pages automatically downsized in Word 2002

I’m setting up a new PC for a friend, 1.6GHz P4, 256mb ram, Win XP. It came with Word2002 as a stand-alone (combined with Works Suite). I imported some docs created in Word2000 to the new machine, and somehow when they are opened in Word2002, some of them (not all) are resized. The content of the document no longer extends to the margins of 1" all around, but the text itself is smaller, and the typed document is positioned off center to the left side of the page "“ there are very wide margins along the right side and the bottom.

I did a help search, and discovered that the print function in XP? has an automatic resize to an A-4(?) size. That appears to be what is happening, since the page setup still shows margins at 1" all around. I cannot seem to find where to undo that command and reset the default.

Don't know if this is an app problem, an OS, or a hardware problem. Both the printer HP1220Cxi and XP are new to me -- I am assuming this is a Word 2002 function which I am unfamiliar with? Maybe it’s a printer function? This is the first time I’ve run into it, and haven't found a search result that answers the question.

Anyone familiar with the source of this problem, PLEASE let me know how to undo the resize on these documents. Thanks so much.

-maureen

 

Not sure if this will work or not but it can't hurt to try. Open your document then click on File > Page Setup > Paper (tab) > Print Options, uncheck Allow A4/Letter paper resizing.

If this works, perhaps we can find a way to set it as a default.

 

Hi, Kevin!

Well, I'm finally sitting at the XP again, and I dug into the menu layers to find the command you suggested. Unfortunately, the A4 permission was not checked, so there is no fix to be made by unchecking the box at this point.

This appears to be happening automatically on the import/conversion of the Word 2000 files. I'm not having any trouble with the files I am creating in Word 2002.

All the settings are correct for 8-1/2 x 11 page size, portrait orientation, 1" margins all around -- but when I go into print preview, the page looks very square and the typed document is stuck over on the left side of the page. (I'm simply assuming that's the A-4 page? - I don't see anything that specifically identifies the wierd-looking page size in the preview screen)

Guess I'll have to re-do the files that are mis-sized. If I ever find out what the problem is, I'll post back. Fortunately it is not a critical issue and there are not too many files affected.

Thanks for your suggestion, though.

-maureen

 

Well, I have a new clue "¦

When I go to exit and save the messed up document, Word lets me know that I have made changes which will affect the global normal.dot template, and do I want to save them? Perhaps it is a template problem? It is horribly thinkable that I or the other user on this machine might have saved the changes to the normal.dot template somewhere along the line without meaning to, and that this might be creating the problem.

Should also mention that the file I'm having trouble with is a read only, intended to be a standard form (like a .dot), so that each time it is opened and typed in, it can only be saved with a new name.

Would it be possible to delete normal.dot and have Word re-write it when it is opened next time? Where are the templates stored in XP "“ can’t seem to get my bearing yet in this documents/settings folder. The address field gives no path.

Also, this is not a full Office suite, I notice that templates are somehow borrowed from the Works environment . . . help anyone?

-maureen

 

Do a Find for the normal.dot template (in XP I believe it's called Search instead of Find) and when it's found just delete it. Word will recreate it the next time you open Word.

You could also check the printer settings to make sure they aren't set for something funky.

 

phantom normal.dot

Well, this is very interesting. I did a search for the Normal.dot template, and there is none in this version /marriage of Word/Works. I just happen to also be setting up another new XP laptop with the same software package, including Works Suite with the Word2002 stand-alone in it. I searched for the Normal.dot on the laptop, thinking that it might give me a clue where to find the file on the desktop machine. The laptop does not have a Normal.dot either.

In both cases, I imported files from another program, on the desktop it was the Word2000 files; on the laptop I imported Works files. Word would not open the works files and asked to install a converter from the XP install CD. I had to do it twice because it still did not open the works files after the first install. However, now that the works files will open up in Word, the paperclip is tapping on the glass warning that if I save the converted file it will change the normal.dot template. To what, I didn’t know and it didn’t say. Besides, there doesn’t seem to be one anyway.

It then became one of those nasty tangled loops: I first chose to cancel and was not allowed to exit. So okay, then I chose no-don’t-save-changes but kept getting the warning every time I tried to exit the file. Finally, I said Yes, okay, save the darn changes to normal.dot "“ then it gave me an error message announcing that it was a read only file and couldn’t save the changes. Now every time I try to exit a converted works file, I have to go through this wrestling match. Same with the converted Word 2000 files.

Sounds like this package with the word/works mix is not a good combination. One of these seems to be very proprietary about the templates and not inclined to share. Can someone recommend a Word/Works newsgroup where this problem might have been addressed already? It is getting very frustrating.

thanks.
maureen

 

Have you told XP's search feature to look in hidden files and folders? The Templates folder where the normal.dot file is kept is hidden, as is the file itself. XP's search doesn't include hidden files and folders by default.

The path for normal.dot on my system (Office 2000 Pro installed before uninstalling Works, so might be similar to yours) is:
C:\Documents and Settings\User Name\Application Data\Microsoft\Templates

I've had to delete normal.dot on several systems when Word suffered a psychotic episode and it worked every time.

 

thank you, Miz, I too have had to delete normal.dot on occasion, and that's what I was trying to do, but I couldn't find it. I actually suspected that it may be a hidden file, so I enabled hidden files to be shown in the folder options and then did my search. But I didn't know you could actually search for hidden files. I'll have to look at the XP search options a little closer . . .

I won't be sitting at either computer until this afternoon, but I'll give it a shot and report back. Thank you for the path to templates, and for your suggestions -- much appreciated!

-maureen

 

Well, unfortunately, I only have a spotty answer at the moment, and I won’t get a chance to revisit either computer for a couple weeks to keep up the challenge. But here is what I found out:

still no search results that located normal.dot, even with hidden files exposed. Could not find a specific search function on XP geared only for hidden files, so used the general search for files and folders.

But "“ thank you Miz, the normal.dot template does exist, and was located in the same path that you described for your system. I changed the name to normal.old, and booted up again. word created the new template, opened nicely, I reset new defaults, and then opened a works file in word. It converted smoothly, and when I went to save, it allowed a save as a "doc" file.

Then I tried a batch convert since I have about 122 files on that computer that need to be converted from works. Had the same problem arise again, paper clip tapping on the glass with his warnings, stuck in Lodi again. Checked to see if the files I had burned from the old computer and transferred into the new one may have had read-only attributes, they did not, so that was not the problem.

So that is as far as I got today. If I learn anything new when I return in a couple weeks, I’ll post back. From bouncing around on other boards, it appears I am not the only one having this problem with the stand-alone version of Word in a Works environment.

thanks . . .

-maureen

 

problem solved

Well, I found out what the problem was. I had inserted a comment on the document path which I always put at the bottom the template page. While the comment did not print, it was displayed by default which was fine since I needed the reminder.

It was a fairly lengthy string which would not wrap like all good text should do. Went way out there to the right.

So when I decided to hide it, I discovered that once I un-displayed the comment, the document size returned to normal. That was all there was to it, but I'm amazed that a comment that was set not to print could override a page setting when the page printed!!

One down. More every day. o well.

If you followed this thread at all, this has a quirky but happy ending. Ciao!

-maureen

 

Glad you found the problem and Thanks for letting us know the outcome. Might save someone else a lot of headaches.

 

It may indeed. We are having a similar problem with a Word 2002 file that every time we try to print it, it gives us an "out of margins" error for the printer. The coversion problem you had could be related to our problem, as the original document we wrote the file in was Word97 and it's being used in Word 2002. So mayhaps there is a hidden comment as wel... That's an idea I hadn't thought to check yet...

Thanks...

Galdor