The term document template used in the context of file format refers to a common feature of many

software application Software is a set of computer programs and associated documentation and data. This is in contrast to hardware, from which the system is built and which actually performs the work. At the lowest programming level, executable code consists ...

s that define a unique non-executable file format intended specifically for that particular application. Template file formats are those whose

file extension A filename extension, file name extension or file extension is a suffix to the name of a computer file (e.g., .txt, .docx, .md). The extension indicates a characteristic of the file contents or its intended use. A filename extension is typically d ...

indicates that the file type is intended as a high starting point from which to create other files. Save Path

These types of files are usually indicated on the ''Save As ...''

file dialog In computing, a file dialog (also called File Selector/Chooser, file requester, or open and save dialog) is a dialog box-type graphical control element that allows users to choose a file from the file system. They differ from file managers as ...

box of the application. For example, the

word processing A word is a basic element of language that carries an objective or practical meaning, can be used on its own, and is uninterruptible. Despite the fact that language speakers often have an intuitive grasp of what a word is, there is no conse ...

application

Microsoft Word Microsoft Word is a word processor, word processing software developed by Microsoft. It was first released on October 25, 1983, under the name ''Multi-Tool Word'' for Xenix systems. Subsequent versions were later written for several other pla ...

uses different file extensions for documents and templates: In Word 2003 the file extension .dot is used to indicate a template, in contrast to .doc for a standard document. In Word 2007 and later versions, it's .dotx, instead of .docx for documents. The OpenDocument Format also has templates in its

specification A specification often refers to a set of documented requirements to be satisfied by a material, design, product, or service. A specification is often a type of technical standard. There are different types of technical or engineering specificati ...

, with .ott as the filename extension for OpenDocument Text template. In

Adobe Dreamweaver Adobe Dreamweaver is a proprietary web development tool from Adobe Inc. It was created by Macromedia in 1997 and developed by them until Macromedia was acquired by Adobe Systems in 2005. Adobe Dreamweaver is available for the macOS and Windo ...

the .dwt extension is used to indicate a template.

Microsoft Word Templates

allows creating both layout and content templates. A layout template is a style guide for the file styles. It usually contains a chapter which explains how to use the styles within the documents. A content template is a document which provides a

table of contents A table of contents, usually headed simply Contents and abbreviated informally as TOC, is a list, usually found on a page before the start of a written work, of its chapter or section titles or brief descriptions with their commencing page numbe ...

. It might be modified to correspond to the user's needs. The word "Template" here means "a pre-formatted file type that can be used to quickly create a specific file". Everything such as font, size, color and background pictures are pre-formatted but users can also edit them. The word "Template" also refer to resource where already prepared samples is presented. Users can choose to download ready to use templates rather spending time to prepare it.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Template (File Format) Computer file formats Filename extensions

Microsoft Word Templates

See also

References