I am working with several forms that have been formatted for the Form Tool. Sometimes when I open the forms, they work fine. However, most times when I try to use them, they seem to be missing some of their Form Tool functionality.
Word "Compatibility Version"
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Here is the issue and the solution.
The default setting for saving Word documents on your computer is set to pre-2007 standards. Strangely, and anti-intuitively, this setting takes effect when you OPEN a document, not when you SAVE it. Weird, but here we are. The way to permanently fix this is to Open Word, click on File>Options and change the default saving mode to ".docx". I've included a graphic below.
For those times when you really need to save a document in the prehistoric mode, first complete all your work (including using TheFormTool), then you can select File>Save As, then in the >Save as type menu at the bottom of the resulting window, select "Word 1997-2003 Document (.doc)". Be aware, though, by saving documents in prehistoric Word, they lose all the added functionality and security built into Word over the past decade.
File>Options>Save commands:
And, to help users who used a keyword search and who want to know what versions of Word support TheFormTool, they are Word for Windows 2007, 2010 and 2013. Because Microsoft left out a few key items Word for Mac does not support TheFormTool. Neither do Word 2003 or earlier versions. TheFormTool can be used on Macs using Word for Windows in a VM environment or when using CrossOver.
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