Saving Documents

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Whenever you create and edit documents, you need to save your work—an obvious statement, but one well worth emphasizing. You should save your work as frequently as possible, not just when you're closing a document. In this section, we'll take a quick look at techniques that make saving documents as seamless as possible.

Saving Changes to Existing Documents

Saving your document in the same location with the same name is easy. Simply follow any of these procedures:

• Choose File, Save.

• Click the Save button on the Standard toolbar.

• Press Ctrl+S.

• Press Shift+F12.

• Press Alt+Shift+F2.

  Tip 

  Save, save, save  Take advantage of the simplicity of the save procedure. Whenever you're about to take a break, press Ctrl+S as you start to roll your chair away from your desk. When your phone rings, click the Save button as you reach for the receiver. Saving your work periodically helps you avoid major data loss headaches when you least expect them (because, as everyone knows, system crashes or disasters usually strike at the most inopportune times).

Troubleshooting: Word states that my document is too large to save

Documents that are too large to save can be divided into smaller parts. You can cut and paste parts of the document into new documents, and then save each part individually. To print all the files in sequence, you can use INCLUDETEXT fields to associate and connect the files (see Chapter 3, "Printing with Precision"). Another option would be to divide your document into a master document with subdocuments, as described in Chapter 20, "Creating and Controlling Master Documents."

Saving All Open Documents Simultaneously

When you want to shut down in a hurry but multiple documents are open, you can save all open documents at the same time. To do so, press Shift, and then choose File, Save All. Word saves all the open documents and templates at the same time. If you have open documents that have never been saved, the Save As dialog box appears so that you can name any newly created files.

Tip 

You can close all documents without saving them by pressing Shift and choosing File, Close All.

Saving Files by Using the Save As Dialog Box

The Save As dialog box appears every time you save a new document or opt to save an existing document as a new file or in a new location by choosing File, Save As (or by pressing F12). Figure 2-30 shows the latest incarnation of the Save As dialog box, which is similar to the Save As dialog box in Word 2002, except for a slight modification to the buttons on the default My Places Bar in the leftmost area of the dialog box.

Figure 2-30: The Save As dialog box provides all the options you need to specify how and where to save new and existing documents.

To save a new document using the Save As dialog box or to save an existing document with new parameters (including a new location, a new file type, or a new file name), follow these steps:

1. Choose File, Save As, or press F12. (Or, if you're saving a newly created document for the first time, click the Save button on the Standard toolbar.)

2. Navigate to the folder in which you want to save the current document (the save location appears in the Save In text box), type a file name in the File Name box, and then select the file type in the Save As Type list box. The Word Document file type appears by default, and Word saves documents with the .doc extension. You can, however, save Word documents using a variety of file types, which can come in especially handy if you're saving a file for someone who is using an application other than Word or if you're creating Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) or XML documents. (Table 2-10 lists the file formats available in the Save As dialog box.)

3. Click Save.

   Note 

   Keep in mind that the Save feature replaces an existing file with an updated version of the file and the Save As feature creates a new file. When you use the Save As feature while working on an existing file, you create a new version of the file, and the original copy of the file remains intact in its original location.

   Tip 

   At times, you'll want to create a folder to contain a newly created file. You can easily create a new folder during the save procedure by clicking the Create New Folder button on the Save As dialog box's toolbar.

Reviewing the Available File Formats in the Save As Type List Box

Table 2-10 describes the file format types available in the Save As dialog box.

Table 2-10: File Formats Available in the Save As Type List Box

Format Type	Description
Word Document (.doc)	Saves the file as a Word 2003 document.
New Feature    XML Document (.xml)	Saves the document in standard XML format using either the Word XML schema or any custom XML schema. Further, you can apply Extensible Stylesheet Language Transformations (XSLT ) files to XML documents to render XML data in a desired format.
New Feature    Single File Web Page (.mht, mhtlm)	Saves all the elements of a Web site, including text and graphics, as a single file. In Word 2002, this feature was called Web Archive.
Web Page (.htm, .html)	Saves the file as a Web page with full Word editing capabilities.
Web Page, Filtered (.htm, .html)	Saves a document as a Web page without including extraneous source code that enables many Word editing features. Using this option creates smaller HTML files than files saved with the Web Page option.
Document Template (.dot)	Saves the file as a template that you can use to build similar documents.
Rich Text Format (.rtf)	Saves the file using a standard text format that's widely recognized among word-processing applications and used to exchange word-processing information.
Plain Text (.txt)	Eliminates all formatting; converts lines, section breaks, and page breaks to paragraph marks; and uses the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) character set. A useful option for cross-platform availability when formatting isn't a major consideration.
Word 97-2002 & 6.0/95 – RTF (.doc)	Saves the file in Rich Text Format with the .doc extension, which can be recognized by Word 6, Word 95, Word 97, Word 2000, and Word 2002.

