Create an MS Office Link Template

In addition to using the templates provided with MS Office Link, you can create new templates in Word, Exchange, Outlook, and Excel using MS Office Link data objects. After creating the templates, register them for use in MS Office Link. For more information, see Register a New MS Office Link Template. MS Office Link displays registered templates in the appropriate folders (company specific or global, as you specify).

To create an MS Office Link template

Click the MS Office Link button in the appropriate window.
On the MS Office Link Toolbar, click the New Template button or click New Template on the MS Office Link Tools menu. The New Template dialog box appears.
In the Template Type field, select the type of template to create.
Select the Company Specific or Global option to specify the template options.
In the Description field, type a description of the template.
Perform one of the following:
- To use an existing template, in the Location field, click Browse to locate the template, and then click Edit. The Edit button is available only if a template is selected in the Location field.
- To create a new template, click Create. The Create button is available only if a template is not selected in the Location field.

MS Office Link launches the appropriate application (Word, Exchange, Outlook, or Excel) and displays the Data Objects dialog box, which displays a list of fields from the current task.

Double click an object in the Data Objects dialog box to insert the object into the document. Click Add Prompt Field to insert a prompt field in the document.
Construct the template as you would create any document in Word, Exchange, Outlook, or Excel, adding data objects where necessary. Follow the instructions for the application in which you are creating the new template.

To add a data object in Word

Place the cursor in the text where you want the data object to appear and double-click the data object in the Data Objects dialog box.

To add a data object in Exchange or Outlook

Double-click the data object to add, or right-click the data object and click Copy from the menu; the data object is then placed on the Windows Clipboard. Place the cursor in the message text where you want the data object to appear and paste it from the Clipboard.

To add a data object in Excel

Spreadsheets created as described in this section contain only data objects (no tables). To create a spreadsheet with tables, the best method is to make changes to the MS Office Link spreadsheet template and save the changes as a new template. You must then register the new template. For more information, see Register a New MS Office Link Template.

The note in cell A1 is used by MS Office Link to obtain information about how data objects are used in the spreadsheet. You can insert as many data objects as necessary. To add a data object, place the cursor in the cell where you want the data object to appear and double-click the data object.

After adding data objects, save the template as you would save any Word, Exchange, Outlook, or Excel document. You can save the template in any folder. If you want users on other workstations to have access to the template, save the template in the mas90\cm\of_doc folder (or a subfolder of of_doc). You may want to save your templates in a folder with other MS Office Link templates.
Exit MS Office Link by clicking the MS Office Link button on the Windows 95 toolbar. The Confirm Close Office Application dialog box that appears. Click OK, and then click the Exit button. Control returns to the original task.

Note This step does not apply to Exchange or Outlook. Exit Exchange or Outlook as you normally would.

The template is created.