Compatibility of Microsoft Word forms across different OS and MS word versions

I would have thought PDF forms would be much more portable than anything in Word, but if you don't know what version of Word users may have, then you are pretty much limited to legacy form fields, which you can find in the Legacy Tools palette on the Developer tab. If you are unfamiliar with these form tools, see http://word.mvps.org/FAQs/Customization/FillinTheBlanks.htm and especially the forms tutorials by Dian Chapman that this article links to.

First, if it works for you, reconsider using Adobe Acrobat pdf forms instead. They have far less compatibility problems than Word forms. Note, I did not say Word forms saved as PDF or converted to PDF, I mean Adobe Acrobat (the full program). You can write and design your forms in Word and convert them, but then use Adobe Acrobat to make them pdf forms.

Word documents vary not just with version of Word or operating system but printer and printer driver. If you are not careful, they will also vary by the user's normal template. Despite great marketing efforts to the contrary, the primary purpose of Word remains putting characters on paper for paper distribution. PDF is intended for electronic distribution.

See What happens when I send my document to someone else? Will Word mess up my formatting?

I am a great proponent and user of Word forms. They are a great tool. They may not be the right tool for you.

That said, you can do some things to make Word forms you distribute more universally usable:

• Make sure that you do not have the box checked to update styles from the template on your form's attached template dialog.
• Use wide margins and common fonts.
• Do not use macros unless you know your macros will be permitted to run automatically on the users's system.
• Use legacy form fields, not content controls. Do not use ActiveX controls.
• Use Styles for your formatting.
• Do not use manual page breaks. Instead use page-break-before paragraph formatting.
• Test your forms on different systems.