Organizing Views and Other Custom Elements in Project Files

All the customized changes you make in a Project filewhether by defining views, tables, filters, groups, or format specificationsare saved as part of the current file. However, you can choose to make these customized elements available to other project files or to all projects by storing them in an underlying template. In Microsoft Project, the global template file is GLOBAL.MPT .

When you start Microsoft Project, GLOBAL.MPT loads with the project file. When you exit Project, all changes made to elements such as views are saved only with the project file. Customized views created for one project file are not directly available to other project files. If you save the view definition to the global file, however, these customized views can be made available across all project files that rely on that global file. This is also true for other customized objects, such as custom tables, filters, and field definitions.

To save view changes to the GLOBAL.MPT file, follow these steps:

NOTE

Views are the objects saved during this discussion, but the steps shown here are the same for all custom elements.

1. Choose View, More Views and click the Organizer button.

2. The Organizer dialog box has tabs for each set of custom objects that can be copied between project files. The left side of the Views tab shows views that are available in the GLOBAL.MPT file, and the right side shows a list of the customized and modified views that are available in the current project file, along with any views that were used during this session of Project (see Figure 21.39). The other tabs follow the same format. Choose the tab that contains the customized objects (views, tables, filters, groups, and so on) that you want to copy.

   Figure 21.39. The Organizer helps you manage the storage of custom views, tables, fields, filters, groups, and more.

   

3. Select the view or views in the project file list that should also be in the GLOBAL.MPT file and click the Copy button. This copies these view definitions from the project file to the GLOBAL.MPT file.

4. The Cancel button changes to Close after the copy is performed. Click the Close button to close the Organizer when you are finished copying the view definitions.

NOTE

In the Organizer, when you display a list of elements from the open file, it does not mean all items in the list have been customized and need to be stored in the Global template. For example, any view that has been used during the current session of Project will appear in the Organizer list. There is no indication that the view has actually been modified. This is yet another reason to make and name copies of objects so that you know which ones are your creations.

If you save the customized views in the GLOBAL.MPT file, any time you create a new project based on that file (which is the default), those views will be available.

CAUTION

When you copy custom views to the GLOBAL.MPT file or to other Project files, be sure you copy any custom filters, groups, or tables that are part of the custom view.

You can also use the Organizer to rename and delete views from the GLOBAL.MPT file or from current project files. To delete a view, first select the view in the list from which it should be deleted. Choose Delete and answer Yes to confirm the deletion or No to cancel the deletion. The view is not available in either the GLOBAL.MPT file or in the current project file onlydepending on which list was selected when the deletion was made.

Sometimes elements are saved with generic names (for example, View 1, or Group 1). To rename such an element, in the Organizer, select the object you want to rename, click the Rename button, and type in an appropriate new name.

NOTE

You cannot rename custom fields in the Organizer. Use Tools, Customize, Fields if you need to rename a custom field.

If you don't want to copy an element to the GLOBAL.MPT file but you want to use it in another project file, you can copy it from one file to another. First, be sure to open both files. Then, using the Organizer, choose both files from the drop-down lists at the bottom of the boxone on the left and one on the right. Choose the appropriate tab for the object you want and copy it.

TIP

If you run a shared copy of Microsoft Project on a network, you might not be able to save custom elements in the GLOBAL.MPT file that is used by everyone. In that case, storing your modifications is a matter of computing practices. You might choose to set aside one project file to be used as a holding vessel for storing and retrieving your personalized elements. In that case, copy objects between two open files, not between an open file and the GLOBAL.MPT template.

You can access the Organizer in several ways. The most direct way is by selecting Tools, Organizer. However, most dialog boxes in which you can customize named elements have a button you can click to display the Organizer. For example, you can find such a button on the dialog boxes that appear when you select the following menu options:

• View, More Views

• View, Table, More Tables

• Project, Filtered For, More Filters

• Project, Group By, More Groups

• View, Reports, Custom

If you upgrade to Microsoft Project 2003 over an earlier version, the customized items in the old GLOBAL.MPT file are automatically incorporated into the new template, and you gain any of the new features of the new version of Microsoft Project. The new template does not completely overwrite the old; the two are merged.