Creating or Changing Wizards

Many people use the handy Wizards that are included with Word. Some of these Wizards are used to create specialized documents. For instance, Word includes Wizards to help create different types of legal documents and business letters. These templates help you to quickly create generalized versions of documents. You can create your own Wizards. To create a Wizard, follow these general steps:

1. Create a document template that defines the most general appearance of the document.
2. Create the macros necessary for the Wizard. These macros create the user interface and modify the document under program control.
3. Make sure the macro is set to automatically run when the document template is opened.
4. Rename the template (DOT) to a Wizard file (WIZ).

To modify an existing Wizard, follow these steps:

1. Use Word to open the WIZ file. Make sure you use the Open option from the File menu; don't double-click on the WIZ file, as this will start the Wizard.
2. Immediately save the Wizard file under a different name. Make sure you use the WIZ extension for the file.
3. Choose Macro from the Tools menu, then choose Macros from the resulting submenu. Word displays the Macros dialog box.
4. Make sure that only the macros in the current file (your Wizard) are displayed.
5. Modify the macros included in the Wizard to do what you want them to do.
6. Modify the Wizard document itself.
7. Save your changes.

There is a caveat to changing an existing Wizard. If the macro code has been protected (encrypted to prevent changes), then you will not be able to modify the macros. The heart of any Wizard is the macro or series of macros that make it work. It should go without saying that you should understand how to program using VBA before you begin making wholesale changes. (Of course, making changes that break the Wizard and then digging yourself out of that hole is a great way to learn more about programming.)