RFC 3285 (rfc3285) - Page 2 of 19
Using Microsoft Word to create Internet Drafts and RFCs
Alternative Format: Original Text Document
RFC 3285 Using MS Word to create I-Ds and RFCs May 2002 1. Overview This document describes the steps to create a Microsoft Word 97 or later template to assist those producing Internet drafts. The resulting configuration allows for simple WYSIWYG editing of drafts and RFCs while producing output that is in accordance with IETF draft and RFC submission specifications. (72 Characters per line, 58 lines per page, each line terminated by a CRLF, and each page followed by a LF, etc.) Using Word's text justification and table capabilities may facilitate creating ASCII stick drawings. While the authors happen to have been employed by Microsoft during much of this document's evolution, it is not a product of Microsoft and is unsupported. Included is a detailed description of how the RFC Text and RFC Heading styles are defined. This should prove useful to those wishing to do further customization work or to create a similar template for other versions of Microsoft Word. It also includes a description and the source of the CRLF.EXE program that is used to create the final text file output. Feedback about this program is consistent with the fact that each version of Windows has a slightly different Generic Printer driver. Since this document will not be kept current with every Windows revision, the code sample is provided as a basis for personal customizations. Copies of the template in Microsoft Word format and the CRLF.EXE program can be found at: ftp://ftp.ietf.org/internet-drafts/2-Word.template.rtf ftp://ftp.ietf.org/internet-drafts/crlf.exe ftp://ftp.rfc-editor.org/in-notes/rfc-editor/2-Word.template.rtf ftp://ftp.rfc-editor.org/in-notes/rfc-editor/crlf.exe While the process described in this document can be used to create Word format documents, using the editions of Microsoft Word for Windows or the Apple Macintosh, the actual text format file for submission to the I-D or RFC editors is only available from the Windows edition. This limitation is due to the lack of a Generic Printer driver for the Macintosh. 2. Conventions used in this document In this document the steps for walking a pull-down tree are indented on subsequent lines. This allows abbreviation rather than a barrage of 'then click' or 'select' strings in a paragraph form. Example: Gahrns & Hain Informational
