PROBLEM: 12.1 version of Word 2008 will not open WinWord .doc files?

[Steve Maser]

I have a folder of word documents -- all of these opened on Office 2008
with the 12.0.1 patch.

I updated my Office 2008 with the manual 12.1 download.

Now, only *some* of the documents will open when double-clicked.
There's a finder action that makes it look like it's opening, but it
doesn't.

A "File --> Open" works to open the documents.

I can "save as" the document and just rename it and it works to open
the "save as" document.

I passed some of these files on to a colleague in another department
and he couldn't double-click open the files, either.


It's *possible* these documents that aren't opening were created on
some version of WinWord (I'd have to track this down as to what version
if that's the problem.


Anybody else seeing this?

- Steve

 

[CyberTaz]

Hi Steve -

Have you tried Control/Right-clicking one of the files in Finder & using
Open With, then specifying Word 2008?

If that works, use Get Info to set Word 2008 as the associated program for
all files of that type.

Also, if you didn't run Disk Utility - Repair Disk Permissions after
applying the update do that first, restart your Mac... you may not have to
change the association.

 

[Steve Maser]

Hi Steve -

Have you tried Control/Right-clicking one of the files in Finder & using
Open With, then specifying Word 2008?

Does not matter. I had a coworker create a one word .doc file in
Office 2007 and e-mail it to me (zipped). When I unzipped it, if I
double-click on it, Word 2008 12.1 will launch and show me the "Project
Gallery" -- just as if I had double-clicked on the program icon only.

(Assuming Word wasn't running -- if it was running, the focus *changes
to Word*, but the document doesn't open.

If that works, use Get Info to set Word 2008 as the associated program for
all files of that type.

It's not that issue. The association *is* there. I can
double-click/open other .doc and .docx files that I've created with
Office 2004/2008.

it's something about some flag in the Windows creation that is now not
letting Office 2008 12.1 open the document.

Also, if you didn't run Disk Utility - Repair Disk Permissions after
applying the update do that first, restart your Mac... you may not have to
change the association.

Didn't help. Tried this. I've had two other admins from other
departments reproduce this on their machines now, too.


If you want to shoot me an e-mail, I'll be happy to send you a couple
of attachments back showing you this problem.

MS should pull this update back for a couple of days to fix this...

- Steve

 

[Steve Hodgson]

I have a folder of word documents -- all of these opened on Office 2008
with the 12.0.1 patch.

I updated my Office 2008 with the manual 12.1 download.

Now, only *some* of the documents will open when double-clicked.
There's a finder action that makes it look like it's opening, but it
doesn't.

A "File --> Open" works to open the documents.

I can "save as" the document and just rename it and it works to open
the "save as" document.

I passed some of these files on to a colleague in another department
and he couldn't double-click open the files, either.


It's *possible* these documents that aren't opening were created on
some version of WinWord (I'd have to track this down as to what version
if that's the problem.


Anybody else seeing this?

Yes I'm seeing exactly the same problems on some Word files since the
upgrade to 12.1.

If I double-click a file or use 'open with' Word opens a new blank
document called 'Document 1'. I can open the file from within word file
an open dialog.

This makes it easier to open Word files using OpenOffice 3.0 than
Microsoft's own product.

On the the other hand my problems with Excel 2008 have been solved by
someone with a microsoft.com email address so I'm happy that one door
has opened as another closes.
--
Cheers,

Steve

The reply-to email address is a spam trap.
Email steve 'at' shodgson 'dot' org 'dot' uk

 

[Scott Boettcher]

It looks like the docs that won't open - Word and Excel (and likely PPT too)
are those that came from PCs.
If you get info on one that won't open, it has a generic icon.
If you get info, select the new Excel app, and then check "change all" it
seems to make it work.
Also, I reset my launchservices database.

What a mess.
Does anyone beta test????

Scott

 

[Scott Boettcher]

It looks like the docs that won't open - Word and Excel (and likely PPT too)
are those that came from PCs.
If you get info on one that won't open, it has a generic icon.
If you get info, select the new Excel app, and then check "change all" it
seems to make it work.
Also, I reset my launchservices database.

What a mess.
Does anyone beta test????

