WORD

[sedio]

Version: 2008
Operating System: Mac OS X 10.5 (Leopard)
Processor: intel

Office Mac 2008

I just purchased a Mac Pro with a 320 Gb hard and 2 Gb memory running OSx Leopard. I purchased and installed Office Mac 2008 along with other new applications. All application installed and operated well except for the Office Mac 2008.

When I tried to use the Word application, I found this portion of Office to be defective. When I call for Word to open a file, the monitor screen turns white and shows only a series of white columns with a dialog box at the bottom stating effectively "open any readable document -----".

At this time, Word cannot find any readable document. During its search activity, the computer is unusable. After a few minutes the Word search activity stops. When this happens, the "Force Quit" process can be made to work and then the computer becomes useful again. However, trying again to open a Word file, the application presents the white monitor screen and searches for a file it can open.

The application operates normally when it is opened via double clicking on an existing doc file or when setting up a new file, and seems to operates normally in performing the other functions I tried.

The Excel and the Entourage applications work normally.

I used your “removed Office” application to rid of the Office application on my hard drive, expecting that Office files would be removed including any corrupted files.

When the remove Office process was completed, I proceeded to reinstall the Office application. During the install process a dialog box noted “no previous office application found” and the install process proceeded normally.

However, after the install process was completed, I opened Word again. When I asked the application to open a doc file, the same failure occurred.

I received a replacement Office disk, and re-installed Office again using Remove Office prior to installation. The result was the same. The Word application demonstrated the same failure mode.

What can I do to resolve this problem? I use the Word application daily

Milan Sedio
(e-mail address removed)

 

[Beth Rosengard]

Hi Sedio,

Let's see if I've got this right: If you double-click on a Word doc, it
opens fine, but if you use File>Open from within Word you get this error?
Or is it that you can't get Word to open a blank new document?

Does this happen with all documents? Does it happen with a new document
that you create in Word 2008 (assuming that it's not a problem to open a new
document)?

Try launching Word with the Shift key held down and see if that makes any
difference.

Also try creating a new User and test to see if Word works properly there.

I'm sorry but I'm not sure where to go with this and the answers to these
questions may help.

--
***Please always reply to the newsgroup!***

Beth Rosengard
Mac MVP

Mac Word FAQ: <http://word.mvps.org/Mac/WordMacHome.html>
My Site: <http://www.bethrosengard.com>

 

[Milan Sedio]

Problem applications word
Beth, I really appreciate your response to my problem.
When I make the Word application active, the monitor will display the normal new file screen. I can use that screen to create that new file with no difficulty. If I double click on an existing Word file, that file will be displayed on the screen and can be utilized normally.
The only time the Word program operates incorrectly is when I click on "open" in Word's menu. Then the screen displays a series of white columns with a dialog box at the bottom stating effectively "open any word file". The program seems to be searching for files, but it is not to able to recognize any Word files, even though there any many Word files available, There is no difference between 2008 files and older files.
I tried launching Word holding the shift key down. The monitor screen became a crazy quilt of blue columns on the left part of the screen and black section on the lower right. Both areas were filled with black or white small squares. There was some mixed up/incomplete dialog information on the screen bottom that I could not read.
I could not close the Word Application using force quit. I had to restart the computer.
I am not sure that setting up a new user will be of any benefit, as I replaced the defective Office Application CD with a new CD.
Using the new CD the did not correct my problem. I believe that a corrupted file/s is now a part of the Microsoft Office files on my hard drive, and that/those defective files are not being removed when I used the “Remove Office” program.
Sedio

 

[John McGhie]

Hi Milan:

I'm with Beth here. We need you to set up a new user as a diagnostic step.

As you have discovered, CD's don't get defective files on them, they either
work or they don't, and if they work, all the files on them are good.

I agree with you that the cause is one defective file. But (and I could be
wrong here...) I don't believe that the file in question is, or ever was, on
the CD. I believe it is locally generated by the First-Run process.

If you create a new user and try the operation again, then tell us what
happens, we can tell you what is wrong and how to fix it.

If you won't, then we can't

You do NOT need to fully establish the new User ID with email addresses and
network connections and whatever. Simply create the user, log out (that's
important!) log in to the new one, and try Word. Don't be tempted to use
Fast User Switching, that invalidates the test. And make sure Spaces is off
(not just not in use, OFF) when you do the test, else that invalidates it
too.

