 | Upgrading to a Newer Version of WordPerfect® Without Losing Your Stuff
By Laura Acklen
Before you put that brand new WordPerfect® Office CD in the drive and fire up the setup program, take just a minute to answer three questions.
One: did you customize WordPerfect? Two: do you want to transfer over the customization? Three: do you have enough disk space to keep both versions of WordPerfect on your system?
The answers to these questions will determine the best course of action so that you can upgrade without losing any of your hard work.
Customizing WordPerfect®
You may not think you’ve customized WordPerfect, but if you’ve done anything on this list, you have! Take a look and then decide if you’re interested in preserving any of the following:
- Add names to the Address Book
- Add words to the user word list (also known as a custom dictionary)
- Create or edit QuickWords™ or Abbreviations
- Add words to the QuickCorrect™ list
- Create or edit toolbars, keyboards or menus
- Change the default template
- Create custom templates
- Create custom macros
- Edit shipping macros
- Create or edit styles
- Create custom label definitions
- Create custom paper size/type definitions
Removing the Older Version of WordPerfect® First
If you don't have any customization that you want preserved, there is no reason to keep an older version of WordPerfect on your system, so by all means, remove it before you install the newer version. Remember, a clean install is a good install!
Before you get too excited about cleaning off a big space on your hard drive, have a look around. Browse through the Corel folders and make sure there isn’t anything in there that you need to keep.
Don’t forget to look in the Windows\Corel folder. Sometimes a document can get saved in one of the Corel folders by accident. To be on the safe side, copy anything questionable onto a floppy disk or somewhere else on your hard disk.
When you're ready to remove the older version of WordPerfect, use Corel’s Uninstall program. Choose Start, Settings, Control Panel, Add/Remove Programs. Select Corel Uninstaller, then choose Add/Remove (see Figure 1). If you don’t see Uninstaller in the list, look for Corel® WordPerfect® Suite 8 or WordPerfect Office 2000.
Figure 1: Use the Corel Uninstaller program to remove a previous version.
If you’re comfortable (and I mean extremely comfortable) editing the Windows® registry, you can move one step closer to a clean install by deleting the Corel entries. Just be sure to make a backup of the registry first, in case your mouse finger slips and you delete something important. There are links to articles that explain how to backup your registry for Windows 95, 98 and Windows NT® in this FAQ article written by Corel C-Tech, Debra Earle.
Caution: I wouldn’t recommend cleaning out the Corel entries if you have other Corel programs installed on your system. It’s too easy to accidentally delete an important key.
Preserving Your Customization
Okay, you’ve customized WordPerfect and you want to transfer that over to the new version. If you have enough room, keep the older version of WordPerfect on your system.
When you install WordPerfect Office 2002 or 2000, the Setup program looks for a previous version of WordPerfect and transfers most of the customization for you. It’s not foolproof though, so you’ll need to make backup copies of important files whether you keep the older of WordPerfect on your system or not.
If there isn’t enough space for both programs, you can still transfer everything over – you just have to do it manually. In other words, you have to make copies of certain files and copy them to the correct locations.
Making backup copies of important files
For those of you upgrading from Corel WordPerfect Suite 8 to WordPerfect 9, there are several helpful articles posted on Corel’s knowledge base, and a comprehensive document, also compiled by Debra Earle, to help you through the process of making backup copies of your important files. Although Service Pack 1 has been released, you won’t see any Knowledge Base articles or FAQs on upgrading to this version for a while.
Fortunately, the concepts that you’ll find in these articles can be applied to the newer version with only minor modifications, most of which are different folder and file names. For example, the default template in WordPerfect 9 is a file called wp9us.wpt; in WordPerfect 10, it’s a file called wp10us.wpt.
This article on the Corel Knowledge Base explains which files you need to backup before you uninstall Corel WordPerfect Suite 8. Another Knowledge Base article goes into more depth about the specific files and registry entries that contain user-defined settings in version 8. This article focuses on copying your address book entries from Corel Address Book 8 to CorelCENTRAL™ Address Book 9. Finally, this Corel Knowledge Base article covers the move from version 8 to version 9.
A lot of the information in this last knowledge base article is duplicated in Debra Earle’s FAQ article, but there are some important additions in the FAQ. I would suggest looking over each one. Since they are written by different people, one explanation may be clearer to you than another, or the steps that are given may fit your situation more closely.
Installing the Newer Version of WordPerfect® Alongside an Older Version
Since newer versions of WordPerfect are installed into their own folder subtree, it isn't a problem to have more than one version on your system at the same time. Whenever you’re ready to install the new version, be sure to close all the open applications and remove all programs from memory (except for Windows itself): press Ctrl+Alt+Del to open the Close Program dialog box. Select an entry then choose End Task. Do this for all of the entries except Explorer and Systray.
As I said before, the Setup program will look for evidence of customization and if it finds any, it will automatically transfer that information over to the newer version. For example, if you’ve added names to the Address Book, those names will be copied over for you.
Caution: If you (or someone else) have changed the default location of the files that contain your customization, the Setup program may not be able to locate the files. If Setup can’t find the files, it can’t transfer over the customization.
Insert the WordPerfect Office CD into the drive. Wait a few seconds and see if Setup starts automatically. If it doesn’t, choose Start, Run, browse to the CD drive, locate the Setup file and double-click on it.
Removing the Older Version of WordPerfect®
After you’ve assured yourself that everything you needed has been transferred over, it’s a good idea to delete the older version of WordPerfect from your system. Choose Start, Settings, Control Panel, Add/Remove Programs. In the Add/Remove Programs dialog box, select Corel Uninstaller, choose Add/Remove then follow the prompts.
Caution: If you don't see Corel Uninstaller, look for WordPerfect Office 2000 or Corel WordPerfect Suite 8. If you don’t see these in the list either, run Corel’s Uninstall program instead. If you have WordPerfect Office 2000 or 2002 on your system, choose Start, Run, Browse, go to the \windows\corel folder and double-click the Uninst32 icon. If you have Corel WordPerfect Suite 8 on your system, choose Start, Run, Browse, go to the \corel\suite8\appman folder and double-click the Corel Remove Program icon.
Install the Latest Service Pack
Depending on when you purchased your copy of WordPerfect, there may be a new Service Pack available. As of this writing, Service Pack 1 for WordPerfect Office 2002 is available as a download. Service Pack 4 for WordPerfect Office 2000 is available on CD only and must be obtained directly from Corel. In other words, you cannot download it from Corel’s site. Call 1-800-772-6735 to order it. You pay only the shipping and handling—about $10 USD. Future service packs may be available for download, as were WordPerfect Office 2000 Service Packs 1 - 3.
If you think this is a lot of trouble to go through just to install an update...you're right—it is. But remember that old "ounce of prevention" adage. If you're willing to invest a little more time up front, you'll save hours of frustration down the line.
Tip: Bookmark the WordPerfect Office 2002 Updates and Patches or the WordPerfect Office 2000 Updates and Patches page on the Corel Web site, or this page at WPWriter.com, so you can check back regularly for the latest updates and patches.
Laura Acklen is a freelance author and technical writer. She lives in Austin, Texas with her husband, three children and two cats. She is the author of Que’s Special Edition Using WordPerfect 9 and is currently revising the book for WordPerfect 10. A complete table of contents is available on her web site at www.wpwriter.com.
Disclaimer: The information provided on OfficeCommunity.com is not legal advice, but is intended to be general information. Articles reflect the opinion of the author and do not imply sponsorship, endorsement or approval by Corel Corporation.
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