Special Edition Using Microsoft® Word 2000

Creating Automatic Backups

If you want, every time you save your file, Word can rename the previously saved version with the .BAK extension, ensuring that you always have a fairly recent backup of your work. This, too, is controlled from the Save tab of the Options dialog box. Check the Always Create Backup Copy check box.

When you use this feature, Word disables Fast Saves, so your saves will be somewhat slower, especially if you are working with long documents.

Note

Fast Saves are fast for the same reason it's faster to throw your clothes on the chair than hang them in the closet. With Fast Saves, Word doesn't actually put the changes where they belong; it simply makes a list of the changes that will be integrated the next time Word saves normally. ...