Long documetns vs master document

Everything I read told me there is such risk of corruption with master
documents in Word that it is wise to not use them. Well, when dealing with
a large document - such as 300+ pages for a book - that is subdivided into
many chapters, what is the best way to manage it? Separate chapter files
would create problems with later page numbering, TOCs, etc. A single large
file has its own risks.

What is the best approach? I am using Word 97 and do not wish to update.

Thanks.

--
Jeff McPherson
Email address deliberately false to avoid spam
jeff@falsepart.com

TF
Sat Oct 04 05:48:49 CDT 2003

Jeff

A single large file is the best answer. Assuming that this is an important
document and you are running a stand alone computer, then I recommend the
following procedure.

1. Make a daily (or twice-daily) back up onto some removable media - such
as a ZIP disk or a CDR. (Note routinely verify that the backups actually
work and NEVER save directly to the removable media. Always save to the
local HDD first and then copy/burn to removable media.)

2. Save regularly. I have remapped my keys so that SAVE is assigned to
F12 and SaveAs to shift+F12. This means that at any convenient
pause/break/interruption, I only have to press F12 to save my work. You will
soon get into this habit!

3. Make sure that under Tools, Options, Save tab that you have FastSaves
deselected. In fact, in that dialog, the only check mark I ever use is Allow
Background Saves as I have never trusted any of the other settings to work
correctly and I always suspected that the AutoSave every X minutes was the
devil's work.

4. Frequently make sure that when all applications are closed your
temporary folder is empty. It is a TEMP folder and files should only ever be
in their temporarily. So after a fresh reboot of the computer, go to Windows
Explorer and navigate to the TEMP folder and empty it regularly.

5. Create one long document and do not use section breaks unless you
absolutely have to. You will probably want to change your header or footer
when you change Chapters? Look at the StyleRef field and IF fields for
changing H&Fs without the need to insert section breaks. This will keep the
document structure simple, small and reduce the risk of corruption.

6. Use Styles, Styles and more Styles. Don't be tempted to create a whole
document in Normal Style with masses of direct formatting. Avoid direct
formatting as much as possible. Following these methods will also keep the
document structure simple and reduce the possibility of corruption.

7. Finally, don't use manual page breaks. These are also the work of the
devil too. Use PageBreakBefore in the next paragraph to create a new page.
If it is going to be the beginning of a new Chapter, give the Chapter
Heading Style a PageBreakBefore attribute.

Keep asking questions in this NG for any further help you may require.

--
Terry Farrell - Word MVP




"Jeff Malka" <jeff@falsepart.com> wrote in message
news:uk$n4UliDHA.560@tk2msftngp13.phx.gbl...
Everything I read told me there is such risk of corruption with master
documents in Word that it is wise to not use them. Well, when dealing with
a large document - such as 300+ pages for a book - that is subdivided into
many chapters, what is the best way to manage it? Separate chapter files
would create problems with later page numbering, TOCs, etc. A single large
file has its own risks.

What is the best approach? I am using Word 97 and do not wish to update.

Thanks.

--
Jeff McPherson
Email address deliberately false to avoid spam
jeff@falsepart.com

Suzanne
Sat Oct 04 09:46:04 CDT 2003

To add to what Terry has said:

2. I find the built-in shortcut for Save (Ctrl+S) sufficiently easy that I
haven't needed to create another one (much easier for me than locating a
function key).

3. I've had good results with AutoRecover (there is no AutoSave) and I have
been grateful on many occasions for the backups created by "Always create
backup copy" (for more, see
http://home.zebra.net/~sbarnhill/SaveOptions.htm).

4. There are some things in the Temp folder that are not worth deleting
because they will be recreated every time you start Word/Windows. Since I'm
running Word 2002 (Word 10) and have never had another version on this
computer, I totally fail to understand why Word/Windows feels the necessity
to create a folder called Word8.0, but it does, and I won't waste the energy
to delete it every day. Most of the folders thus created are empty or nearly
so; the Word8.0 folder does contain a 163 KB file called MSForms.exd. On an
80 GB HD, I can live with this. <g>

5. You *will* need section breaks if you want to have a different first page
header/footer in each chapter. But if you use StyleRef, you can wait for
final editing before adding these breaks.

6. There are many features that are a lot easier if you use Word's built-in
heading styles and some that are unavailable if you don't (see
http://www.shaunakelly.com/word/numbering/UseBuiltInHeadingStyles.html).

--
Suzanne S. Barnhill
Microsoft MVP (Word)
Words into Type
Fairhope, Alabama USA
Word MVP FAQ site: http://www.mvps.org/word
Email cannot be acknowledged; please post all follow-ups to the newsgroup so
all may benefit.

