Troubleshooting saving files in Word 2003

[KennyB]

Word suddenly won't save anything. Nothing happens when I press "save" or
"save as". No error messages. If I try to close the application or file, I
get the message "do you want to save changes". If I say "yes", the file and
Word will not close.

This is a new problem. I haven't installed Adobe lately but Java did
recently update.
Thanks for any suggestions.

 

[garfield-n-odie [MVP]]

Could be a damaged Word 2003 data key in the Windows registry.
Close Word 2003, start regedit, and rename the
"\\HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Word\Data"
key. Word will automatically create a new data key when you
restart it.

If that doesn't fix the problem, then try working through the
troubleshooting steps at
http://word.mvps.org/FAQs/AppErrors/ProblemsStartingWord.htm .

 

[KennyB]

I tried the data key without any change. I then worked through the steps at
the website you suggested including deleting all temp files and finally ran
the virus, cleanup and defrag program from micorsoft live ( I had previously
run the norton programs) all without effect. There is one /word file in
windows/temp that won't clear, even in safe mode. (jet7265.tmp). I don't know
if this is the problem.

By the way, I can save if I start Word in safe mode.

Is the next thing is to uninstall and reinstall office?

Thanks
KennyB

 

[garfield-n-odie [MVP]]

If the problem goes away when Word is in safe mode, then it means
the problem is caused by the normal.dot template or a
malfunctioning/incompatible add-in. Both of these are discussed
in the cited troubleshooting article.

 

[KennyB]

I just discovered what maybe is the source of the problem. I use a sandisk
flashdrive which appears on my computer as I:\. If I put the flashdrive in,
the save function works. (saving on C:\ or I:\. ) When I try to take the
drive out, I get an error message "can't disconnect, one or more files are
open." Eventually I have to just pull the drive out and usually get a save
error message. Also, I tried today downloading Adobe Reader9. It wouldn't
install because "I:\ couldn't be found". Somehow, Windows seems to be
pointing things to I:\ even when that drive is not present.

Ken

 

[Terry Farrell]

Did you save a document directly to the I drive? That may be the problem.
You should never use Word directly with any type of removable media. Always
work directly with the local HDD and then copy to/from the flash drive.

You may be able to resolve the problem by deleting the MRU cache in Word and
by cleaning out the Recently Used folder in Windows Explorer.

Terry

 

[KennyB]

Sorry about my lack of knowledge but what is the MRU cache and how do I clear
it? Also, how do i clean out the Recently Used folder in explorer? I looked
in the knowledge base and couldn't find any MRU references in word.

Thanks very much.

 

[KennyB]

Thank you very much for the help. I actually solved the problem before I read
this.

The Dmailer tech (flashdrive encryption software co. ) gave me the answer.
He had me put in the flashdrive, open dmailier, enable secure brousing, start
the internet browser, close the browser, diasble secure browsing, and then
close dmailer. This worked!! I can again save in Word normally and Dragon
Naturally speaking also appears to be working correctly in Word.

Thanks again for all of the time and effort.
Ken

 

[Terry Farrell]

I'm please you got to the root of the problem.

Terry

 

[YLiang]

KennyB,

Thank you so much for researching this error and getting the solution from
Dmailer. I looked on their website for the solution and couldn't find
anything. BTW, this also solved another problem I had, which I was not sure
was related: my Favorites gone missing in IE8, and every time I tried to add
a new one by selecting "Add to Favorites..." nothing would happen. I had also
tried to restore my Favorites but they wouldn't show up, either. Once I
performed the actions in the order you wrote them, both the saving
functionality in Word 2003 and IE8 worked again.