atw: Re: Authors using DOTM files instead of DOCX files (cross posted to Word-PC)

From: Peter Martin <prescribal@xxxxxxxxx>
To: "austechwriter@xxxxxxxxxxxxx" <austechwriter@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Mon, 9 Oct 2017 10:43:16 +1100

Suzy:
Sounds like a firm basis for an infinite nightmare.

Parts of that experience -- involving the misuse of template files --
seemed surprisingly common in various enterprises I worked in a few years
back (when the similar issue was with .DOT files).

There seems to be a fairly widespread leap of faith a.k.a. lack of real
knowledge involved in quite a few workplaces where the intended use of Word
template files (i.e. "intended" by Microsoft) doesn't seem to register.

I've not seen so much of the more complex problems involved in embedded
macros -- I suspect because there is an awareness of the "macros are
viruses" policies that I think most enterprises adopt these days.

But misunderstanding does seem to occur in basic areas:
1. an assumption that there's more or less no difference between a template
file and the usual doc file  (which can lead to some interesting mysteries
when inevitably a user changes a template file in memory and doesn't notice
a file extent change when the file is saved -- particularly if it goes to a
different folder area).
2. an assumption that if you have say, a template that needs no file
changes, but is simply intended for use in say, printing out a standard
form, you should be saving it as a "Word template" file on the server for
everyone to use.   (Thereby possibly spreading the odd "virus"??)

My own view (not that I had much success in getting it adopted) was that
every real Word template file deployed (e.g .DOTM) should have a note in
bold at the top where preferably the note itself it looks ugly and an
obvious candidate for excision and which says in effect this is a template
file which should be saved to a .DOCX  etc. format immediately and before
you make any changes to it. (And probably also:" If you even attempt to
save any version of this as a .DOTM file without permission your hands will
be cut off.")

Good luck with the 800 pp templates.

-Peter M

On 8 October 2017 at 09:40, Suzy Davis <suzy.davis@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

Hi there

(apologies – long post)

The question: How common is the practice of large author teams to use the
template file, DOTM to create their documents – some of which are 800 pages
long??

I’ve just deployed a new template brand refresh to a little over 22,000
authors in a global engineering and consulting company.

As corporations often do, they thought bringing the template builder in
literally 4 weeks before the brand launch would be enough time.  And they
wanted a macro refresh as well!

An interesting month that I survived, and delivered on time (although we
had to cut a few corners); but there wasn’t any time for document analysis;
or the analysis of the way people need to work.

They accepted that I just needed to do the job in the way I could do it
and achieve the deadline.

One of the main things I saw when I arrived was that authors were using
DOTM files in documents, with an embedded custom Ribbon.  I was notified
that these documents error when the documents are sent to customers or
external collaborators when the macros are taken out (many mail servers
won’t accept DOCM OR DOTM files).  This means that the resulting DOCX with
the Ribbon XML still embedded (as an author won’t know how to take it out)
will error when that document is opened.  They’ve just learn to live and
accept that.

The documents are deployed via SharePoint.

I don’t know much about SharePoint.  When people open the DOTM in
SharePoint it opens the DOTM file on their PC and they happily continue
working in it.  Even when they save as, they don’t notice that it’s a DOTM
file; and if they did and saved it as a DOCX, they would lose macros etc.

I took one look at that and said I’ll move you towards a Microsoft Best
Practice approach – which was to add a macro into the DOTM file, that when
saved to the PC, will save it to a template location, and force the start
of a new document, and load the ribbon from an external addin.  This forces
people to work in the DOCX files not the DOTM files.

The new Ribbon (with macros) is loaded as a global addin (currently via a
SharePoint download and self install), and their new documents are all
attached to a template in a common location (not under the user profile –
yet) which holds the macros and building blocks.

I’d like to move them to a Word\Startup global addin location, and a
template deployment where IT push the templates out rather than people
needing to open from SharePoint (at least for the base corporate templates)
– but that will likely take a year of discussion with IT.

Is this a common practice – working in the DOTM??

First time I’ve encountered it, and I was shocked that someone would
consider that as an option, and can only imagine that they did so while
fairly inexperienced and needing to appease a demanding corporate
stakeholder under a tight timeframe.

In companies deploying templates via Intranets or SharePoint I’ve more
commonly seen DOCX files deployed as templates.

Because of the way they’ve been working they are used to the Ribbon only
being present when they have the document (DOTM) open, and otherwise it’s
not there.

With my method there is some confusion because people are expecting the
Ribbon to work no matter what document is open – but Ribbons only work in
when the building blocks, or styles are present in the current document.

To me it’s the same as trying to use your Bank app on your phone when the
phone is out of range.  You get a message that that button won’t work in
this document, and move on.

From my point of view this is a maintenance nightmare.  If they need new
building blocks or macros, or ribbon alternations we just update the
templates, or the ribbon file, and tell people to download the updated
template or ribbon.

They would have no way to deploy these updates, except by telling people
to copy their document into the new template.  Just what someone needs in
an 800 page document on a time crunch.  Seems bizarre to me, but maybe I’ve
been working the way I’ve been working (and avoiding corporates) for too
long!

Would love to hear your thoughts…

Kind regards Suzy

*Suzy Davis *
*Microsoft Word Templates*

*APPS for MICROSOFT OFFICE*

*& Documentation Projects*

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References:
- atw: Authors using DOTM files instead of DOCX files (cross posted to Word-PC)
  - From: Suzy Davis

atw: Re: Authors using DOTM files instead of DOCX files (cross posted to Word-PC)

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