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Macros, tips, and templates for Corel® WordPerfect® for Windows®
© Copyright 1996-2013 by Barry MacDonnell. All Rights Reserved.

Macros and Templates:

Downloading | Instructions & Documentation | Modifications | Support

Downloading and Installing Macros and Templates

WordPerfect 11 users - be sure to read this!

How to download macros or templates, where to put them, how to use them, and how to remove them

The majority of the files on this site are found inside single, compressed archive files known as "zip" files. [More about ZIP files] 

• Step 1. Download the desired Zip archive file by clicking the "Download" link on the relevant page on this site, saving it to your Windows desktop or any convenient folder (a/k/a "directory").

For more on files and folders see Windows XP or Windows Vista or Windows 7.

• Step 2. Extract the file or files inside the Zip archive file. This step is also known as uncompressing or unzipping the archive.

In Windows XP, for example, just double-clicking the zip file will open an Explorer screen where you can choose "Extract all files." The process is similar for Windows Vista and Windows 7.

You can also do this (and more) with a separate program such as WinZip (now owned by Corel), PKZip, or the free program FreeZip.  [More about ZIP files] 

• Step 3. Move the extracted file(s). The file(s) must be placed where WordPerfect can find them. SEE NEXT PARAGRAPHS BELOW. [Tip: You can move the files with Windows Explorer (in the Start, All Programs, Accessories group), or My Computer (just "Computer" in Vista and Windows 7), or with any other file manager program. Use the Windows help feature on the Windows Start menu and search for "Working with files and folders" to learn how to use Windows Explorer or My Computer.]

Macros have a special filename extension, .wcm. Templates use the filename extension .wpt. Some download ZIP files also contain ordinary documents (.wpd) which can be left on the Windows desktop (or wherever you downloaded them) or moved to any convenient folder, such as your Documents folder.

Macro files (.wcm) and any associated files should be moved to either your Default macros folder or your Supplemental macros folder. (Most users use the Default macros folder.) To locate your own folders for these items, open WordPerfect and click Tools, Settings, Files, Merge/Macro.

Template files (.wpt) can be moved to your Default template folder. To locate your own folder for these items, open WordPerfect and click Tools, Settings, Files, Template.

No special installation is required beyond placing the macro or template where WordPerfect can find it. However, for some of the macros on this site you might need to make some small changes to a macro's configuration. See the "Instructions" section below before playing a macro for the first time.

• Step 4. Open WordPerfect.

For macros:

First, be sure to read any instructions that come with the macro (also see "Instructions" below) or that are posted on the download page.

Play the macro. To play a macro once it is moved to one of the folders described above, you simply use Tools, Macro, Play or use the keyboard shortcut, Alt+F10. Select the name of the macro and click Play.

To make it even easier to play you can assign it to a menu, toolbar, or keystroke combination. See this page for how to do this.

For templates:

Load a new document based on the template with File, New From Project (or just New in WordPerfect 8). For more information on the default template or creating more custom templates, see here.

• Step 5. OPTIONAL: To remove a downloaded macro or template from your computer: First, be sure to close WordPerfect. Then use Windows Explorer or My Computer (or Computer in Windows Vista or Windows 7) to navigate to the directory/folder where the macro or template was placed (Step 3 above). Since a macro doesn't (and can't) do anything until you play it (or set up WordPerfect to automatically play it), and since it takes up very little disk space, you can leave it on your computer in case you might need it again.

Notes

• Most macros contain code that is extensively annotated so you can learn how to create your own if you are so inclined. (You can also modify them to "tailor" them.) In fact, that was the original purpose of this site.
• Some files provided here are in Adobe Acrobat format (.PDF), which requires the free Adobe Acrobat Reader, the full retail Adobe program, or a file viewer that can read Portable Document Format (.PDF) files. You may already have one of these on your computer, but if not, click here to download the popular (and free) Acrobat Reader software directly from Adobe.
• See also this site's Disclaimer, Distribution of Materials, and Privacy Policy.