"TF" <terryfarrell@msn.com> wrote in message
news:blm8ig$i4s$1@hercules.btinternet.com...
> Jeff
>
> A single large file is the best answer. Assuming that this is an important
> document and you are running a stand alone computer, then I recommend the
> following procedure.
>
> 1. Make a daily (or twice-daily) back up onto some removable media -
such
> as a ZIP disk or a CDR. (Note routinely verify that the backups actually
> work and NEVER save directly to the removable media. Always save to the
> local HDD first and then copy/burn to removable media.)
>
> 2. Save regularly. I have remapped my keys so that SAVE is assigned to
> F12 and SaveAs to shift+F12. This means that at any convenient
> pause/break/interruption, I only have to press F12 to save my work. You
will
> soon get into this habit!
>
> 3. Make sure that under Tools, Options, Save tab that you have
FastSaves
> deselected. In fact, in that dialog, the only check mark I ever use is
Allow
> Background Saves as I have never trusted any of the other settings to work
> correctly and I always suspected that the AutoSave every X minutes was the
> devil's work.
>
> 4. Frequently make sure that when all applications are closed your
> temporary folder is empty. It is a TEMP folder and files should only ever
be
> in their temporarily. So after a fresh reboot of the computer, go to
Windows
> Explorer and navigate to the TEMP folder and empty it regularly.
>
> 5. Create one long document and do not use section breaks unless you
> absolutely have to. You will probably want to change your header or footer
> when you change Chapters? Look at the StyleRef field and IF fields for
> changing H&Fs without the need to insert section breaks. This will keep
the
> document structure simple, small and reduce the risk of corruption.
>
> 6. Use Styles, Styles and more Styles. Don't be tempted to create a
whole
> document in Normal Style with masses of direct formatting. Avoid direct
> formatting as much as possible. Following these methods will also keep the
> document structure simple and reduce the possibility of corruption.
>
> 7. Finally, don't use manual page breaks. These are also the work of
the
> devil too. Use PageBreakBefore in the next paragraph to create a new page.
> If it is going to be the beginning of a new Chapter, give the Chapter
> Heading Style a PageBreakBefore attribute.
>
> Keep asking questions in this NG for any further help you may require.
>
> --
> Terry Farrell - Word MVP
>
>
>
>
> "Jeff Malka" <jeff@falsepart.com> wrote in message
> news:uk$n4UliDHA.560@tk2msftngp13.phx.gbl...
> Everything I read told me there is such risk of corruption with master
> documents in Word that it is wise to not use them. Well, when dealing
with
> a large document - such as 300+ pages for a book - that is subdivided into
> many chapters, what is the best way to manage it? Separate chapter files
> would create problems with later page numbering, TOCs, etc. A single large
> file has its own risks.
>
> What is the best approach? I am using Word 97 and do not wish to update.
>
> Thanks.
>
> --
> Jeff McPherson
> Email address deliberately false to avoid spam
> jeff@falsepart.com
>
>
>
>

Dayo
Sat Oct 04 11:56:16 CDT 2003

Thanks to Suzanne and Terry for their great answers, also useful to me and
others (y'all might want to boilerplate those, I'm thinking....)

One further comment, Jeff--working on the same type of project, I've created
my own template and am using styles like mad, based on things learned in
this NG and the microsoft.office.word.formatting.longdocs one, which you may
want to also check out. A current thread there on "Is using 'Styles' worth
the trouble?" may interest you.

I actually keep all my chapters in separate files for now and will join them
later, which I find works for me.

Also investigate these links on styles, headings, templates, etc:

http://www.shaunakelly.com/word/styles/TipsOnStyles.html

http://www.mvps.org/word/FAQs/Formatting/UsingOLView.htm

http://officeupdate.microsoft.com/legal/Styles.asp and a supplemented
version of the same article, http://www.addbalance.com/usersguide/index.htm

http://www.mvps.org/word/FAQs/Customization/CreateATemplatePart1.htm

http://www.mvps.org/word/FAQs/Formatting/WorkWithSections.htm

http://www.mvps.org/word/FAQs/Customization/CreateATemplatePart2.htm

http://www.shaunakelly.com/word/numbering/UseBuiltInHeadingStyles.html

All three of those host sites (http://www.mvps.org/word/FAQs,
http://www.addbalance.com, http://www.shaunakelly.com) have great info on
using Word.

DM


On 10/4/03 10:46 AM, "Suzanne S. Barnhill" <sbarnhill@mvps.org> wrote:

