Excel opening error - "computer" not found

[fibot37]

I recently bought my first MacBook and installed Office 2004 Student
and Teacher edition, but am having two major problems with it. 1) When
I try to open .xls files, I get an error message that says "
'Computer' could not be found. Check the spelling <blah blah blah>." I
get this error message EVERY TIME I try to open a file through Excel:
files that came from another (Windows) computer, files that I create
on my MacBook, .xls files that I create through other spreadsheet
programs but try to open using Excel. 2) Whenever I try to save a
file, no matter what I type as the file name, it saves the file as the
computer's name. Connecting these two problems, if I keep the file's
name as the computer's name, I can open the file later; if I rename
it, I get the error message from before that says "'Computer' could
not be found."

I tried re-installing Excel and kept having the same problems. I tried
re-installing the whole Office package, and not only kept the same
problems, but now I also get a message (in both Excel and Word) that
says "An unexpected error occurred while trying to load the Microsoft
Framework library."

Please forgive me if this question has been asked before. I found that
someone was having the same problem(s) with the Test Drive version,
but could not find anyone having this problem with the full version.
Can anyone help? It's making me very sad that my shiny new Mac, which
everyone told me was invincible, is having troubles.

I'm running MacOSX 10.4.9 w/ Intel Core 2 Duo. Any other
specifications I'm forgetting?

Thanks!

-tiffany

 

[CyberTaz]

Hi Tiffany - Welcome!

You've just learned your first lesson about one of the distinctions between
PCs & Macs - reinstalling software on Macs is rarely necessary, not usually
the solution to problems & can further complicate things. Even if it does
need to be done it is typically one of the last approaches to be taken and
must be done correctly using the appropriate uninstaller if there is one.
Hopefully, however, this issue can be resolved rather easily.

The key question is "Did you have the Office 2004 Test Drive on your Mac?".
If so - and if any of the apps had been used even once - it needed to have
been Removed properly before installing the live version. Since most new
Macs do come with the TD I'm assuming that it is/was there & hasn't been
correctly removed, so here's Phase 1 (otherwise go directly to Phase 2):

Look in the Applications folder & see if there is a Test Drive folder there.
If so - AND you are absolutely certain that it was never used - drag that
folder to the Trash, empty the Trash & restart your Mac.

If there is any question about the TD having been used, look in that folder
& you will find a folder named Remove Office which contains the Remove
Office utility. Run that to fully remove the TD. You _may_ have to remove
the live S/T at the same time & if so, reinstall it.

Once the TD is removed - or if it wasn't there you can proceed to Phase 2:

Go to:

http://www.microsoft.com/mac/downloads.aspx?pid=download&location=/mac/downl
oad/Office2004/Office2004_1135.xml

Download & apply the appropriate 11.3.5 updater.

Next, go to your Applications/Utilities folder where you'll find an Apple
tool named Disk Utility. Launch that, click the icon for your hard drive,
then click Repair Disk Permissions.

Just to be safe, restart the Mac & then see if things have improved. If you
continue to have any problems post back with complete details.

HTH |:>)
Bob Jones
[MVP] Office:Mac

 

[fibot37]

That didn't seem to work. :/

Yes, I originally had Test Drive, but took it off (and in the proper
manner, I thought) before I installed Office. Still, I checked, and
there was no longer a folder for Test Drive. So, I went on to your
Phase 2. I did all that, restarted my computer, and still the same
problems persist (although, it at least got rid of the Microsoft
Framework library problem, so that's a plus! ).

Anything else I should try? Thanks for the quick and helpful
response, though.

-tiffany

 

[fibot37]

I'm *pretty sure* I used Remove Office. I seem to recall watching its
progress as it did its thing and answering questions about what to get
rid of (if I'd just trashed it, there wouldn't be any progress to
watch, you see, or any questions to answer). I'm sorry I can't be
positive about it though; it was so long ago. Is there any way I could
tell?

 

[fibot37]

Sadly, it still didn't work. I followed your directions, launched
Excel, tried to open a file (both by using the Open command in Excel
and by clicking on it in my Documents folder) and got the same error
message I've been getting:

"'Computer' could not be found.
Check the spelling of the file name, and verify that the file location
is correct.
If you are trying to open the file from your list of most recently
used files on the File menu, make sure that the file has not been
renamed, moved, or deleted."

-tiffany

 

[CyberTaz]

OK - still no need to panic :0)

Next, I would get the OS X 10.4.9 Combination Update for Intel from:

http://www.apple.com/support/downloads/

Re-apply it, run Repair Disk Permissions again.

Since the behavior involves an OS file system call I still don't see this as
being an Excel error. If you continue to get the same result, start your Mac
from the OS X install disk, go to the Utilities Menu & launch Disk Utility.
Select your hard drive from the left panel & run Repair Disk (not Disk
Permissions). If there are any errors found run the utility again until it
reports no errors to be repaired.

HTH |:>)
Bob Jones
[MVP] Office:Mac

 

[fibot37]

Apologies for taking so long to get back on this issue. I've been
busy, and, honestly, I'm scared of breaking my computer

Anyway, looking at the update you suggested, it says that it's for
versions 10.4.0 through 10.4.7; however, my computer already has
10.4.9. Should I still d/l the update (as a fresh start), or is it
unneccessary?

Thanks!

-tiffany

 

[CyberTaz]

Yes - That's why I suggested that you "re"-apply it ... And as long as you
don't go at it with a hammer or screwdriver there's no danger of "breaking"
the computer

Odds are you originally updated to 10.4.9 by way of Apple's Software Update,
which doesn't seem to always perform as advertised. If you use the Combo
Update from the web site it will typically put things right. Repair Disk
Permissions afterward & let us know how you make out.

Regards |:>)
Bob Jones
[MVP] Office:Mac

 

[fibot37]

*sigh* I really had high hopes this time, and yet I'm not too
surprised it didn't work (AGAIN).

I got the Combo Update like you said (and yes, I had originally gotten
the update from Apple's Software Update) and applied it, then ran
Repair Disk Permissions. I tried Excel, and all the same problems
persisted.

So I ran Disk Utility / Repair Disk from the OS X install disk like
you suggested, and it said there were no problems found. So I tried
Excel *again*: same problems.

Any more suggestions, or do I finally give up on trying to use Excel?

Sorrowfully yours (but still very appreciative for the help),

-tiffany