Scott

 

[CyberTaz]

I'm not sure what to tell you, Steve. I'd be happy to take a look but just
FYI:

I have 2007 running in Fusion on my MBP. Just launched it, created a Word
97-2003 (.doc) file & dragged it to my Mac's desktop. When I double-clicked
it Word 2008 (12.1.0) launched & opened the file in [Compatibility Mode] as
expected. That suggests that there's something specific to your situation.

Fire a couple off to:

typegeneraltaz1ATcomcastdotnet

Remove the word "type" & substitute the appropriate symbols for AT & dot

 

[MC]

It looks like the docs that won't open - Word and Excel (and likely PPT too)
are those that came from PCs.
If you get info on one that won't open, it has a generic icon.
If you get info, select the new Excel app, and then check "change all" it
seems to make it work.
Also, I reset my launchservices database.

What a mess.
Does anyone beta test????

You'd think that at the very least someone would have beta tested
*this*!

 

[John McGhie]

Yes. I have been beta-testing the 12.1.0 patch here for the past month.
Office 2007 files open just fine on a double-click on this MacBook.

So do .docx files created in Word 2003 on the PC.

So please provide as much detail as you can, and we will try to help you
track the issue down.

However: Apparently some users are getting strange results if the file
extensions are wrong. Mac OS X does not recognise some of the file types if
there is no extension, or if the extension is incorrect.

Cheers

It looks like the docs that won't open - Word and Excel (and likely PPT too)
are those that came from PCs.
If you get info on one that won't open, it has a generic icon.
If you get info, select the new Excel app, and then check "change all" it
seems to make it work.
Also, I reset my launchservices database.

What a mess.
Does anyone beta test????

Scott

--

Don't wait for your answer, click here: http://www.word.mvps.org/

Please reply in the group. Please do NOT email me unless I ask you to.

John McGhie, Microsoft MVP, Word and Word:Mac
Nhulunbuy, NT, Australia. mailto:[email protected]

 

[William R Palmer III]

I have the same issue. When I double click a file, Word comes to the forefront. And nothing else happens. If Word isn't running, Word will launch, but only creates a blank, as though I've launched Word from the dock.

I've repaired permissions, rebuilt launch services, re-associated file types, the only thing that worked was to use File>Open. After doing a "Save As..." or just a "Save" the file will then open properly when double clicked

It also stops Applescript from opening these files in Word.

Will

 

[Daiya Mitchell]

I've repaired permissions, rebuilt launch services, re-associated file types, the only thing that worked was to use File>Open. After doing a "Save As..." or just a "Save" the file will then open properly when double clicked

Did you also check whether dragging the file and dropping it on the Word
icon in the doc worked?

 

[Daiya Mitchell]

Hi Steve,

anything more you can say about the difference between the documents
that open when double-clicked and the ones that don't? Extensions
present? Emailed to you after the SP1 update? Version created in?
Person or Persons coming from? Visual icon? Any commonalities you can
find among the ones that don't open, not shared by the ones that do,
would be very helpful in identifying why SOME documents show this
behavior but not others.

 

[Steve Maser]

Yes. I have been beta-testing the 12.1.0 patch here for the past month.
Office 2007 files open just fine on a double-click on this MacBook.

So do .docx files created in Word 2003 on the PC.

So please provide as much detail as you can, and we will try to help you
track the issue down.

However: Apparently some users are getting strange results if the file
extensions are wrong. Mac OS X does not recognise some of the file types if
there is no extension, or if the extension is incorrect.

Cheers

I'm not sure how else to give more detail:


Started with Office 12.0 on a Powerbook G4 running 10.5.2. Had
installed the AutoUpdate update and then the 12.0.1 update (via
autoupdate) when they were released.

I have some documents that were created on Vista SP1 with Word 2007
(with SP1 and all current patches). I have both .doc and .docx files.


These documents will open when I double-click on them.

I then (last night) let this laptop update via autoupdate to the 12.1
patch.

I rebooted after the patch installed.

double-clicking on the documents *will launch Word* -- but will not
open the documents (the Project Gallery comes up.)

I have other documents that were created on the Mac that *will open*
fine.


It's really that simple.

- Steve

 

[MC]

I've repaired permissions, rebuilt launch services, re-associated file types,
the only thing that worked was to use File>Open. After doing a "Save As..."
or just a "Save" the file will then open properly when double clicked

Assuming that the problem is with files that were created in Windows, I
would have thought this would be one the *first* things the programmers
would test. Maybe they assumed it would work...