> To add to what Terry has said:
>
> 2. I find the built-in shortcut for Save (Ctrl+S) sufficiently easy that I
> haven't needed to create another one (much easier for me than locating a
> function key).
>
> 3. I've had good results with AutoRecover (there is no AutoSave) and I have
> been grateful on many occasions for the backups created by "Always create
> backup copy" (for more, see
> http://home.zebra.net/~sbarnhill/SaveOptions.htm).
>
> 4. There are some things in the Temp folder that are not worth deleting
> because they will be recreated every time you start Word/Windows. Since I'm
> running Word 2002 (Word 10) and have never had another version on this
> computer, I totally fail to understand why Word/Windows feels the necessity
> to create a folder called Word8.0, but it does, and I won't waste the energy
> to delete it every day. Most of the folders thus created are empty or nearly
> so; the Word8.0 folder does contain a 163 KB file called MSForms.exd. On an
> 80 GB HD, I can live with this. <g>
>
> 5. You *will* need section breaks if you want to have a different first page
> header/footer in each chapter. But if you use StyleRef, you can wait for
> final editing before adding these breaks.
>
> 6. There are many features that are a lot easier if you use Word's built-in
> heading styles and some that are unavailable if you don't (see
> http://www.shaunakelly.com/word/numbering/UseBuiltInHeadingStyles.html).
>
> --
> Suzanne S. Barnhill
> Microsoft MVP (Word)
> Words into Type
> Fairhope, Alabama USA
> Word MVP FAQ site: http://www.mvps.org/word
> Email cannot be acknowledged; please post all follow-ups to the newsgroup so
> all may benefit.
>
> "TF" <terryfarrell@msn.com> wrote in message
> news:blm8ig$i4s$1@hercules.btinternet.com...
>> Jeff
>>
>> A single large file is the best answer. Assuming that this is an important
>> document and you are running a stand alone computer, then I recommend the
>> following procedure.
>>
>> 1. Make a daily (or twice-daily) back up onto some removable media -
> such
>> as a ZIP disk or a CDR. (Note routinely verify that the backups actually
>> work and NEVER save directly to the removable media. Always save to the
>> local HDD first and then copy/burn to removable media.)
>>
>> 2. Save regularly. I have remapped my keys so that SAVE is assigned to
>> F12 and SaveAs to shift+F12. This means that at any convenient
>> pause/break/interruption, I only have to press F12 to save my work. You
> will
>> soon get into this habit!
>>
>> 3. Make sure that under Tools, Options, Save tab that you have
> FastSaves
>> deselected. In fact, in that dialog, the only check mark I ever use is
> Allow
>> Background Saves as I have never trusted any of the other settings to work
>> correctly and I always suspected that the AutoSave every X minutes was the
>> devil's work.
>>
>> 4. Frequently make sure that when all applications are closed your
>> temporary folder is empty. It is a TEMP folder and files should only ever
> be
>> in their temporarily. So after a fresh reboot of the computer, go to
> Windows
>> Explorer and navigate to the TEMP folder and empty it regularly.
>>
>> 5. Create one long document and do not use section breaks unless you
>> absolutely have to. You will probably want to change your header or footer
>> when you change Chapters? Look at the StyleRef field and IF fields for
>> changing H&Fs without the need to insert section breaks. This will keep
> the
>> document structure simple, small and reduce the risk of corruption.
>>
>> 6. Use Styles, Styles and more Styles. Don't be tempted to create a
> whole
>> document in Normal Style with masses of direct formatting. Avoid direct
>> formatting as much as possible. Following these methods will also keep the
>> document structure simple and reduce the possibility of corruption.
>>
>> 7. Finally, don't use manual page breaks. These are also the work of
> the
>> devil too. Use PageBreakBefore in the next paragraph to create a new page.
>> If it is going to be the beginning of a new Chapter, give the Chapter
>> Heading Style a PageBreakBefore attribute.
>>
>> Keep asking questions in this NG for any further help you may require.
>>
>> --
>> Terry Farrell - Word MVP
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> "Jeff Malka" <jeff@falsepart.com> wrote in message
>> news:uk$n4UliDHA.560@tk2msftngp13.phx.gbl...
>> Everything I read told me there is such risk of corruption with master
>> documents in Word that it is wise to not use them. Well, when dealing
> with
>> a large document - such as 300+ pages for a book - that is subdivided into
>> many chapters, what is the best way to manage it? Separate chapter files
>> would create problems with later page numbering, TOCs, etc. A single large
>> file has its own risks.
>>
>> What is the best approach? I am using Word 97 and do not wish to update.
>>
>> Thanks.
>>
>> --
>> Jeff McPherson
>> Email address deliberately false to avoid spam
>> jeff@falsepart.com
>>
>>
>>
>>
>

Jeff
Sat Oct 04 14:46:16 CDT 2003

Dear Suzanne

Thank you. What a terrific group of experts. I will check out the
referenced links.

A small clarification: is the need to empty TEMP folders because it may be a
cause of corruption or just to save disk space? I am much more concerned
about the former than the latter.

