From the July 1997 Issue of PC World

Setting Default Formats in Word 6.0 and Word 97
by George Campbell

New word users, particularly those who are switching from
other programs like WordPerfect, often find it difficult to
change basic formatting defaults in the program, such as
justification and default font and size. But it's quite easy
to alter Word's formatting defaults to get exactly the
results you want.

When you start Word, it automatically loads its default
normal.dot template, the foundation for every new document.
Within the normal.dot template is a set of formatting
styles. Change those, and you've changed the defaults for
all new documents. Here's how to handle the job (see also
STEP BY STEP):

1. Launch Word, select File*New, and then double-click the
Blank Document icon (in Word 6.0, Normal) in the New dialog
box. This selection loads normal.dot.

2. To change page settings such as margins, select File*Page
Setup. In the Page Setup dialog box, set your margins, then
click the other tabs to specify the paper size, paper
source, and layout. (Check the results of your changes in
each tab's Preview window.) Leave the 'Apply to' field set
at 'Whole document', then click the Default button. In the
confirmation box that appears, click Yes to make your
changes permanent.

3. Once the basic page settings are set, select Format*Style
to display the Style dialog box. Click Normal in the Styles
list, then click the Modify button.

4. In the Modify Style dialog box, check the Add to template
box to make sure your changes become the new defaults. If
you forget this step, any changes you make will apply only
to the current document. Now click the Format button, and
from the drop-down list pick the items you want to change,
such as Font, Paragraph, and so forth, and make your changes
in the resulting dialog boxes. (Check your results in the
Preview windows.) When you're satisfied with your changes,
click OK, then click Close. Word will automatically save
your changes in the normal.dot file when you exit the
program.

When you change the Normal style as described above, all
documents that you create thereafter will take on the new
style. Documents that you had already created will remain
unchanged.