Custom word theme loading incorrect fonts

Question

Hi there,

I need some help with Microsoft Word for Mac 2011.

I am trying to create a custom theme so that I can apply it to my documents.

What I did was loaded a theme, then changed the styles. After editing the styles to exactly what I wanted, I saved the theme out to a thmx file.

The problem is that when I load the new theme onto a document, it is loading the wrong fonts. It is loading the original fonts/styles and not the ones that I had set up.

Please see this video I created showing the problem:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/pjq4ms7ydmgnfcw/word\_mac\_2011\_support\_request.mp4

Thank you for any help!

Leonard

Answer 1

Not my strong suit :-) but as I understand it the Theme Fonts file is not included in the .thmx file itself. It's stored as a separate .xml file in the Theme Fonts folder & the .thmx contains only a reference to it. Have a look in ~:Applications:Microsoft Office 2011:Office:Media:Office Themes:Theme Fonts for examples.

IOW, I don't believe the .xml file is written into the .thmx -- an Office Theme doesn't dictate the fonts used, it merely designates the default fonts for that theme.

Custom Theme Fonts appear at the top of the Fonts list in the Themes group on the Layout tab of the ribbon. When you save an Office Theme the currently selected Theme Fonts file is specified in the custom .thmx created at that time.

I would also expect that in order for a Custom Theme to be fully functional on another system any  Custom Theme Colors & Custom Theme Fonts files would also have to be present on that system in addition to the .thmx & the fonts, themselves.

Answer 2

Hi Bob,

That's very helpful. Thanks for that.

I am very proficient at development, but I found that the .thmx file is a binary file (not plain text XML) so I was wondering if you know where I can find the .xml specification to follow?

Thanks again,

Leonard

Answer 3

Mac Office has not yet reached the point of being able to do what you're attempting. You can select from the built-in Font Schemes which set to specify in a custom Theme but you cannot designate specific fonts or combinations of fonts that aren't already a part of the built-in Themes. See: Need to set up my own custom font themes in Word 2011 for Macintosh.

Note: If you happen to be proficient with XML you may be able to write the code for a Theme Fonts file.