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Building Blocks for Quick Tables and Text Boxes

Anonymous
2023-05-26T20:06:25+00:00

I've created specifically designed Quick Tables and Text Boxes and saved them as Building Blocks in a Word template. I'm using Office16. What is the best way to distribute my template to template users to ensure they can access my specially designed Quick Tables and Text Boxes? Thank you!

Microsoft 365 and Office | Word | For business | Windows

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John Korchok 232.7K Reputation points Volunteer Moderator
2023-05-26T21:26:36+00:00

Open your template in Word, double-checking that the template is open, not a document created from it. Select a text box that you want to include in the template, then choose Insert>Quick Parts>AutoText>Save Selection to AutoText Gallery. In the Gallery dropdown, choose Text Boxes. To make your custom content stand out, click on the Category dropdown, then select Create New Category and give the category a name like .Custom.

Then, in use, when your template is open and a user chooses Insert>Text Box, your text box will appear at the top of the list in the .Custom category.

Saving a table uses the same steps, but you would choose the Tables Gallery.

AutoText travels with the template and is available to documents created from that template. Using this method, users don't have to add anything to Word's Startup menu, making it easier to use. The AutoText will be available to both Windows and Mac users.

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  1. John Korchok 232.7K Reputation points Volunteer Moderator
    2023-06-01T20:55:37+00:00

    Charles has outlined the problem. You would have to send a template rather than a document for users to have access to the AutoText. Once you send a document out, it becomes detached from its template and can no longer display that content.

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  2. Charles Kenyon 167.5K Reputation points Volunteer Moderator
    2023-06-01T20:50:35+00:00

    Building Blocks are stored in templates, only in templates.

    Where can Building Blocks be stored?

    They are used in documents, but the document must have access to the template to have access to building blocks in the template.

    • In the attached template.
    • In a Global Template that has been loaded into memory.
    • In a template in the Building Blocks folder.

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  3. Charles Kenyon 167.5K Reputation points Volunteer Moderator
    2023-05-27T01:14:29+00:00

    See Where can Building Blocks be stored?

    If the building blocks are for use only with the template, distribute the template for use in creating documents. When it is used, your building blocks will be there.

    If they are for general use, the template could be stored in the user's Word Startup Folder. They will then be available in any document or template on the system. (They can also be stored in the Building Blocks folder, but that can be harder to get to.)

    If you apply a keyboard shortcut to a building block, that shortcut should be stored in the same template as the building block. When it is in the Startup Folder or is the document's template, the shortcut will also be available.

    As John pointed out, they are best stored in the appropriate Gallery. This is easily done on the Insert Text Box menu or the Insert Quick Table menu.

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  4. Stefan Blom 342K Reputation points MVP Volunteer Moderator
    2023-05-26T21:26:22+00:00

    You can send the template (*.dotx) to other people and ask them to put the template in the Startup folder for Word on their computers. Building Blocks will load into memory when they start Word.

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