Sometimes Word will not launch from icon in third party software

[Greg Sparling]

I work for a company which writes document assembly
software which merges in Word by way of a macro and DDE.

Often we find that the merge is no longer functioning and
generally we can discover and repair the problem.

However, one particular test tells us that we are not going
to solve the problem in the usual way. If we press on the
link to Word from within our software and Word does not
launch - we know there is nothing we can do.

The only solution appears to be to uninstall Word, delete
its directories and then reinstall Word.

We have been assured that the icon is a simple shortcut and
that if it stops working, then there must be something
corrupt in the registry.

Any suggestions?

 

[Beth Melton]

Hi Greg,

We would need to know the code you are using to call Word in your
software.

Otherwise are you opening a specific document? If you are then it
could be caused by a problem in the DDE command in the registered file
type. To recreate it, go to Start/Run and run:

winword /r

Note the space before the forward slash.

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

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Beth Melton

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

 

[Guest]

Beth,

Thanks for the information. The programmer has previously
assured me that he is using a simple Delphi call to open
Word. I have pressed him for the exact detail.

There is no document being opened. Although we do open
documents in another section of our program when it gets to
this state Word will not open from our icon.

The next time we get a report that the link to Word has
dropped completely and can only be repaired by reinstalling
Word, I will try winword /r first. I am sure it cannot hurt!

 

[Beth Melton]

Hi Greg,

Is there any way you can get the programmer to provide you with the
code they are using for the icon? Without knowing the exact code it is
difficult to provide other suggestions.

If it is a simple call to winword.exe or opening a Word document then
I'm back to the problem lying in the Registered File Type. The /r
switch recreates the file association along with other Reg entries for
Word. Did the user exit Word and your software before running the
winword /r command?

Also, what folders are you deleting when you reinstall Word?

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

~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Beth Melton

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