Cannot Find 'Microsoft Help' After Uninstalling Microsoft Word

ID: Q128870

The information in this article applies to:

Microsoft Office for the Macintosh, version 4.2

SYMPTOMS

If you run the Microsoft Office Setup program in maintenance mode, and you remove the Microsoft Word application, when you press the HELP key, or choose a help command from the Help menu while you are running a Microsoft Office application, a dialog box appears with the following error message:

   Cannot Find 'Microsoft Help'. Please select:

CAUSE

When you run the Microsoft Office Setup program, and you remove the Microsoft Word application, the following files are removed from the Microsoft folder:

   Help on Help
   Microsoft Help
   Microsoft Help Bookmarks
   MS Thesaurus
   US English Thesaurus

The Microsoft Help application is used by all of the Microsoft Office applications to view the application's Help files, and this file should not be removed unless you remove the entire Microsoft Office application.

Note that this problem does not occur if you remove only the Microsoft Word Online Help item in the Microsoft Office Setup program.

WORKAROUND

To reinstall the Microsoft Help file after removing the Microsoft Word application, do the following:

1. Run the Microsoft Office Setup program again in maintenance mode.

2. Choose the Add/Remove button.

3. In the Components Not Yet Installed list, click the triangle next to

   Microsoft Word to display the list of Microsoft Word options.

4. Clear the check box next to each item under Microsoft Word except for

   Online Help. Make sure that the check box next to Online Help is
   selected.

5. Choose Continue.

After the Online Help files are installed, you can drag the Microsoft Word folder to the trash.

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in the Microsoft products listed at the beginning of this article. This problem was corrected in Microsoft Office version 4.2.1 for the Macintosh.

Additional reference words: 4.20

Keywords          : kbsetup offmac kbfaq
Version           : MACINTOSH:4.2
Platform          : MACINTOSH

Last Reviewed: March 15, 1998