Note: To save a selection as AutoText, on the Insert tab, in the Text group, click Quick Parts > AutoText > Save Selection to AutoText Gallery.On Windows you can create and categorise building blocks and use Quick Part previews. Your own custom AutoText entries will be found in the.On the Insert tab, in the Text group, click Quick Parts, and then click Save Selection to Quick Part Gallery, change the name and add a description if you like, and click OK. Choose InsertAutoText and choose any existing AutoText entry to insert at the current cursor location.Wouldn’t it be a shame if you somehow lost all that hard work? Yet I frequently hear horror stories from editors who have lost their shortcuts to computer crashes or simple carelessness (overwriting a key file), and reinstalling or upgrading Word can erase the files that store your shortcuts and dictionaries if you’re not vigilant about the installation options. You’ve also probably spent some time adding words to the software’s custom dictionaries, and may even have created specialized dictionaries for certain genres that have their own jargon. You probably even depend on them for getting work done efficiently. If you’re as gung ho as I am, you’ve accumulated a significant collection of these shortcuts. In a.If you’ve used Microsoft Word for any length of time, you’ve probably begun using its key automation features, such as macros and automatic text.For simplicity, I’ll refer to Macintosh versions of Word as MacWord and Windows versions as WinWord version numbers follow in brackets.When I came into office to work yesterday morning, I found that MS Word (2016) did not have my customized Auto Texts list. In this article, I’ll point you in the right directions. On the Insert tab, in the Text group, choose the Quick Parts button and then select AutoText:Of course, to do this you need to figure out where these files are located, both for spur-of-the-moment backups and as part of your ongoing backup strategy (i.e., telling your backup software where to look). Word replaces the name with the entire AutoText entry.To locate these files, look in the options (WinWord) or preferences (MacWord) dialog boxes: Other search engines may use different syntax.) Word templatesMost of Word’s customizations are stored in its template files. (Note that in Google, you must place double quotes on both sides of all words or phrases that must appear in the search results. If you can’t find the files, search the Web with the following search terms in double quotes: your software’s version number, the file type, and other key words such as location that narrow the search, for example, search for “Word 2016” “Normal.dotm” “template location”. I’ll provide the most likely locations for three recent and still commonly used versions of Word.
![]() To learn where Word stores these files: If you’re part of a workgroup and use shared templates, ask your manager to ensure the “workgroup templates” are also included in the backups. MacWord (2011): Word menu > Preferences > Personal settings > File locationsThe “user templates” are the ones that store most of your keyboard customizations, automatic text (now called “building blocks”), and macros. To retain Word’s default choice, navigate upwards through the directory hierarchy, recording the directory path as you go. Mine are stored at the root of the directory for my client files, and are automatically included in my backups. To choose your own template location and make them easier to find, use this dialog box to move to an appropriate part of your hard disk (i.e., one you can remember), and create a new directory with a memorable name such as “Geoff templates”. Word displays a standard file selection dialog box. When you need to find them in a hurry (e.g., to make a manual backup before reinstalling Word), simply double-click the shortcut.Caution: You can usually move templates between versions of Word, but there are constraints. To get to these directories easily, create a shortcut (Windows) or an alias (Mac) to the directory that contains them. Note that if you haven’t moved your template directory someplace more convenient, you’ll notice that these files are buried deep in your hard drive. If you’ve designed any custom templates for specific purposes (e.g., creating and editing a client’s newsletter), include these files in your backups, too. Building Blocks (formerly AutoText)In older versions of Word, Microsoft provided a feature called “AutoText” that let you store large chunks of text containing complex formatting. It’s tedious, but your best bet is to recreate these customizations from scratch in the other operating system. Every time I’ve tried, I’ve found subtle but significant ongoing problems. Second, don’t try moving templates from MacWord to WinWord or vice versa. In that case, they will be stored in Building Blocks.dotm. However, you have the option of saving new building blocks in a “named gallery” (i.e., a special-purpose collection of building blocks). WinWord (20): By default, creating new building blocks stores them in the Normal.dotm template. MacWord still calls this feature AutoText, but in WinWord it’s been incorporated in the “Building Blocks” feature: There is one file per language. WinWord (20): C: > Users > AppData > Roaming > Microsoft > Office. Although you can use your computer’s “find file” function to locate these files, it’s simpler to navigate directly to where they’re stored: Note that in Windows, the “.ACL” part of the file name may not be visible if you have not set Windows to display filename extensions. However, if you create a template and open that template for editing, you have the option of storing new AutoText only in that template.AutoCorrect entries are shorter versions of AutoText and are stored in two places: formatted ones are stored in Normal.dotm, and unformatted ones are stored in separate files with “.ACL” at the end of the name (Windows) or as part of the name (Mac). AutoTexts are stored by default in Normal.dotm. Autotext Word 2016 Code Numbers CanBy default, macros are stored in Normal.dotm, but you can also store them in templates that you create for special purposes. MacrosMacros are small programs that perform a series of actions (e.g., opening menus, selecting options, and applying them to text) in a single keystroke or via the appropriate dialog box. If you can't find the most current version of this file at the location specified above, look here instead: > Library > Application Support > Microsoft > Office > Preferences > Office 2011As in the case of templates, create a shortcut or alias that will get you to these files quickly. Autocorrect files for other languages will include the corresponding language name.Change for Word 2011: During one of the recent service releases (patches) for Word 2011, Microsoft changed the location of the autocorrect files. MacWord (2011): > Library > Preferences > Microsoft > Office 2011 > Microsoft Office ACL. For non-US-English ACL files, the relationships between the languages and the code numbers can be found in the Microsoft article "List of supported locale identifiers in Word". Don’t worry: you’re only quitting the editor, not Word! Keyboard shortcutsKeyboard shortcuts are created using the “customize keyboard” dialog box. To escape from this editor, press Alt+F4 in Windows or Command+Q on the Mac. You can now copy the text and paste it into a Word document for safekeeping should you ever need to recreate that macro, you can copy the text from that repository and paste it into the macro editor. MacWord (2011): Tools menu > Macro > MacrosIn the Macros dialog box, select the macro you want to inspect and click the Edit button to display the macro in Word’s macro editor software. WinWord (20): Ribbon > View tab > Macros icon > View macros To view the code for your macros (in case you want to copy that code to create a manual backup, as I describe later in this article), open the macros dialog box: For example, I can copy and paste macro code into the macro editor window instead of having to re-record or rewrite the code. Should I ever need to recreate these shortcuts and find myself separated from my backups (e.g., while I’m traveling), I can recreate all of my customizations in an hour or so by working diligently through this file, one item at a time. A manual alternativeI store all of my automatic text, macros, and a list of keyboard shortcuts and customizations that I’ve created in a file named (logically enough) “Keyboard customizations”. If you choose to store them in a different template, be sure to include that template in your backups. Legacy client for mac(You’d be surprised how often that happens. Moreover, I periodically skim this file to see which of my shortcuts I’ve forgotten about and should be using.
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