Lost document When I Changed Its Name Please Help!

[June]

This is very serious, so I'd appreciate any help. Two
problems:

1) I changed the name of a Word 2002 document, something
I have done before with no trouble. This time, a little
icon came up (notepad?)(a tiny rectangle with red and
blue dots) and it said if I changed the name, I would not
be able to read it. By accident, I allowed the name
change.

2) I tried to burn the document to a high speed hp CD-R
using my brand new Roxio Creator 7 program which I've
never used before. I hoped that the document would
appear and I could then read it. Nope. It shows up in
the Roxio program, but I cannot convert it back to Word,
nor can I read it from Roxio. The screen directed me to
install a Works CD to read the doc. I did. All I got
were dashes and the words "Preferred Customer." This
document must get to a printer today! Thank you.

 

[Beth Melton]

If you renamed the file in an Exploring window, such as My Computer,
and if you are viewing file extensions you need to add the file
extension when you rename the file.

The message you encountered was telling you that you may not be able
to open it by double-clicking in an Exploring window. You should still
be able to start Word and use File/Open to open it. When you open a
file outside an application Windows uses the file extension to
determine which application it needs to start in order to open a file.
So if the file extension is incorrect or missing in the file name
Windows will not know how to open the file correctly.

In this case, you should be able to rename the file on your local
drive and add a ".doc" (without the quotes) at the end to re-associate
it with Word again.

Additionally, I wonder if you tried renaming and burning the wrong
file to your CD. "Preferred Customer" suggests you may have used a
temporary file that contains only user information. Did the file name
happen to be something like: ~$FileName.doc? If so then your original
document should still be in the folder it was saved in.

--
Please post all follow-up questions to the newsgroup. Requests for
assistance by email can not be acknowledged.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Beth Melton
Microsoft Office MVP

Word FAQ: http://mvps.org/word
TechTrax eZine: http://mousetrax.com/techtrax/
MVP FAQ site: http://mvps.org/

 

[June]

Thank so much for responding so quickly! No, I did not
rename the document in Windows Explorer. I renamed it
in Word,just before I was going to burn it. I tried your
advice and used the file name plus the extension .doc,
but it didn't show up in Word or in Explorer. The
versiion I re-named was not the grayed out one with the
sqiggley "dollar sign"--I'm pretty sure it was the
original. But I could be wrong. Is that what happens if
you touch the grayed out ones (what do you call them?)
In fact, all the chapters have a duplicate entry that is
grayed out with this little sign. What are they for?

The document I need is still in Word, again, all grayed
out with the squiggly mark. The document also shows up
on the CD, so is there anything else I can do to retrieve
it? I do not know how to transfer a document from a CD
back to my hard drive, but even if I did, how do I
convert it to be read? I'll sit by the computer in case
you are still available for help. Thanks so very much.

 

[Beth Melton]

Hi June,

Did you save the Word documents on your local drive before burning
them to the CD?

If so, then the documents are not stored in Word, but rather on your
local drive. I suspect since you are using the File/Open or File/Save
As dialog box to view the files in your folders you may be seeing only
those with a file extension associated with Word. Make sure the Files
of Type drop down reflects "All files" and not Word documents. If you
still can not find it then use Windows Search and search for part of
the file name. Renaming a file does not cause it to corrupt or
disappear so I'd say it's still there.

The files you see with a ~$ in front of them are called Owner files.
This temp file is created when you open a document and is used to
prevent others from accessing the file if you have it open. They will
encounter a "File is in use by <UserName>" message. Of course this
aspect is utilized more in a shared environment.

Any temp file can be deleted, provided it is not in use, and typically
if it is in use you will be notified and the file will be protected
from deletion. Deleting an Owner temp file may not trigger the
notification but I've found even if it is deleted no harm is done. So
far anyway, this is based strictly on my own observations and tests.
If in doubt, if the file isn't open then it's safe to delete them when
you find them.

--
Please post all follow-up questions to the newsgroup. Requests for
assistance by email can not be acknowledged.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Beth Melton
Microsoft Office MVP

Word FAQ: http://mvps.org/word
TechTrax eZine: http://mousetrax.com/techtrax/
MVP FAQ site: http://mvps.org/

 

[June]

Hi Beth, Thanks for writing back. You are talking to
the world's greatest idiot. I am so upset. Yes, I saved
the document with its original name, Chapter 1. And I
finally got back. Two problems: I discovered that I
had to remove the CD from the "burn" slot and put it into
the upper slot that allows me to install programs, etc.
I had no idea I had to do this. Even then, I had to play
with it for an hour, but it finally opened the doc as a
Wordpad.

I was so happy, until I discovered that Chapter 2 is now
gone. I don't know how, since I was not using it at
all! But, when I open the Chapter 2 file, chapter 1 is
there instead! Therefore, I have two documents
containing Chapter 1, with one marked correctly and the
other incorrectly. I've tried everthing I know. The
document is not on the CD; nothing shows up there. I
used Explorer and asked it to search "All files and
Folders." Then, after two hours, another Chapter 2 doc
showed up in My Documents, but I cannot open it. It
says "The name or path is not valid" and I should check
File Permission(?) or use the File Open dialog Box
c:/.../name. I do not know where File Permission is. I
tried the dialog box many times. (I don't have a back
slash, just a forward slash...does that make a
difference?)

One more thing: "My Documents" is now filled with grayed
out docs, "Back Up" docs and many others I don't
recognize; (all versions of the book's chapters, yet I
only worked with Chapter 1.) There are about 60 of
them. I've been up all night again and I'm just about
frantic now. Many, many thanks for your help.

That's when I got that little icon that said I wouldn't
be able to read the file if i changed its name. I
foolishly went ahead, thinking that was simply the
process for burning a CD and that I would be able
to "read" when the CD opened it.

I have tried using Notepad, Word, Wordpad and nothing
works. TThe most serious problem is that My Documents
shows the correct file, but when i open it, it is Chapter
2, not chaper 1! I cannot understand how this could
happen, as I had no need to use Chapter 2. I must have
clicked it incorrectly, but

 

[Beth Melton]

Hi June,

Are you using File/Open to open Chapter 2? Also, what version of Word
are you using? If you are using Word 2002 or Word 2003 then try going
to File/Open, select the document, then next to the Open button click
the menu (the little triangle pointing down) and select "Open and
Repair".

Also, are you sure you didn't accidentally rename Chapter 2 as Chapter
1??
--
Please post all follow-up questions to the newsgroup. Requests for
assistance by email can not be acknowledged.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Beth Melton
Microsoft Office MVP

Word FAQ: http://mvps.org/word
TechTrax eZine: http://mousetrax.com/techtrax/
MVP FAQ site: http://mvps.org/