Word Master Documents

[PeteB]

FIX Word's MASTER DOCUMENTS!!!

The product manager(s) at MS Word just need to get it in their heads that
they need to come up with a much better method to create complex documents
THAT WORKS (not like crap as it does now)!

I am using Word 2003 but have not heard that it has gotten any better.

Pete

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http://www.microsoft.com/office/com...da3715&dg=microsoft.public.word.docmanagement

 

[Ben M. Schorr - MVP (OneNote)]

I'm noticing a pattern here. You stridently insist some feature be
fixed but you don't specify in what way it's broken. And you're not
even using Word 2007 to begin with so really you're insisting something
be fixed when you have only hearsay to understand how it works now.

So...specifically...in what way are Word's master documents broken in
Word 2007, in your opinion?

Best wishes and aloha,

--
-Ben-
Ben M. Schorr, MVP
Roland Schorr & Tower
http://www.rolandschorr.com
http://www.officeforlawyers.com
Author - The Lawyer's Guide to Microsoft Outlook 2007:
http://tinyurl.com/5m3f5q

 

[Herb Tyson [MVP]]

The master document feature has been broken in *every* version of Word
since the feature was first introduced. In short, using the feature almost
inevitably results in all or part of the document becoming hopelessly
corrupted. Many could benefit from a trustworthy master document feature. My
reading is that the OP needs the feature and wishes for a version of Word in
which it works reliably.

Because of the new file format, I had high hopes for master documents in
Word 2007. Unfortunately, the last time I checked (SP1), the feature was
still broken (i.e., still spontaneously corrupting documents). I have not
ventured into master documents in Word 2007 SP2, but I've read nothing that
suggests it was one of the fixes.

For more on why master documents should be avoided by people who value their
documents, see:

http://word.mvps.org/faqs/general/WhyMasterDocsCorrupt.htm

John McGhie also points to an article describing a "safe" way to use master
documents. IMO, the rules that need to be followed to avoid corruption are
very difficult to enforce when working with a group of authors, and not all
that easy to follow when working alone. In any case, master documents need
to be made unbreakable and robust before they can be used with reliability
and confidence.

 

[Ben M. Schorr - MVP (OneNote)]

Fair enough - I'm merely encouraging the OP to light a candle rather
than simply cursing the darkness.

--
-Ben-
Ben M. Schorr, MVP
Roland Schorr & Tower
http://www.rolandschorr.com
http://www.officeforlawyers.com
Author - The Lawyer's Guide to Microsoft Outlook 2007:
http://tinyurl.com/5m3f5q

 

[Herb Tyson [MVP]]

Right. But, since you asked the question, I thought I'd break out a
flashlight for any lurkers who might be tempted to play with fire. ;-)

Cheers,

 

[PeteB]

Thanks Herb for the very good information on how Broken Word Master Documents
are.

My suggestion was in hopes of all the people who would like to have a decent
master document function would vote their agreement and that "FIX Word's
MASTER DOCUMENTS!!!" would get their approval.

I have searched the help, mvp, blog sites for any word that master documents
were fixed in 2007 but alas the only thing I found was that Microsoft removed
all references to it in the Word Help files, SAD.

Pete

 

[Herb Tyson [MVP]]

Actually, Master Documents are mentioned exactly twice (as far as I can
tell) in the local Help system for Word 2007. Both mentions are essentially
parenthetical. Hopefully, this feature will be fully useful at some point in
the future, but given the nature of the problem, I suspect it's going to
have to be completely redesigned from the ground up.

--
Herb Tyson MS MVP
Author of the Word 2007 Bible
Blog: http://word2007bible.herbtyson.com
Web: http://www.herbtyson.com