Word Save as prob

[Rob Pomeroy]

No no no.  There are two different file access methods for Word template documents.  The default action (selected by double-clicking on the file in Explorer) is "New".  It creates a completely new file BASED on the template, and is not the same as opening the template.  The other action is "Open" which you can access if you right-click on the template in Explorer and choose "Open".

This has been the case since early versions of Word for Windows.

[soybean]

Well, zylstra555, I believe I understand your thinking here.  You're saying why would Word let you modify a template because you then lose the original template.  Right?  But, in fact, my tests with both Word 2003 and Word 97 worked the same.  I could open a never before opened template, make a change to it, and Word allowed me to save it without any alert or prompt asking me to confirm that I want to overwrite the existing file.

So, if preservation of the original template deemed desireable, then the user should open one of the original MS templates and save it under a different name.  Since I really haven't used templates much, I'm thinking the other logical approach is to simply open a template and save it as a regular Word document.  Is there any particular reason to retain the template file format?  I think not, unless converting it to .doc results in loss of some features in the template; indeed, this may be the reason to retain the template format.

However, Word 97 would not let me change a template to a document; Word 2003 will allow this via Save As.

Edit: I intended this to follow zylstra555 previous post, not Rob Pomeroy's; somehow, I did not see Rob's post before posting this.