--
Jeff McPherson
Email address deliberately false to avoid spam
jeff@falsepart.com
"Suzanne S. Barnhill" <sbarnhill@mvps.org> wrote in message
news:eZWJ4boiDHA.1796@TK2MSFTNGP10.phx.gbl...
> To add to what Terry has said:
>
> 2. I find the built-in shortcut for Save (Ctrl+S) sufficiently easy that I
> haven't needed to create another one (much easier for me than locating a
> function key).
>
> 3. I've had good results with AutoRecover (there is no AutoSave) and I
have
> been grateful on many occasions for the backups created by "Always create
> backup copy" (for more, see
> http://home.zebra.net/~sbarnhill/SaveOptions.htm).
>
> 4. There are some things in the Temp folder that are not worth deleting
> because they will be recreated every time you start Word/Windows. Since
I'm
> running Word 2002 (Word 10) and have never had another version on this
> computer, I totally fail to understand why Word/Windows feels the
necessity
> to create a folder called Word8.0, but it does, and I won't waste the
energy
> to delete it every day. Most of the folders thus created are empty or
nearly
> so; the Word8.0 folder does contain a 163 KB file called MSForms.exd. On
an
> 80 GB HD, I can live with this. <g>
>
> 5. You *will* need section breaks if you want to have a different first
page
> header/footer in each chapter. But if you use StyleRef, you can wait for
> final editing before adding these breaks.
>
> 6. There are many features that are a lot easier if you use Word's
built-in
> heading styles and some that are unavailable if you don't (see
> http://www.shaunakelly.com/word/numbering/UseBuiltInHeadingStyles.html).
>
> --
> Suzanne S. Barnhill
> Microsoft MVP (Word)
> Words into Type
> Fairhope, Alabama USA
> Word MVP FAQ site: http://www.mvps.org/word
> Email cannot be acknowledged; please post all follow-ups to the newsgroup
so
> all may benefit.
>
> "TF" <terryfarrell@msn.com> wrote in message
> news:blm8ig$i4s$1@hercules.btinternet.com...
> > Jeff
> >
> > A single large file is the best answer. Assuming that this is an
important
> > document and you are running a stand alone computer, then I recommend
the
> > following procedure.
> >
> > 1. Make a daily (or twice-daily) back up onto some removable media -
> such
> > as a ZIP disk or a CDR. (Note routinely verify that the backups actually
> > work and NEVER save directly to the removable media. Always save to the
> > local HDD first and then copy/burn to removable media.)
> >
> > 2. Save regularly. I have remapped my keys so that SAVE is assigned
to
> > F12 and SaveAs to shift+F12. This means that at any convenient
> > pause/break/interruption, I only have to press F12 to save my work. You
> will
> > soon get into this habit!
> >
> > 3. Make sure that under Tools, Options, Save tab that you have
> FastSaves
> > deselected. In fact, in that dialog, the only check mark I ever use is
> Allow
> > Background Saves as I have never trusted any of the other settings to
work
> > correctly and I always suspected that the AutoSave every X minutes was
the
> > devil's work.
> >
> > 4. Frequently make sure that when all applications are closed your
> > temporary folder is empty. It is a TEMP folder and files should only
ever
> be
> > in their temporarily. So after a fresh reboot of the computer, go to
> Windows
> > Explorer and navigate to the TEMP folder and empty it regularly.
> >
> > 5. Create one long document and do not use section breaks unless you
> > absolutely have to. You will probably want to change your header or
footer
> > when you change Chapters? Look at the StyleRef field and IF fields for
> > changing H&Fs without the need to insert section breaks. This will keep
> the
> > document structure simple, small and reduce the risk of corruption.
> >
> > 6. Use Styles, Styles and more Styles. Don't be tempted to create a
> whole
> > document in Normal Style with masses of direct formatting. Avoid direct
> > formatting as much as possible. Following these methods will also keep
the
> > document structure simple and reduce the possibility of corruption.
> >
> > 7. Finally, don't use manual page breaks. These are also the work of
> the
> > devil too. Use PageBreakBefore in the next paragraph to create a new
page.
> > If it is going to be the beginning of a new Chapter, give the Chapter
> > Heading Style a PageBreakBefore attribute.
> >
> > Keep asking questions in this NG for any further help you may require.
> >
> > --
> > Terry Farrell - Word MVP
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > "Jeff Malka" <jeff@falsepart.com> wrote in message
> > news:uk$n4UliDHA.560@tk2msftngp13.phx.gbl...
> > Everything I read told me there is such risk of corruption with master
> > documents in Word that it is wise to not use them. Well, when dealing
> with
> > a large document - such as 300+ pages for a book - that is subdivided
into
> > many chapters, what is the best way to manage it? Separate chapter
files
> > would create problems with later page numbering, TOCs, etc. A single
large
> > file has its own risks.
> >
> > What is the best approach? I am using Word 97 and do not wish to
update.
> >
> > Thanks.
> >
> > --
> > Jeff McPherson
> > Email address deliberately false to avoid spam
> > jeff@falsepart.com
> >
> >
> >
> >
>

Jeff
Sat Oct 04 14:40:44 CDT 2003

Dear Terry,

Thank you very much for your detailed answer. I really appreciate it. I've
used WP5.1 (for DOS!) for decades but recently switched to Word with a copy
that came with a computer I bought years ago but never really used. So, I am
still learning Word and so far I like it. With WP 5.1 I routinely used
master documents and they were no problem, but I heard (and you seem to
confirm) that they are best avoided in Word. I will do so. What worries me
is that recently I had a 10 page Word document that I wrote and discovered
much later that many footnotes had somehow become cross linked. I have no
idea how! Involved a lot of retyping. That is why I was exploring using
multiple "chapter" documents instead of one large one so that the potential
damage would only affect so much of my work <grin>.

> 2. Save regularly. I have remapped my keys so that SAVE is assigned to
> F12 and SaveAs to shift+F12. This means that at any convenient
> pause/break/interruption, I only have to press F12 to save my work. You
will
> soon get into this habit!

That I learned a long time ago :-(, but how do you remap the keys in that
manner?

> 3. Make sure that under Tools, Options, Save tab that you have
FastSaves
> deselected. In fact, in that dialog, the only check mark I ever use is
Allow
> Background Saves as I have never trusted any of the other settings to work
> correctly and I always suspected that the AutoSave every X minutes was the
> devil's work.

Aha! Maybe that is what corrupted my footnotes. Will do. Thanks.

> 4. Frequently make sure that when all applications are closed your
> temporary folder is empty. It is a TEMP folder and files should only ever
be
> in their temporarily. So after a fresh reboot of the computer, go to
Windows
> Explorer and navigate to the TEMP folder and empty it regularly.

I'll create a batch file to do that. Is there no way to force Word to delete
its own temporary files on closing? My PC tends to stay on for weeks between
reboots.

> 7. Finally, don't use manual page breaks. These are also the work of
the
> devil too. Use PageBreakBefore in the next paragraph to create a new page.
> If it is going to be the beginning of a new Chapter, give the Chapter
> Heading Style a PageBreakBefore attribute.

I am confused. By manual page breaks do you mean Ctrl-Enter? What is
PageBreakBefore?

> Keep asking questions in this NG for any further help you may require.
>
Thank you. You have been extremely helpful so far.