 

[MC]

Yes. I have been beta-testing the 12.1.0 patch here for the past month.
Office 2007 files open just fine on a double-click on this MacBook.

So do .docx files created in Word 2003 on the PC.

So please provide as much detail as you can, and we will try to help you
track the issue down.

However: Apparently some users are getting strange results if the file
extensions are wrong. Mac OS X does not recognise some of the file types if
there is no extension, or if the extension is incorrect.

So it was tested for Windows-created files... The plot thickens!

 

[Steve Maser]

Did you also check whether dragging the file and dropping it on the Word
icon in the doc worked?

I just tried this.

Doing this just changes the focus to Word -- but no document (not even
a blank document) opens.

a number of people on macfixit.com are reporting the same issue with no
obvious fix.

Yet, I have another admin here who is *not* seeing the problem (like
the MVPs apparently aren't...) Those of us who are seeing the problem
are not running the same "load" of 10.5.2 -- we're all different.

And, I did *not* see this on my 10.4.11-running G5 that I just
auto-updated. That worked as expected.


Are you MVPs who are not seeing the problem running under 10.4 or 10.5?

- Steve

 

[jrider]

I'm also having this issue.
Double click, right click -> open with, drag and drop on Word icon all do not work with most documents.
The same applies to Excel. I have not tried Power Point.
All of the effected document have been sent to me from various sources. The documents that do work all appear to have been saved by me at least once.
I can provide example documents that don't work, and a 'saved' version of the same document that does work.
Word / Excel versions 12.1.0 (080409).
Mac OS X 10.5.2
This has only been an issue since sp1 was installed.

 

[Steve Maser]

I'm also having this issue.
Double click, right click -> open with, drag and drop on Word icon all do not
work with most documents.
The same applies to Excel. I have not tried Power Point.
All of the effected document have been sent to me from various sources. The
documents that do work all appear to have been saved by me at least once.
I can provide example documents that don't work, and a 'saved' version of the
same document that does work.
Word / Excel versions 12.1.0 (080409).
Mac OS X 10.5.2
This has only been an issue since sp1 was installed.

Out of curiousity - are those that are seeing this only seeing it in
documents that were e-mailed to you?

Looking more in depth here -- I have documents going back as far as
2003 (which would have been moved from computer to computer in the past
5 years) that are not opening. Both Excel and Word documents.

But these were definitely e-mailed to me as attachments.


If I go over to my co-workers PC and grab a file on a USB flash drive
-- I *can* open those files. But if he e-mails them to me, I can not.

- Steve

 

[jrider]

I'm also having this issue.
Double click, right click -> open with, drag and drop on Word icon all do not
work with most documents.
The same applies to Excel. I have not tried Power Point.
All of the effected document have been sent to me from various sources. The
documents that do work all appear to have been saved by me at least once.
I can provide example documents that don't work, and a 'saved' version of the
same document that does work.
Word / Excel versions 12.1.0 (080409).
Mac OS X 10.5.2
This has only been an issue since sp1 was installed.

Out of curiousity - are those that are seeing this only seeing it in
documents that were e-mailed to you?

Looking more in depth here -- I have documents going back as far as
2003 (which would have been moved from computer to computer in the past
5 years) that are not opening. Both Excel and Word documents.

But these were definitely e-mailed to me as attachments.


If I go over to my co-workers PC and grab a file on a USB flash drive
-- I *can* open those files. But if he e-mails them to me, I can not.

- Steve
[/QUOTE]

You are correct. Any word docs that I have been emailed, and have not been modified, I can not open by double clicking. Docs that have been copied over the network open fine.
All of the test documents I have are originally from a Windows version or Word. I have not yet tested a Mac created version yet.

Cheers,
Jason

 

[Daiya Mitchell]

Can someone test emailing yourself some docs created on the Mac (state
which version), and see if the problem occurs? Does emailing yourself
break docs that currently behave? What happens with new docs emailed to
self? Difference between .doc and .docx files?

And since emailing appear to be implicated, please state which email
program you are using.

Also, everyone, please note the OS version that is showing this problem
for you. Be exact, not just 10.5 but 10.5.1 or 10.5.2?

The first step in getting a problem fixed is figuring out what
conditions allow it to happen to some and not others.