Obtaining Additional File Format Converters

At some point, you might face the task of converting a document for which Word has not supplied a converter, and no converter for the file type is available on the Office CD-ROM. When this situation arises, you'll have to install another converter. In some cases, you can easily obtain a converter from the Office Web site or in the Office Resource Kit. If you have an Internet connection, you can access the Office Web site by choosing Help, Office On Microsoft.com. If neither the Web site nor the Office Resource Kit provides what you're looking for, your next step should be to dig up a third-party solution. One well-known, third party, file-conversion solution is Dataviz's Conversions Plus software. In addition, you can search shareware sites (such as http://www.tucows.com) for file conversion programs.

Specifying a Default Save Format

The default setting when you save Word documents saves documents using the Word Document (*.doc) format. You have the opportunity to save files as other file types when you save a file using the Save As dialog box (to do so, select another file type in the Save As Type list box). If you frequently save your documents in a format other than the default .doc format, you can change the default setting to another file format by configuring Word's Save options. When you change the default file format setting, all documents you save in the future will be saved with the specified format unless you change the setting during the save process. To change the default file format setting, follow these steps:

1. Choose Tools, Options, and click the Save tab, as shown in Figure 2-31. Alternatively, click Tools, Save Options in the Save As dialog box.

   
   Figure 2-31: The Save options in Word enable you to configure default Save settings.

2. In the Default Format section, select a new default format setting in the Save Word Files As list box, and click OK.

Saving as an XML Document

 New Feature   Expanded support for XML is one of the biggest and most exciting changes incorporated into the Microsoft Office System. In Word 2003, XML support has been greatly expanded. In the past, XML support in Word came in the form of Web page source code and smart tag development. Now, you can create and customize XML documents in Word. This capability gives your data added flexibility and enables you to use your data across platforms and other data barriers. In other words, the ability to save a Word document as an XML document helps you separate the document's content from the confines of the document.

In a nutshell, XML is the standard language used to describe and deliver data. Using XML, developers can use customized XML tags to organize and present information. While XML is often associated with HTML and can work closely with HTML, HTML's strength and main purpose is to display information rather than to describe and deliver data, which are XML's strengths.

Tip 

Understand key XML terms  Grasping the meaning of the following few key terms can help you use XML technology more effectively:

• XML data refers to the raw XML data stored independently of the form in which the data is presented.

• An XML schema is a document that defines the structure of an XML document, including the element names, entities, attributes, and content that's allowed in the XML document.

• XSLT files transform the structure of an XML document to create various views.

By combining XML data, schemas, and XSLT files, you can create, store, transmit, and deliver data in a wide variety of ways.

In Word 2003, you can create documents using Word's standard XML schema (a schema is a set of rules that determine the language elements used in the document) or you can attach a custom XML schema. By default, when you save a file as an XML document, Word applies the default Word XML schema (WordML), which applies XML tags that store information. When you attach a custom schema, Word attaches both the WordML schema and the custom schema to your document by default.

One of the notable benefits of increased XML support in Word is that you can work on XML documents using Word's familiar interface options. You can open, create, and save XML documents in Word without even knowing that you're working with XML (although you can also work directly with the XML markup if you desire). You can save any file as an XML document. Further, when you save XML documents, you can specify whether to save the data only or apply an Extensible Stylesheet Language Transformation (XSLT), which enables you to display the saved XML document in a specific view.

To save a file as an XML document, you use the Save As dialog box, as described here:

1. Choose File, Save As, or press F12. (Or, if you're saving a newly created document for the first time, click the Save button on the Standard toolbar.)

2. Navigate to the folder in which you want to save the current document (the save location appears in the Save In text box), type a file name in the File Name box, and select XML Document in the Save As Type list box. The Save As dialog box displays the Apply Transform and Save Data Only check boxes. When you select Apply Transform, the Transform button becomes available as shown in Figure 3-32.

   
   Figure 2-32: You can apply an XSLT file or save data only when you save a file as an XML document.

3. To apply an XSLT to format the document, click Transform, select an XSLT file, and then click Open. The name of the XSLT file appears to the right of the Transform label in the Save As dialog box.

   Caution 

   If you apply an XSLT when you save a file, Word discards any data that the XSLT does not use.

4. Click Save. A warning box displays that asks if you'd like to keep WordML. You can choose Continue, Keep WordML (which preserves your entire document, including the data that the XSLT would exclude), or Cancel.

   Tip 

   To apply the same XSLT every time you save a document, you can attach an XSLT file in the same way you attach templates and add-ins. To learn how to attach XSLT files in this way, see Chapter 16, "Formatting Documents Using Templates, Wizards, Add-Ins, and XML Schemas."