-
Jeff McPherson
Email address deliberately false to avoid spam
jeff@falsepart.com
"TF" <terryfarrell@msn.com> wrote in message
news:blm8ig$i4s$1@hercules.btinternet.com...
> Jeff
>
> A single large file is the best answer. Assuming that this is an important
> document and you are running a stand alone computer, then I recommend the
..........
>
> --
> Terry Farrell - Word MVP
>
>
> "Jeff Malka" <jeff@falsepart.com> wrote in message
> news:uk$n4UliDHA.560@tk2msftngp13.phx.gbl...
> Everything I read told me there is such risk of corruption with master
> documents in Word that it is wise to not use them. Well, when dealing
with
> a large document - such as 300+ pages for a book - that is subdivided into
> many chapters, what is the best way to manage it? Separate chapter files
> would create problems with later page numbering, TOCs, etc. A single large
> file has its own risks.
>
> What is the best approach? I am using Word 97 and do not wish to update.
>
> Thanks.
>
> --
> Jeff McPherson
> Email address deliberately false to avoid spam
> jeff@falsepart.com
>

Jeff
Sat Oct 04 14:53:06 CDT 2003

> Thanks to Suzanne and Terry for their great answers, also useful to me and
> others (y'all might want to boilerplate those, I'm thinking....)
>
Yes, I am extremely grateful especially as this is my first foray into this
newslist. Thank you both.

> I actually keep all my chapters in separate files for now and will join
them
> later, which I find works for me.

My gut feeling is to do the same. Hate to put all my eggs in one basket.
When I helped my wife with her PH.D dissertation (she is not into computers
and was confused with master documents in WP) I set it up for her as
chapters which I later put together for her.

--
Jeff McPherson
Email address deliberately false to avoid spam
jeff@falsepart.com
"Dayo Mitchell" <CURRENTLYdayo_OVERRUN@BYhotmail.VIRUScom> wrote in message
news:BBA47359.1507C%CURRENTLYdayo_OVERRUN@BYhotmail.VIRUScom...
> Thanks to Suzanne and Terry for their great answers, also useful to me and
> others (y'all might want to boilerplate those, I'm thinking....)
>
> One further comment, Jeff--working on the same type of project, I've
created
> my own template and am using styles like mad, based on things learned in
> this NG and the microsoft.office.word.formatting.longdocs one, which you
may
> want to also check out. A current thread there on "Is using 'Styles'
worth
> the trouble?" may interest you.
>
> I actually keep all my chapters in separate files for now and will join
them
> later, which I find works for me.
>
> Also investigate these links on styles, headings, templates, etc:
>
> http://www.shaunakelly.com/word/styles/TipsOnStyles.html
>
> http://www.mvps.org/word/FAQs/Formatting/UsingOLView.htm
>
> http://officeupdate.microsoft.com/legal/Styles.asp and a supplemented
> version of the same article,
http://www.addbalance.com/usersguide/index.htm
>
> http://www.mvps.org/word/FAQs/Customization/CreateATemplatePart1.htm
>
> http://www.mvps.org/word/FAQs/Formatting/WorkWithSections.htm
>
> http://www.mvps.org/word/FAQs/Customization/CreateATemplatePart2.htm
>
> http://www.shaunakelly.com/word/numbering/UseBuiltInHeadingStyles.html
>
> All three of those host sites (http://www.mvps.org/word/FAQs,
> http://www.addbalance.com, http://www.shaunakelly.com) have great info on
> using Word.
>
> DM
>
>
> On 10/4/03 10:46 AM, "Suzanne S. Barnhill" <sbarnhill@mvps.org> wrote:
>
> > To add to what Terry has said:
> >
> > 2. I find the built-in shortcut for Save (Ctrl+S) sufficiently easy that
I
> > haven't needed to create another one (much easier for me than locating a
> > function key).
> >
> > 3. I've had good results with AutoRecover (there is no AutoSave) and I
have
> > been grateful on many occasions for the backups created by "Always
create
> > backup copy" (for more, see
> > http://home.zebra.net/~sbarnhill/SaveOptions.htm).
> >
> > 4. There are some things in the Temp folder that are not worth deleting
> > because they will be recreated every time you start Word/Windows. Since
I'm
> > running Word 2002 (Word 10) and have never had another version on this
> > computer, I totally fail to understand why Word/Windows feels the
necessity
> > to create a folder called Word8.0, but it does, and I won't waste the
energy
> > to delete it every day. Most of the folders thus created are empty or
