How do I create links within Microsoft Word?

Will the other users have the same linked files on their computers, or on the CD or thumb drive?

Also, this page might help.

How to create absolute hyperlinks and relative hyperlinks in Word documents

Well, if the linked file is on your computer, when the other person runs the Word document on their computer, they may not have access to your computer, unless you are on the same network.

How about uploading the file to some “cloud” service like Dropbox, then link from the Word document to file on Dropbox?

@jaytkay That didn’t seem to help much, one gives the full length of the file path and the other doesn’t if I read all that right.

@2davidc8 That is a good idea, but there is no cloud for what I am doing. Ideally I would put the final version on a CD to be distributed. Maybe emailed, but unlikely because of size.

Maybe you could instruct whoever receives the CD to copy the file from the CD to their own computer, say, to their C: drive. You could provide the link to the file on the C: drive.

one gives the full length of the file path and the other doesn’t if I read all that right.

You want relative file links, the ones without the full file path.

Like this from the link I gave earlier.

For example, a document has the following hyperlink base:
C:\Documents and Settings\Username\My Documents

A document that is named “Sales.doc” is located at the following file path:
C:\Documents and Settings\Username\My Documents\April\Sales.doc

The relative hyperlink to this document contains only the relative address to Sales.doc.

Therefore, the relative hyperlink contains the following address: April\Sales.doc

@jaytkay I will test to see if it works.

Put the document and all the files to which it refers into one folder and distribute the folder.

Put the document and all the files to which it refers into one folder and distribute the folder.

Yes, but it’s still important to use relative links, and not refer to a specific drive.