Word 2007: Cannot save document; workarounds haven't worked

[thed9rwningman]

I'm using Word 2007 on a WinXP Pro computer. I am pretty spry on how to use
much of Word, including using styles, templates, the whole bit; I'm not green
on this--I tend to push Word to its limits.

I'm currently having a problem with a document (this is the second or third
time this has happened on different documents) where I cannot seem to save
it. I've tried everything from copying/pasting into a new document (that
works, but it saves a blank document, which is no good), deleting the
embedded objects (the references for the document), and reattaching the
template (which is custom). I've also tried accepting all the document
changes in track changes because I know that messes things up sometimes.

This, of course, is not a trivial document. It is due soon and our client
is waiting for it. But the last 20-45 minutes of work may be lost and we
can't seem to get that necessary information into a new document. We simply
don't know what to do.

Oh, and I've done everything from trying to save the document locally (it is
usually on a shared drive) to doing a save-as both locally and on the network.

 

[Herb Tyson [MVP]]

Office 2007 does have some occasional memory issues. I've seen similar
problems in Word 2007 and Excel 2007 that did not go away until after I
rebooted. In the current instance, however, rebooting might be like throwing
out the baby with the bath water if the changes/work can't be saved in any
way, shape, or form.

Things I would try to salvage that work:

1. Try pasting it into an Outlook message window (Outlook's editor supports
most of Word 2007's features). See if you can save it from Outlook (Office
button - Save). Also, see if you can email it to yourself or someone else
locally.

2. Try pasting it into a Wordpad window and see if you can save it from
Wordpad.

Once you've successfully saved a backup copy, I would then try rebooting to
see if that clears the problem.