nearly
> > so; the Word8.0 folder does contain a 163 KB file called MSForms.exd. On
an
> > 80 GB HD, I can live with this. <g>
> >
> > 5. You *will* need section breaks if you want to have a different first
page
> > header/footer in each chapter. But if you use StyleRef, you can wait for
> > final editing before adding these breaks.
> >
> > 6. There are many features that are a lot easier if you use Word's
built-in
> > heading styles and some that are unavailable if you don't (see
> > http://www.shaunakelly.com/word/numbering/UseBuiltInHeadingStyles.html).
> >
> > --
> > Suzanne S. Barnhill
> > Microsoft MVP (Word)
> > Words into Type
> > Fairhope, Alabama USA
> > Word MVP FAQ site: http://www.mvps.org/word
> > Email cannot be acknowledged; please post all follow-ups to the
newsgroup so
> > all may benefit.
> >
> > "TF" <terryfarrell@msn.com> wrote in message
> > news:blm8ig$i4s$1@hercules.btinternet.com...
> >> Jeff
> >>
> >> A single large file is the best answer. Assuming that this is an
important
> >> document and you are running a stand alone computer, then I recommend
the
> >> following procedure.
> >>
> >> 1. Make a daily (or twice-daily) back up onto some removable media -
> > such
> >> as a ZIP disk or a CDR. (Note routinely verify that the backups
actually
> >> work and NEVER save directly to the removable media. Always save to the
> >> local HDD first and then copy/burn to removable media.)
> >>
> >> 2. Save regularly. I have remapped my keys so that SAVE is assigned
to
> >> F12 and SaveAs to shift+F12. This means that at any convenient
> >> pause/break/interruption, I only have to press F12 to save my work. You
> > will
> >> soon get into this habit!
> >>
> >> 3. Make sure that under Tools, Options, Save tab that you have
> > FastSaves
> >> deselected. In fact, in that dialog, the only check mark I ever use is
> > Allow
> >> Background Saves as I have never trusted any of the other settings to
work
> >> correctly and I always suspected that the AutoSave every X minutes was
the
> >> devil's work.
> >>
> >> 4. Frequently make sure that when all applications are closed your
> >> temporary folder is empty. It is a TEMP folder and files should only
ever
> > be
> >> in their temporarily. So after a fresh reboot of the computer, go to
> > Windows
> >> Explorer and navigate to the TEMP folder and empty it regularly.
> >>
> >> 5. Create one long document and do not use section breaks unless you
> >> absolutely have to. You will probably want to change your header or
footer
> >> when you change Chapters? Look at the StyleRef field and IF fields for
> >> changing H&Fs without the need to insert section breaks. This will keep
> > the
> >> document structure simple, small and reduce the risk of corruption.
> >>
> >> 6. Use Styles, Styles and more Styles. Don't be tempted to create a
> > whole
> >> document in Normal Style with masses of direct formatting. Avoid direct
> >> formatting as much as possible. Following these methods will also keep
the
> >> document structure simple and reduce the possibility of corruption.
> >>
> >> 7. Finally, don't use manual page breaks. These are also the work of
> > the
> >> devil too. Use PageBreakBefore in the next paragraph to create a new
page.
> >> If it is going to be the beginning of a new Chapter, give the Chapter
> >> Heading Style a PageBreakBefore attribute.
> >>
> >> Keep asking questions in this NG for any further help you may require.
> >>
> >> --
> >> Terry Farrell - Word MVP
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >> "Jeff Malka" <jeff@falsepart.com> wrote in message
> >> news:uk$n4UliDHA.560@tk2msftngp13.phx.gbl...
> >> Everything I read told me there is such risk of corruption with master
> >> documents in Word that it is wise to not use them. Well, when dealing
> > with
> >> a large document - such as 300+ pages for a book - that is subdivided
into
> >> many chapters, what is the best way to manage it? Separate chapter
files
> >> would create problems with later page numbering, TOCs, etc. A single
large
> >> file has its own risks.
> >>
> >> What is the best approach? I am using Word 97 and do not wish to
update.
> >>
> >> Thanks.
> >>
> >> --
> >> Jeff McPherson
> >> Email address deliberately false to avoid spam
> >> jeff@falsepart.com
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >
>

