click Save, give your template a name, and then click Close on the File menu.

Your new, customized template will then be available as a choice under General Templates in the New Document task pane.




97 Microsoft Word Tips and Tricks

Specify Spacing Between Sentences in Word

Whether you prefer to use one space or two between sentences, Word can help you ensure that spacing is consistent within a single document and from one document to the next. You can do this by setting rules for grammar and style.

To set rules for grammar and style:

1.            On the Tools menu, click Options, and then click the Spelling & Grammar tab.

2.            Click Settings.

3.            In the Grammar and style options box under Require, select the options you want for number of spaces required between sentences.

To restore the original rules of the selected grammar and writing style, click Reset All.

Editor's Note: If you are setting options for text written in a language other than your language version of Word, the options may vary slightly. For example, some group names might be different, and others, such as Require, may not appear.