How do I set Word 2007 to default settings for new documents?

[bhartin1]

Every time I open Word 2007 it seems to be open in a setting from a past
document. I know that Word 2007 has a new default line spacing (1.15) and a
new spacing after paragraph. However, when I open Word with a new document it
is set to the 1.0 spacing with no space after the paragraph. I need word to
completely go back to default settings (including paragraph, font, ruler,
etc.) for every new document. How do I do this?

 

[Herb Tyson [MVP]]

The prescribed method is to delete (or rename) Normal.dotm. If you
previously had Word 2003 or earlier on that computer, there might be a
Normal.dot that's being used to create your new Normal.dotm, and thereby
inheriting older settings. So, you might need to delete (or rename)
Normal.dot, as well.

 

[**Niki**]

I had this same problem. Mine was using 2003 as the default. I change it by
using "change styles." Click on the arrow on the "change styles" button. It
pulls up a list. Click on the one that says "style set." Choose "Word 2007"
Then, click the arrow again in "change styles" and click "set as default."
That fixed my problem permanetaly to open in 2007 settings. Hope this helps.

 

[rohan.boyapati]

It is still staying the same.

 

[Stefan Blom]

Usually, changing the defaults in the Manage Styles dialog box should do the
trick. Create a new, blank document (for example by pressing Ctrl+N). In the
Styles pane (Ctrl+Alt+Shift+S), click the Manage Styles button, and then
click the Set Defaults tab. Make the desired changes, select "New documents
based on this template," and click OK. If/when you are prompted to save
changes to the Normal template, choose to do so. If that doesn't work,
something is preventing you from saving correctly to the Normal template.
This needs separate troubleshooting.

However, as a workaround, open Normal as a document and change the defaults
directly in the file. The easiest way is as follows: In Word, press Alt+F11
to display the Visual Basic Editor. Activate the Immediate window by
pressing Ctrl+G. Type

NormalTemplate.OpenAsDocument

and press Enter. Normal opens in a separate window (and you should now close
the Visual Basic Editor). Make the changes in the Manage Styles dialog, save
and close the template.