TF
Sat Oct 04 17:00:39 CDT 2003

Jeff

The reason to keep the temp folder empty is that Word makes more use of temp
files than any other app. For instance, everytime you copy/paste, Word
creates a temp file that remains 'active' until the document (and sometimes
Word) is closed. Word also creates temp files in the active folder (the
folder where the document is opened from or saved to). If word doesn't close
correctly or your system crashes, all these temp files are abandoned on your
system. Usually they are harmless, but on other occasions they may cause
strange problems or possibly stop Word from opening at all.

Terry

"Jeff Malka" <jeff@falsepart.com> wrote in message
news:uXbNnHriDHA.1564@tk2msftngp13.phx.gbl...
Dear Suzanne

Thank you. What a terrific group of experts. I will check out the
referenced links.

A small clarification: is the need to empty TEMP folders because it may be a
cause of corruption or just to save disk space? I am much more concerned
about the former than the latter.

--
Jeff McPherson
Email address deliberately false to avoid spam
jeff@falsepart.com
"Suzanne S. Barnhill" <sbarnhill@mvps.org> wrote in message
news:eZWJ4boiDHA.1796@TK2MSFTNGP10.phx.gbl...
> To add to what Terry has said:
>
> 2. I find the built-in shortcut for Save (Ctrl+S) sufficiently easy that I
> haven't needed to create another one (much easier for me than locating a
> function key).
>
> 3. I've had good results with AutoRecover (there is no AutoSave) and I
have
> been grateful on many occasions for the backups created by "Always create
> backup copy" (for more, see
> http://home.zebra.net/~sbarnhill/SaveOptions.htm).
>
> 4. There are some things in the Temp folder that are not worth deleting
> because they will be recreated every time you start Word/Windows. Since
I'm
> running Word 2002 (Word 10) and have never had another version on this
> computer, I totally fail to understand why Word/Windows feels the
necessity
> to create a folder called Word8.0, but it does, and I won't waste the
energy
> to delete it every day. Most of the folders thus created are empty or
nearly
> so; the Word8.0 folder does contain a 163 KB file called MSForms.exd. On
an
> 80 GB HD, I can live with this. <g>
>
> 5. You *will* need section breaks if you want to have a different first
page
> header/footer in each chapter. But if you use StyleRef, you can wait for
> final editing before adding these breaks.
>
> 6. There are many features that are a lot easier if you use Word's
built-in
> heading styles and some that are unavailable if you don't (see
> http://www.shaunakelly.com/word/numbering/UseBuiltInHeadingStyles.html).
>
> --
> Suzanne S. Barnhill
> Microsoft MVP (Word)
> Words into Type
> Fairhope, Alabama USA
> Word MVP FAQ site: http://www.mvps.org/word
> Email cannot be acknowledged; please post all follow-ups to the newsgroup
so
> all may benefit.
>
> "TF" <terryfarrell@msn.com> wrote in message
> news:blm8ig$i4s$1@hercules.btinternet.com...
> > Jeff
> >
> > A single large file is the best answer. Assuming that this is an
important
> > document and you are running a stand alone computer, then I recommend
the
> > following procedure.
> >
> > 1. Make a daily (or twice-daily) back up onto some removable media -
> such
> > as a ZIP disk or a CDR. (Note routinely verify that the backups actually
> > work and NEVER save directly to the removable media. Always save to the
> > local HDD first and then copy/burn to removable media.)
> >
> > 2. Save regularly. I have remapped my keys so that SAVE is assigned
to
> > F12 and SaveAs to shift+F12. This means that at any convenient
> > pause/break/interruption, I only have to press F12 to save my work. You
> will
> > soon get into this habit!
> >
> > 3. Make sure that under Tools, Options, Save tab that you have
> FastSaves
> > deselected. In fact, in that dialog, the only check mark I ever use is
> Allow
> > Background Saves as I have never trusted any of the other settings to
work
> > correctly and I always suspected that the AutoSave every X minutes was
the
> > devil's work.
> >
> > 4. Frequently make sure that when all applications are closed your
> > temporary folder is empty. It is a TEMP folder and files should only
ever
> be
> > in their temporarily. So after a fresh reboot of the computer, go to
> Windows
> > Explorer and navigate to the TEMP folder and empty it regularly.
> >
> > 5. Create one long document and do not use section breaks unless you
> > absolutely have to. You will probably want to change your header or
footer
> > when you change Chapters? Look at the StyleRef field and IF fields for
> > changing H&Fs without the need to insert section breaks. This will keep
> the
> > document structure simple, small and reduce the risk of corruption.
> >
> > 6. Use Styles, Styles and more Styles. Don't be tempted to create a
> whole
> > document in Normal Style with masses of direct formatting. Avoid direct
> > formatting as much as possible. Following these methods will also keep
the
> > document structure simple and reduce the possibility of corruption.
> >
> > 7. Finally, don't use manual page breaks. These are also the work of
> the
> > devil too. Use PageBreakBefore in the next paragraph to create a new
page.
> > If it is going to be the beginning of a new Chapter, give the Chapter
> > Heading Style a PageBreakBefore attribute.
> >
> > Keep asking questions in this NG for any further help you may require.
> >
> > --
> > Terry Farrell - Word MVP
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > "Jeff Malka" <jeff@falsepart.com> wrote in message
> > news:uk$n4UliDHA.560@tk2msftngp13.phx.gbl...
> > Everything I read told me there is such risk of corruption with master
> > documents in Word that it is wise to not use them. Well, when dealing
> with
> > a large document - such as 300+ pages for a book - that is subdivided
into
> > many chapters, what is the best way to manage it? Separate chapter
files
> > would create problems with later page numbering, TOCs, etc. A single
large
> > file has its own risks.
> >
> > What is the best approach? I am using Word 97 and do not wish to
update.
> >
> > Thanks.
> >
> > --
> > Jeff McPherson
> > Email address deliberately false to avoid spam
> > jeff@falsepart.com
> >
> >
> >
> >
>

Mark
Sat Oct 04 17:04:05 CDT 2003

Hi Jeff,

Some people do find it more practical to work with several smaller
files, as Dayo mentions. Our firm has always done that because
chapters are created in 4 far-flung offices on strange schedules.
If the only problem you encounter from this is page nubmering, I
recently built a macro to synchronize the ending page number of
each file (plus 1) with the starting page number of the next, and
will post it here if you like. All it requires is that the files
be named so that they sort alphabetically in the order in which
they are to appear.

A manual page break is CTRL+Enter. "Page break before" is a
formatting attribute (see Format-> Paragraph-> Line & Page Breaks)
which we're recommending you add to the appropriate style(s).

There's no need to force Word to delete its temp files on exit.
When Word exits normally it does that automatically. The problem
arises if Word crashes; temp files are left there and "misinform"
Word about what it's doing. (And no, the idea of clearing leftover
temp files is not about disk space.)