Cheers

Problem applications word
Beth, I really appreciate your response to my problem.
When I make the Word application active, the monitor will display the normal
new file screen. I can use that screen to create that new file with no
difficulty. If I double click on an existing Word file, that file will be
displayed on the screen and can be utilized normally.
The only time the Word program operates incorrectly is when I click on "open"
in Word's menu. Then the screen displays a series of white columns with a
dialog box at the bottom stating effectively "open any word file". The program
seems to be searching for files, but it is not to able to recognize any Word
files, even though there any many Word files available, There is no difference
between 2008 files and older files.
I tried launching Word holding the shift key down. The monitor screen became a
crazy quilt of blue columns on the left part of the screen and black section
on the lower right. Both areas were filled with black or white small squares.
There was some mixed up/incomplete dialog information on the screen bottom
that I could not read.
I could not close the Word Application using force quit. I had to restart the
computer.
I am not sure that setting up a new user will be of any benefit, as I replaced
the defective Office Application CD with a new CD.
Using the new CD the did not correct my problem. I believe that a corrupted
file/s is now a part of the Microsoft Office files on my hard drive, and
that/those defective files are not being removed when I used the ³Remove
Office² program.
Sedio

--
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, Consultant Technical Writer
McGhie Information Engineering Pty Ltd
http://jgmcghie.fastmail.com.au/
Sydney, Australia. S33°53'34.20 E151°14'54.50
+61 4 1209 1410, mailto:[email protected]

 

[Milan Sedio]

John,

When I set up and used another account, and set up Office. Word worked correctly. I opened a couple of word files and Word worked as expected.

Thank you for your help. Is there a procedure that I can follow to correct the Word Application in my account?

 

[John McGhie]

Hi Milan:

Yes, there is. It's as Beth suspected, you have a bad preference.

Log back in as the old user, and let's begin with the "usual suspects"

If the following files exist, Remove or rename them:

~/Library/Preferences/Microsoft/Word Settings (10)

~/Library/Preferences/Microsoft/Word Settings (11)

Now delete this one:

User/Library/Preferences/com.Microsoft.Word.plist

And:

User/Library/Preferences/Microsoft/Office 2008 (the whole folder!)

Sorry: We are trying to get details of what is stored where. But we
haven't got it yet. I "suspect" that the bad file is
User/Library/Preferences/com.Microsoft.Word.plist

But since it interacts with the others, we need to blow away all of them, so
Word rebuilds a complete clean set (as it did when you went in as a new
user...)

However, the other thing that may be bad is the file associations, and I do
not have details of how to fix that.

Hope this helps

John,

When I set up and used another account, and set up Office. Word worked
correctly. I opened a couple of word files and Word worked as expected.

Thank you for your help. Is there a procedure that I can follow to correct the
Word Application in my account?

--
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, Consultant Technical Writer
McGhie Information Engineering Pty Ltd
http://jgmcghie.fastmail.com.au/
Sydney, Australia. S33°53'34.20 E151°14'54.50
+61 4 1209 1410, mailto:[email protected]

 

[Milan Sedio]

John,

Thank you for your consistent support.

I opened the Library on the hard drive and then opened the Preferences folder and found only one Microsoft preference. This was—

com.microsoft.entourage.syncservices12.plist.

The files preceding this Microsoft preference are: two com.adobe…plists, a com.alsoft..plist, and many com.apple…plists.
Following the Microsoft plist are a number of folders:
Directory Service,
EFI,
FLEXnet Publisher,
Network,
SystemConfiguration,
Tablet,
and one file, loginwindow.plist

I am waiting your recommendations for further action.

Sedio

 

[Beth Rosengard]

Hi Milan,

You're looking in the wrong Library file. It's Home/Library, not
Harddrive/Library.

--
***Please always reply to the newsgroup!***

Beth Rosengard
Mac MVP

Mac Word FAQ: <http://word.mvps.org/Mac/WordMacHome.html>
My Site: <http://www.bethrosengard.com>

 

[Milan Sedio]

Beth and John,

Thank you for solving my Office problem. The correction in the Library Preferences that you suggested corrected the problem. Thank you very much.

Sedio