Defining a Header Autotext in MS Word

The content of your headers and footers is stored in the MS Word publishing template (Author-it.dot by default), in the form of Autotext Entries. MS Word's Autotext feature saves a block of formatted text and graphics, and gives it a name so it can be reused easily.

Use MS Word's Fields function for information that may change from section to section (like the Chapter's Name) or from document to document (like the Release Version), so you can use the same header in more that one place.

Note: For details about working with headers, Fields and auto texts in MS Word, please refer to the Word user documentation. We're using only headers as examples, but footers work exactly the same way.

To Create a Header Autotext Entry

1. Use MS Word to open your Author-it Printed document publishing template (Author-it.dot by default).
2. Set up the content of your header, including Fields for any changeable information, and formatted exactly as you want it to appear in your finished document. For details about working with headers, Fields and auto texts in MS Word, please refer to the Word user documentation.
3. Select all the header (Edit > Select All), including the final paragraph mark.
4. Save the selection as an Autotext Entry (Insert > Autotext) and give it a name. Make sure that the selected template is Author-it.dot. By default Word will add this to it's Normal template.
5. Save your changes to the template.

To Edit an Existing Header Autotext Entry

1. Use MS Word to open your Author-it Printed document publishing template (Author-it.dot by default).
2. Insert the Autotext Entry you want to edit into the header of the template.
3. Make your changes, including to Fields or formatting.
4. Select all the header, including the final paragraph mark.
5. Save the selection as an Autotext Entry and give it exactly the same name as it had already. Confirm when Word asks if you want to replace the existing Autotext entry of the same name.
6. Save your changes to the template.