Info on remapping keys:
http://www.mvps.org/word/FAQs/MacrosVBA/AssignMacroToHotkey.htm

--
Mark Tangard, Microsoft Word MVP
Please reply only to the newsgroup, not by private email.
Note well: MVPs do not work for Microsoft.
"Life is nothing if you're not obsessed." --John Waters

Jeff Malka wrote:
>
> Dear Terry,
>
> Thank you very much for your detailed answer. I really appreciate it. I've
> used WP5.1 (for DOS!) for decades but recently switched to Word with a copy
> that came with a computer I bought years ago but never really used. So, I am
> still learning Word and so far I like it. With WP 5.1 I routinely used
> master documents and they were no problem, but I heard (and you seem to
> confirm) that they are best avoided in Word. I will do so. What worries me
> is that recently I had a 10 page Word document that I wrote and discovered
> much later that many footnotes had somehow become cross linked. I have no
> idea how! Involved a lot of retyping. That is why I was exploring using
> multiple "chapter" documents instead of one large one so that the potential
> damage would only affect so much of my work <grin>.
>
> > 2. Save regularly. I have remapped my keys so that SAVE is assigned to
> > F12 and SaveAs to shift+F12. This means that at any convenient
> > pause/break/interruption, I only have to press F12 to save my work. You
> will
> > soon get into this habit!
>
> That I learned a long time ago :-(, but how do you remap the keys in that
> manner?
>
> > 3. Make sure that under Tools, Options, Save tab that you have
> FastSaves
> > deselected. In fact, in that dialog, the only check mark I ever use is
> Allow
> > Background Saves as I have never trusted any of the other settings to work
> > correctly and I always suspected that the AutoSave every X minutes was the
> > devil's work.
>
> Aha! Maybe that is what corrupted my footnotes. Will do. Thanks.
>
> > 4. Frequently make sure that when all applications are closed your
> > temporary folder is empty. It is a TEMP folder and files should only ever
> be
> > in their temporarily. So after a fresh reboot of the computer, go to
> Windows
> > Explorer and navigate to the TEMP folder and empty it regularly.
>
> I'll create a batch file to do that. Is there no way to force Word to delete
> its own temporary files on closing? My PC tends to stay on for weeks between
> reboots.
>
> > 7. Finally, don't use manual page breaks. These are also the work of
> the
> > devil too. Use PageBreakBefore in the next paragraph to create a new page.
> > If it is going to be the beginning of a new Chapter, give the Chapter
> > Heading Style a PageBreakBefore attribute.
>
> I am confused. By manual page breaks do you mean Ctrl-Enter? What is
> PageBreakBefore?
>
> > Keep asking questions in this NG for any further help you may require.
> >
> Thank you. You have been extremely helpful so far.
>
> -
> Jeff McPherson
> Email address deliberately false to avoid spam
> jeff@falsepart.com
> "TF" <terryfarrell@msn.com> wrote in message
> news:blm8ig$i4s$1@hercules.btinternet.com...
> > Jeff
> >
> > A single large file is the best answer. Assuming that this is an important
> > document and you are running a stand alone computer, then I recommend the
> ..........
> >
> > --
> > Terry Farrell - Word MVP
> >
> >
> > "Jeff Malka" <jeff@falsepart.com> wrote in message
> > news:uk$n4UliDHA.560@tk2msftngp13.phx.gbl...
> > Everything I read told me there is such risk of corruption with master
> > documents in Word that it is wise to not use them. Well, when dealing
> with
> > a large document - such as 300+ pages for a book - that is subdivided into
> > many chapters, what is the best way to manage it? Separate chapter files
> > would create problems with later page numbering, TOCs, etc. A single large
> > file has its own risks.
> >
> > What is the best approach? I am using Word 97 and do not wish to update.
> >
> > Thanks.
> >
> > --
> > Jeff McPherson
> > Email address deliberately false to avoid spam
> > jeff@falsepart.com
> >

TF
Sat Oct 04 17:26:43 CDT 2003

Jeff

2. Right-click on any toolbar and select Customise. In the Customise
dialog, press on the Keyboard button, select the command that you want to
change (in this case, File, Save and File, SaveAs) and assign new shortcut
keys.

4. These temp files should close but some people seem to have problems
with them not clearing. Temp files will always remain is Word doesn't close
properly.

7. Yes, a manual page break is Ctrl+Enter. A PBB is a Paragraph
attribute. See Format, Paragraph, Line & Page Breaks tab. A paragraph
assigned that attribute will force a page break as soon as you start typing
it. Typically, you may create a Chapter Title Style and one of the
attributes would be to give it the PBB. One of the main problems with using
manual page breaks is that if you go to edit, it may push the contents below
the area you editing down sufficiently so that the manual page break moves
to a new page and results in more pages than you intended. If you are going
to use this frequently, there a built in PBB macro that you can also drag to
your toolbar and use (or even assign a keyboard shortcut.

The important points to remember about Word is that hidden under the skin of
standard toolbars and buttons that were chosen by the MS marketing
Department, there are hundreds more productive and useful macros and
commands waiting for the user to discover. And when you cannot find what you
need, there is always VBA to automate just about anything.

Terry

"Jeff Malka" <jeff@falsepart.com> wrote in message
news:uA8glHriDHA.2952@tk2msftngp13.phx.gbl...
Dear Terry,

Thank you very much for your detailed answer. I really appreciate it. I've
used WP5.1 (for DOS!) for decades but recently switched to Word with a copy
that came with a computer I bought years ago but never really used. So, I am
still learning Word and so far I like it. With WP 5.1 I routinely used
master documents and they were no problem, but I heard (and you seem to
confirm) that they are best avoided in Word. I will do so. What worries me
is that recently I had a 10 page Word document that I wrote and discovered
much later that many footnotes had somehow become cross linked. I have no
idea how! Involved a lot of retyping. That is why I was exploring using
multiple "chapter" documents instead of one large one so that the potential
damage would only affect so much of my work <grin>.

> 2. Save regularly. I have remapped my keys so that SAVE is assigned to
> F12 and SaveAs to shift+F12. This means that at any convenient
> pause/break/interruption, I only have to press F12 to save my work. You
will
> soon get into this habit!