Office 2004 won't reinstall

[Rowena]

As soon as I installed Leopard, my Office 2004 apps stopped working. I had never uninstalled Office X and I found that I could still use those apps, although I could *not* double-click on a doc and open it directly. I had to open the app, then choose "open" to get to docs. This was inconvenient, but I dealt with it whilst I looked online and tried to figure out what was going on with 2004. I found a lot of info about how installing Leopard messes up permissions, so I used disk utility to repair permissions. I checked that I had read & write privileges for Office 2004, and I checked that all files and folders were in their correct places. (The error message that popped up whenever I tried to open an Office app claimed that this was the problem, but it wasn't.)

BTW, my computer is a G4 desktop, purchased in Sept. 2002.

Office X is old and my temporary fix of using it didn't work for long. At first, it kept crashing, and then it simply stopped opening altogether. It was not giving me the same error message as 2004; it was just quitting unexpectedly each time I tried to open an app. Now I had NO access to any of my Office docs and it became desperate for me to solve the problem.

I started by deleting every trace of Office X & 2004 from my computer and then trying to re-install Office 2004 from the CD. I tried 5 times and each time Set-Up Assistant quit on me. I tried to just drag the folder to my HD but it barely started the transfer and an error message popped up that it could not continue. I then installed Office 2004 on my boyfriend's new MacBook and the installation went flawlessly and the apps work fine, so there is nothing wrong with my Office 2004 CD.

I phoned Apple support and they suggested I clean the CD. That didn't help -- there is nothing wrong with the CD. They then walked me through some checks for my computer and it passed. It is a complete mystery why I can't reinstall Office 2004. As a grad student, I have papers due and not being able to open any docs is a nightmare. I need to be able to re-install Office 2004 immediately. This is very frustrating.

 

[Diane Ross]

As soon as I installed Leopard, my Office 2004 apps stopped working.

How did you install Leopard? There are 3 types of installs:

1. Upgrade Mac OS X (the default upgrade method)*
2. Archive and Install
3. Erase and Install

* Just because it's the default doesn't mean it's the best option. If you
used the upgrade method, you are among many that are experiencing problems.

This page describes what each method does:

Options to Install Leopard
<http://www.entourage.mvps.org/faq_topic/leo_options.html>

Did you install 10.5.2 through Software Updater or did you use the Combo
updater?

I started by deleting every trace of Office X & 2004 from my computer and then
trying to re-install Office 2004 from the CD.

When you reinstalled, did you use "Remove Office" or just drag to the trash?

I phoned Apple support and they suggested I clean the CD. That didn't help --
there is nothing wrong with the CD. They then walked me through some checks
for my computer and it passed. It is a complete mystery why I can't reinstall
Office 2004. As a grad student, I have papers due and not being able to open
any docs is a nightmare. I need to be able to re-install Office 2004
immediately. This is very frustrating.

It's pretty obvious there is a problem on YOUR computer. It might be easier
to wipe it and re-install everything fresh. Backup your data to a separate
HD and bring over data only after you re-install Leopard.

 

[Rowena]

I used the default upgrade installation & Software Updater. I used "Remove Office" and I double-checked to make sure all Office-related files had been trashed, and I emptied the trash before re-installing.

I ordered a LaCie HD from Amazon. As soon as it arrives, I will back up my data and re-install Leopard and see if that helps.

Thank you for your response.

 

[Diane Ross]

I used the default upgrade installation & Software Updater. I used "Remove
Office" and I double-checked to make sure all Office-related files had been
trashed, and I emptied the trash before re-installing.

The upgrade installation for Leopard has been notorious for creating
problems like you experienced.

I ordered a LaCie HD from Amazon. As soon as it arrives, I will back up my
data and re-install Leopard and see if that helps.

I think you will be very happy. May I suggest SuperDuper!. You can use it to
clone your HD for free, but the full options are really worth the cost.

One of the options in SuperDuper! is to create what the author calls a
"Sandbox". It's used to revert to pre-update state of your OS. Here's a
description of how this option works:

A Sandbox is a bootable copy of your system, stored on another hard drive or
partition, that shares your personal documents and data with the original.
With SuperDuper!, you actually use the Sandbox as your startup volume. You
can safely install any system updates, drivers or programs in the Sandbox,
without worrying about what might happen to your system. If anything goes
wrong, you can simply start up from the original system. SuperDuper! has
preserved it in its original, pre-disaster state but all your new and
changed personal documents are totally up to date. Within minutes, you're up
and running again without having to go through a difficult and
time-consuming restore process.

SuperDuper! Is $27.95. I¹m not affiliated with the product. Just a satisfied
user. <http://www.shirt-pocket.com/>