Deploying macros in excel and word across workstations

[gbl]

We are using windows 2000 and xp pro workstations mainly and a few windows 98 in a windows 2000 server based network. I would like to place a macro within excel and within word that causes the placing of the name and path for each excel spreadsheet and word document to be printed at the bottom right of each page of these items. I have the macros for each but I would like to deploy them if possible, rather than visit each workstation. For excel this requires copy a modifyied personal.xls file and then adding an icon into the menu bars in excel (then associating this icon with the macro). Similar steps are required for Word.
Is there such a way to deploy these macros and so on, rather than having to visit each workstation?
Thanks for any help.

 

[Fiora]

Have you tried a common area for macros and templates
example f:\library\templates
Place your shared templates and macros here.
Open your application. Click on Tools, Options, Files.
Leave user templates as is. Change the workgroup templates path to f:\library\templates.

The next time they click on file, new, they should see your templates in their directory.

Save all macros within the template document.

Also, if you are a system administrator, you should be able to change the login scrip to update these preferences.

 

[PeterMoran]

Here is a slightly different approach without macros which may or may not suit your needs.

Firstly to do what you want you may be better to consider the filenames as part of the default templates rather than still having to rely on people to run macros. This way the filename is always there, rather than just when people remember, and I've found most users would prefer them to be just there automatically, rather than having to remember to run a macro every time they create a new document. Of course this could also be done automatically by a macro running when a new file is created, but as you mentioned toolbars I have assumed you had considered this to be a manual operation.

I would suggest that for Word you have a normal.dot which is installed when Word is installed which includes the appropriate field and options so that the filename appears where you want it automatically on every document that is created. (Naturally (tongue in cheek!) with Microsoft products there will be a few exceptions to this rule such as when someone takes an existing text (*.txt) file and converts it to a Word document - I think you will find the filename will not be there.)

Then with Excel you can create a template called "book.xlt" with default settings in the Excel STARTUP directory with the filename setting included in the footer, and then every new workbook will be created with that setting incorporated. I think there might also be an exception in Excel if a csv (*.csv) file is opened and then saved as an Excel workbook - but in the main this will work.

Good Luck!

Peter Moran
Two heads are always better than one!