inserting boilerplate into a document

[cliffordjf]

We are a contracts office and use different standard boilerplates sections as
we build contracts. We have access to a common shared file where I can put
"master boilerplate parts"

Can individual users insert the "boilerplate parts" without having to open
the shared files and copying and pasting? I was wondering if there was some
feature like search and replace, or autocorrect that we could use that would
call in the sections as needed from the master file.

thanx

cjf

 

[Jay Freedman]

We are a contracts office and use different standard boilerplates sections as
we build contracts. We have access to a common shared file where I can put
"master boilerplate parts"

Can individual users insert the "boilerplate parts" without having to open
the shared files and copying and pasting? I was wondering if there was some
feature like search and replace, or autocorrect that we could use that would
call in the sections as needed from the master file.

thanx

cjf

There are a multitude of ways to do this. Which one will work best depends on
what version(s) of Word the users have, how often the boilerplate changes, and
whether the users are always connected to the server vs. traveling with laptops
or working at home.

If you like to maintain the single file, enclose each "boilerplate part" in a
bookmark. The users can choose the Insert > File command in Word 2003 or
earlier, or Insert > Object > Text From File in Word 2007, and enter the name of
the bookmark to be pulled from that file.

You could save the parts as AutoText entries in Word 2003 or earlier, or as
Building Blocks (which include AutoText and other kinds of things) in Word 2007.
These must be saved in a template, and you can use a login script to copy that
template from the server to each user's computer. See
http://www.word.mvps.org/FAQs/Customization/AutoText.htm and (for copying
templates) http://www.word.mvps.org/FAQs/MacrosVBA/DistributeMacros.htm.

You can use AutoCorrect in a way similar to AutoText, but it's a bit harder to
share them. See
http://www.word.mvps.org/FAQs/Customization/ExportAutocorrect.htm and, for Word
2007, http://support.microsoft.com/kb/926927.