Decrease Word file size.

[Anya3052]

I am tring to decrease the file size of two individual files, both around
16MB. They both contain many tables and have been saved and edited by
numerous users over the last year. It seems to me that with each save,
regardless if there have been any edits made, the file size has increased
significantly. Any suggestions on how I can decrease their size without
loosing any data?

 

[CyberTaz]

Try selecting all but the last ¶, copy/paste into a new blank doc & save.

HTH |:>)

 

[Anya3052]

Thank you for your suggestion. Unfortunately, I tried it and it did not work.

 

[Suzanne S. Barnhill]

There are a number of reasons for excessive file size, including:

1. Fast Saves: Disable this at on the Save tab of Tools | Options.

2. Preview Picture: Clear the check box on the Summary tab of File |
Properties.

3. Versions (File | Versions): Make sure "Automatically save version on
close" is not turned on.

4. Revisions (Tools | Track Changes):
Highlight Changes: Make sure "Highlight changes on screen" is turned on
(or that "Final Showing Markup" is displayed).
Accept/Reject Changes: If "Accept All" or "Reject All" is available then
revisions are present; accept or reject all changes, then turn Track Changes
off.

5. Embedded True Type fonts (Tools | Options | Save); embedding fonts should
be avoided wherever possible.

6. Embedded graphics: When feasible, it is preferable to link the graphics.
That is, when you insert the graphic, click the arrow beside Insert in the
Picture dialog and choose Link to File rather than Insert or Insert and
Link.

7. Embedded objects: These are even worse than ordinary graphics saved with
the document. If you see an { EMBED } code, the graphic is an OLE object.
Unless you need to be able to edit the object in place, unlink it using
Ctrl+Shift+F9.

8. File format: Make sure you are saving as a Word document; in some cases
..rtf (Rich Text Format) files are significantly larger than .doc files.

9. Document corruption: See
http://www.mvps.org/word/FAQs/AppErrors/CorruptDoc.htm.

 

[Anya3052]

No luck, thus far. I tried everything suggested to no avail. The strangest
part is, is that my original file was about 10MB. It's 750pages long, so I
expect it to be fairly large. However, when I used SAVE AS, the file
immediately increased to 15MB. I did not even make any changes before
saving! I tried this several times, on both Word 2000 and 2003, and got the
same results. Any more suggestions?

 

[Anne Troy]

When tables are involved, it's inevitable that saving as RTF, close and
reopen and re-save as Word helps me...
Ref:
http://www.officearticles.com/word/avoid_document_corruption_and_bloating_in_microsoft_word.htm

************
Hope it helps!
Anne Troy
www.OfficeArticles.com
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