How to get MS Outlook to honor normalemail.dotm

Question

Please don't say this has been answered, because I've read till my eyes bleed, and it hasn't.

I'm setting up a brand new Dell with a brand new Office 2016 Pro.

Outlook initially opened a new email with its Normal Style properties set to its own defaults that included: Calibri(body), 11 point; automatic color, double spaced paragraphs. (I'll call them the Calibri Properties).

I wanted Normal Style to be: Times New Roman, 11 point, black, single spaced paragraphs. (I'll call them the Times Properties.)

Modifying normalemail.dotm template is easy. Just DO NOT open it from Windows. Instead, use File Explorer to navigate to C:/Users/Me/AppData/Roaming/Microsoft/Templates. Then right click, and select Windows as the app with which to open it.

If you open it from windows what you get is a new Document.docx that is based on it. And since the Word docx is using normalEmail.dotm, you can't save it as that name.

Then I set the Normal Style to use my Times Properties. And SAVED it. NOT SAVED AS.

To verify normalEmail.dotm was saved correctly, I used it to open Word Document. Everything was correct. A new paragraph in a new document was automatically assigned the Normal Style. Its Normal Style used my Times Properties, not Office's Calibri Properties.

Then I opened a new email message in Outlook, and nothing made sense.

First I checked Normal Style in style drop down under the Format Text tab. It looked good. The Normal Sytle properties were those of my Times Properties.

But when I typed, two bad things happened.

The paragraph said it was in the Normal Style ... but it was rendered using Offices original Calibri Properties.

Worse still ... if I highlighted the paragraph that said it was in Normal Style, and then selected Normal Style from the style drop down under the Format Text tab ... ta dum ... it corrected itslef ... i.e. it still said it was Normal Style, but it was rendered using my Times Properties.

Honest ... even though the style drop down said it started out typing in the Normal Style set to my Times Properties ... the $%^#&*@! thing insisted on using old Outlook Calibri Properties.

BUT ... when I highlighted the supposedly already Normal Style paragraph and assigned it the Normal Style from Format Text's style dropdown box ... Outlook's Normal was replaced by the normalEmail.dotm's Normal!

Can anyone offer any new advice on how to get a new outlook email to honor the Normal Style of normalEmail.dotm? And stop insisting on using its old default Calibir Properties.

Note: I did change Words normal.dotm template first. It works perfectly.

If I open a new Word Document the Normal Style's properties are set to my Times Style settings. When I start typing it defaults to Normal Style. And its Normal Style looks the way I want it too.

This is nutz. I've read till my eyes bled the myriad postings by people who have been defeated by Outlook's insistence on using its old original style. And never a good answer.

Most have trouble modifying normalEmail.dotm. But that's not my problem. As evidenced by Outlook's Format Text style drop down, Normal Style's properties open set to mine, i.e. Times properties.

I just can't get Outlook to start typing in what its style list says is the Normal Style.

Can anyone anywhere suggest an answer?

It's hard to believe any reputable software company would permit this problem to persist going back to 2009!

Then again ... it is MS, so arrogance is not in short supply. If Linux can ever run Word, Excel and Outlook, I'm done with windows forever.

geo

Answer 1

Navigate to C:/Users/Me/AppData/Roaming/Microsoft/Templates Right Click the normal.dotm file (or NormalEmail.dotm file) and select 'Open'. This way you will edit the template. Everything you adjust will be the new template. Don't forget to save

Answer 2

I know, this question is old, but I think I found the solution which I also have been searching for ages but never found any answer that could solve the problem as I could not force normalemail.dotm that I have changed to apply as it was always reverting to the original template.

What I have done is the following:

1. Closed ALL Outlook and word windows. Searched for: C:/Users/Me/AppData/Roaming/Microsoft/Templates

2. Right clicked on normal.dotm

3. I did the changes I needed.

4. Saved.

5. I right clicked normalemail.dotm

6. Did the same.

Here what is important to know and follow:

• Normalemail.dotm is based in fact on normal.dotm

Therefore,

7. I opened a word docx and clicked style - Style opened.

8. I clicked the drop down menu opposite to (Normal)

9. I clicked "Modify"

10. Under "Modify" I went to the bottom left corner and clicked "Format"

11. I made the changes I wanted to make in: Font - Paragraph - etc.

12. I ticked "New documents based on this template.

13. Clicked OK

14. I opened Outlook

To my surprise, everything I changed was there.

I hope this will help.

Answer 3

I will add that if you are using personalized stationery, you will need to edit the .htm and .rtf stationery files with Word and attach them to the Normal.dotm or NormalEmail.dotm templates, ensuring you tick the "Automatically update document styles" checkbox. This will import the template styles into your stationery and make them available in Outlook. Your stationery files are located in C:/User/MyName/AppData/Roaming/Microsoft/Stationery. In my case, my .htm file is attached to Normal.dotm and my .rtf file is attached to NormalEmail.dotm (your situation may vary).

As a final step, you should return to the Add-ins/templates window and untick the "Automatically update document styles" checkbox, to ensure that any style customization you do in an email is not backported to your .dotm file.

My NormalEmail.dotm styles were not correct or available in Outlook until I did this.