Most macros on this site come with instructions or other documentation

These items are either in the form of a separate text document accompanying the macro, or in the form of programmer's remarks (i.e., lines preceded by "//" marks) or inside text boxes at the top of the macro code itself. [For a short explanation of these "commenting" methods and how you can use them yourself, see "How to put instructions or comments inside a macro"]

• Macros are just a special type of WordPerfect document (a macro's filename ends with .wcm). They contain commands that WordPerfect should carry out. Just open the document like any other (with File, Open, or -- once you have moved the macro into your Macros folder -- you can use Tools, Macro, Edit) and read the comments and instructions at the top. When you are finished, you can close the macro.
  • Most of the macros here have information or instructions at the top of the main macro code. There may also be a redlined section in the macro's code that users can modify, something usually called the "User Modification Area." Follow the instructions there to modify various macro defaults, such as initial menu choices or initial values for the macro to use when it processes the document.
  • If you have done nothing to the macro, you can close it without saving it (to insure against accidental modifications) with File, Close.
  • If you have made modifications to the macro that might have been requested in the instructions, you should save them with the Save & Compile button that is on the Macro toolbar, which should be displayed above the body text area. (If it is not, you can use File, Save.)
  • Some instructions tell you how to create needed files, etc., or explain the conditions under which the macro will -- or won't -- work. You cannot always assume that you can play the macro "out of the box" without reading the instructions first.
• Know your "build" number: Look in WordPerfect's Help menu, and click "About WordPerfect". You will see a four-digit number like 11.0.0.300. The first part of the number is the major version number; the last part is the minor version number, or specific build.
  • WordPerfect 11: If your build is 11.0.0.233, you have the first release of WP11, and it had a serious bug in it that will affect many of your macros -- even some of those shipped by Corel and used by the program, as well as many that are included as part of a WordPerfect Project. See here for more information about how to fix this problem.
  • WordPerfect 10 and later versions: - Should you enable the "Use WordPerfect 9 text selection" setting in WordPerfect 10+? Here's a discussion of the issues and potential problems, and some macro solutions.
  • WordPerfect 9 and later versions: Are you getting an error message when you play an older macro in WordPerfect 9 (i.e., 9.0.0.883, a/k/a Service Pack 4) or a later version of WordPerfect? If you play a macro that uses an "obsolete" (but probably still valid) command, WordPerfect will attempt to recompile the macro. You may get a PerfectScript Compiler warning at that point, beginning with the words "A 'Warning' was detected..." followed by a description and location of the problem. This most likely is a harmless warning, and was instituted in WP9 service pack 4. According to J Dan Broadhead, developer of PerfectScript: "These are warnings only. Many commands in the macro system have been improved since version 7. The old formats of these commands are still accepted, but version 9 SP4 will remind you when using these old features. These are "warnings" only, and not "errors". You can ignore these by clicking on "Continue [compilation]", and everything will be fine. And you won't see these messages ever again unless the macro gets changed."

Feel free to modify my macros to suit your needs

...but please don't distribute my macros in modified form or charge anything for them, or post them without my explicit permission, since this violates my copyright and sometimes gives me a big headache. Just tell your friends about this web site. Thanks.

• If you are NOT using a U.S. version of WordPerfect, you might need to change the language code parameter in the first macro code line of some macros here or elsewhere (i.e., the "Application..." line) from "US" (used in WP6/7) or "EN" (used in WP8/9) to your language code, then Save & Compile the macro. I have re-compiled these macros using a generic Application command (i.e., one without a language code parameter at the end of the command line), which works for most users and should solve the problem of having to modify the macro in this way. However, if you have more than one language version of WordPerfect on your computer, you may need to modify the Application command in my macros according to the instructions in the macro. [NOTE: As some have found, deleting the Application line entirely from a macro generally produces no ill effects unless you try to compile it directly using the PerfectScript utility, or try to access an older macro that doesn't have this command by double-clicking its name from Windows. Hence, it probably is best to leave the Application command in your macros, using the appropriate language code parameter.]

I am always interested in fixing any of my macros and I will appreciate hearing form you if you are having a problem or you have a suggestion. Many of my macros had their genesis in user suggestions. However, I am no longer able to provide support for any of my WP6, WP7, WP8, or WP9 macros. (It's time to move on.) To contact me by e-mail, use my Contact page.

Did you find something useful here? Did it save you some time? A small donation (anonymous if you prefer) will be greatly appreciated to help me keep this site alive. Donations can be made through PayPal. Thanks very much for your support!