Most embedded images show up as black boxes

[jongala]

Version: 2008
Operating System: Mac OS X 10.5 (Leopard)
Processor: Intel

I'm having a problem in Word 2008 where some -- but not all -- embedded images in Word files created on Windows show up as black boxes. This occurs with documents originally created as both .doc and .docx files.

I have read some other forum threads, so I'll note that:
- Drawings is checked in prefs
- Image Placeholders NOT checked in prefs
- the formatting toolbar not shown
- I am in Print Layout view

The images do not appear in thumbnails in the Navigation Pane, when the document is printed as a PDF, or when printed to postscript and converted to PDF.

I've been having this problem since I got Office 08 in early June '08, which I've kept patched and updated since then. I am on Mac OS 10.5.4, which I have also kept patched and updated. The computer is a 2.2 GHz Core 2 Duo Macbook Pro with 4GB RAM.

 

[zselter]

I am having the same problem when creating files in Office 2008 on an Mac running OS 10.5.4

Everything is updated, and the problem persists in whichever format I save it.

If anyone knows or figures out the problem to this please let me know as well.

 

[CyberTaz]

It isn't a problem originating on your end, nor can you [directly] do
anything to change it. The problem is likely due to the creator of the file
either creating links to the images & not including the image files with the
document, inserting a graphic format not supported by Mac OS or using a
cut/paste method rather than properly inserting the image... Or possibly any
combination of the three Quite frequently the case turns out to be that
the image has already been copied & pasted from one place to another a dozen
times or more & may even be corrupt.

All you can do is have them reinsert the images making sure they're using
valid universal graphic file formats.

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

 

[jongala]

Thanks Bob. Interestingly, if the file is saved as a .doc, I seem to be able to view these images via Leopard's QuickLook feature, but nowhere else (not if opened via other Mac apps, such as TextEdit for example). So, it seems the images are in there, but it is just a format or paste method issue.

I really wish they would sort this out; sharing these documents is the whole reason I bought the software ... sigh.

Thanks for the info.

 

[CyberTaz]

Oh, Yeah - the images are *there*, it's just that Word can't figure out how
to display them because they aren't in an intelligible language. You may
even find that some will print OK, they just don't display on screen.

There really isn't much to be done to "sort this out". It stems from the
fact that most users lack understanding of how complex graphics are.

[mini-rant ] The problem with making everything so simple any fool can do
it is that any fool is likely to try. It's kinda like giving kids numbers &
calculators without teaching them how to do the math.

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

 

[Guest]

Thanks, yeah, I figured they were in there (the file is huge, and something's taking up that space) but I just thought it was worth noting that it's not a case of broken links to missing external files.

I work peripherally in graphics and software, and I have quite a bit of sympathy for how hard it must be to make serious, full featured software like Word. However, I have to disagree with you in your note, because a major -- maybe primary -- recommendation of Word is its ubiquity: it is a business standard for sharing information. When I have the latest, greatest version of Word, I expect to be able to at least see the contents of other docs created with contemporary versions of the software. I can see from the forums that this problem has been around since Office 04, making it a four or five year old problem. I think they should sort it out.

Anyway, I know it's not your problem, so thanks for taking the time to help me out.

 

[Mark]

I have discovered this same problem in Word 2007 (Windows XP) with multiple
files on multiple computers.

These have been documents that were created in Word 2003 or Word 2002. The
images display correctly when opened in Word 2003, but show up as black boxes
in Word 2007. I have tried opening the files in Word 2003 and using the
"Compress images", which is a suggestion I found on a different forum, but
this didn't work.

I ended up opening the file in Word 2003, copying each image one-at-a-time
into a drawing program, saving each image as a file, and then re-inserting
them into the document. I think in one of the other replies in here, someone
mentions that a possible cause for this issue is that the image was copied
and pasted into the document instead of being inserted. I think that this is
probably true.

However, I wish that this issue didn't exist to begin with or that there was
a simpler way to "fix" it. I'm not looking forward to telling the
constituents in the company that I support, that this is the only solution I
have.

 

[Mark]

Sorry... I forgot to add this:

I know this is a Mac thread, but wanted to add that this issue also appears
in the Windows version. So I'm wondering whether this is related to the XML
file format?

 

[Zarniwoop]

Word 2007 has a bug opening some pictures from Word 2003 and earlier
documents. Until Microsoft releases an official fix for this, here is a
workaround for pictures opening as black boxes.

1. Using Word 2003, open the document containing pictures so they display
correctly.

2. Right click a picture in the document, then click Format Picture.

3. Click Compress in the lower-left corner of the Picture tab.

4. Check "All pictures in document" , "No Change" , and "Delete cropped
areas of pictures" , and uncheck "Compress pictures".

WARNING: This will delete the extra (unseen) portion of any "cropped"
pictures.
Retain a backup copy of the original document in the event you may need to
adjust "cropped" image boundaries in the future. If this behavior is
undesired, or if any images are still not fixed in Word 2007, you may try
instead checking "Compress pictures", and unchecking "Delete cropped areas of
pictures". If that still fails, the only other known fix is copying and
pasting the images into a graphic editing program, saving them, and then
re-inserting them back into the document.

5. Click File, Save As, and save the file with a revised name. All pictures
in the document should now open correctly in Word 2007.

6. Confirm that the resulting file's pictures open correctly in Word 2007.

 

[CyberTaz]

Sorry, but as accurate & helpful as your workaround may be for users of Win
Word it won't do Mac Word users any good at all - and this is the Word for
Mac newsgroup. The features you refer to are not available in the Mac
version. This is one area in which the 2 platform versions differ greatly.

Please be cautious in posting solutions/workarounds - if they don't pertain
to the group you're posting to it is very misleading & can sometimes cause
more harm than good.

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