Microsoft Word, part of the Office range, has templates available directly from the initial start screen. They are shown in New section and clicking on any of them will open a New document. Templates created by a user can also be added to this list by saving to the default location for Word Templates. Scroll down the list of templates and you'll find ideas such as a creative CV and cover letter, write a journal, newsletters, brochures, and leaflets.
If there is a document open then the start screen and the option to open a new template can be found by going to the File menu and selecting New from Template...
To open Word document templates from a location on the hard disk or network drive then select the Open button on the start screen and a file browser will be available to locate the desired template. Templates for Word will be stored with the file extension .dotx as opposed to the usual .docx for a normal Word document.
A Word document that has been created and formatted to be used as a template for other documents can easily be saved using the File Save as Template... menu option. The default location, usually in the Users default documents location (different between the Mac and PC), is selected initially, but can be changed to any folder on the hard disk or network drive. If saved in the default location then the Word Template will be available directly from the start screen, or by browsing for it using the Open button on the start screen.
Tips for Word Templates
- If you are creating a Word template the start with a blank document, rather than an existing document. Add all the styles, formatting and layout to the blank document. You then know exactly what is in the template. Using an existing document might seem like a quick method, but there may be unwanted formatting saved.
- In general it is better to create new templates for each specific task, and not edit the base template at Normal.dotx.
- Make sure you know where the templates are stored. They can either be in the default Word template location, or in a directory that you have chosen to save them in. It is easy to change the default personal template location in Word preferences so that templates are automatically saved to a folder of your choice.