Auto Text stuff won't stay saved [in Word]

When I enter names and addresses, etc, they disappear as soon as I close Word. This happened with my older (2000) and my current (2002) version. What's the point of entering stuff in Auto Text if it's just going to vanish? I might as well just type it in myself in each letter.

When I enter things in Auto Text the Auto Text basic menu lists "normal" as an option. But when I return to Word>Auto Text later, "Normal" has vanished from the drop-down box, and the new items have gone.

How can I keep new entries permanently on the list until I
delete them myself? Is it Word? Is it me?

 

Please don't take offense at my asking something so basic. I don't know how much you know but I do know that even the most experienced can overlook something simple. You are clicking OK and not the X to close the AutoCorrect dialog box after entering something?

If that's not the problem, try selecting "All active templates" in the "Look in:" drop-down list, enter a change, click OK, close Word, reopen Word and see if it retains what you added. Doing it that way, all bases (or templates) are searched instead of just the "Normal.dot (global template)" when you tell it to enter some auto text.