   Cross-Reference 

   For more information about creating and working with XML documents in Word, see Chapter 29, "Working with XML."

Saving a File as a Web Page

You can save any document in Word as a Web page by using the Save As Type list box in the Save As dialog box. In Word 2003, three Web-related file types are available in the Save As Type list box:

1. Single File Web Page (formerly Web Archive) (.mht, .mhtml)

2. Web Page (.htm, .html)

3. Web Page, Filtered (.htm, .html)

When you're creating Web pages in Word, you'll probably want to begin by saving the document in the Web Page file type format. This format creates an HTML document and enables you to continue using all the Word editing features while you work. Later, when you're ready to upload your Web page to a network or the Internet, you might want to then save the document using the Web Page, Filtered option to streamline your document's source code and create a smaller HTML file than is created by the Web Page option. (The Web Page, Filtered option removes some of the source code that's inserted into Word-generated Web pages for the sole purpose of providing Word editing capabilities.) Finally, when you're ready to archive a Web site or you want to send an entire Web site as a single file to someone, you'd probably use the Web Archive file type, which saves all the elements of your Web site—graphics and text—as a single .mht or .mhtml file.

When you elect to save a Web page in Word using the Save As dialog box, the dialog box is slightly modified to include a Change Title button. You can click the Change Title button to display the Set Page Title dialog box, and then specify a page title for your Web page. The text you enter in the Set Page Title dialog box will appear in the title bar when the page is viewed in a browser.

Cross-Reference 

For more information about creating Web pages in Word, see Chapter 26, "Creating Professional Web Sites."

Saving a File to an FTP Site

If you or your company has access to a site that uses File Transfer Protocol (FTP), you can save documents directly to a folder on the site. To do so, follow these steps:

1. Choose File, Save As.

2. In the Save In list box, choose FTP Locations.

3. Double-click a listed FTP site or create a connection to an FTP site by clicking Add/Modify FTP Locations (and then double-click the newly created link).

4. Enter a name in the File Name text box, and click Save.

Saving a File as Encoded Text

Generally, you can freely share text files without worrying about how the text is stored. However, in some cases, you might need to share text files with people working in other languages or using other computer systems. In those instances, you might need to save a Word document using an encoding standard. Using an encoding standard helps other programs to determine how to represent stored text so that it's readable. To save a Word document as encoded text, follow these steps:

1. Click File, Save As.

2. Specify a location and file name for the file.

3. In the Save As Type list box, select Plain Text.

4. Click Save. The File Conversion dialog box appears.

5. Under Text encoding, select Windows (Default), MS-DOS, or Other Encoding, and then select an encoding standard in the list box.

6. Select any other desired options, and click OK.

Saving a Document as a TIFF File

 New Feature   Office includes Microsoft Office Document Imaging (MODI), which enables you to work with scanned documents. With this feature, you can use the Microsoft Office Document Image Writer print driver to save any Office document as a Tagged Image File Format (TIFF) image file. To do so, follow these steps:

1. Open the document, and then choose File, Print or press Ctrl+P.

2. In the Name list box, select Microsoft Office Document Image Writer, and then click Properties.

3. In the Microsoft Office Document Image Writer Properties dialog box, click the Advanced tab.

4. In the Advanced tab, select TIFF – Monochrome Fax, and then click OK.

5. In the Print dialog box, click OK.

6. In the Save As dialog box, ensure that the View Document Image check box is selected, configure any other desired options, and then click OK.

After you save a document as a TIFF file, you can edit the file and work with the content using Microsoft Office Document Imaging.

Saving a File on a Network

Saving a file in a network location is similar to saving a file in a folder on your local computer. The main difference is that in the Save As dialog box you navigate to a network location instead of to a local folder. Word 2003 makes saving a file in a network location easy by providing the My Network Places button on the My Places Bar. (The My Places Bar is discussed in the section "Taking a Closer Look at the My Places Bar".)

Creating Automatic Backups

By default, Word's AutoRecover feature stores unsaved changes to a file every 10 minutes. For added assurance, you can configure Word to create a backup file every time you save a file. To set this option, choose Tools, Options; click the Save tab; and select the Always Create Backup Copy check box. When this feature is activated, you'll notice that your folders contain two versions of each document you've saved: One file displays the standard file name, and the other file is named "Backup of file name.wbk." To open a backup file, simply double-click the file in the same manner you double-click other files to open them.

Note 

You can't use the fast save feature and the automatic backup feature at the same time. The automatic backup feature creates a backup file each time you save your document. When the Allow Fast Saves check box is selected in the Save tab in the Options dialog box, Word saves only the changes you make to a document (instead of saving the entire document). When the list of changes grows fairly large, Word performs a normal save and integrates all the changes. By default, neither the fast save nor the automatic backup feature is activated.

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