Embedded Microsoft Excel Object Becomes Enormous in Word

• Microsoft Office for the Macintosh, versions 4.2, 4.2.1, 4.2.1b
• Microsoft Word for the Macintosh, versions 6.0, 6.0.1
• Microsoft Excel for the Macintosh, versions 5.0, 5.0a

SYMPTOMS

In Microsoft Word 6.0, Microsoft Excel objects embedded in Word may be displayed at many times the expected size. An object that started in Microsoft Excel will be multiplied roughly four times in size.

CAUSE

This problem is caused by an apparent incompatibility between Word and Microsoft Excel and the family of Apple Macintosh printer drivers that encompass the LaserWriter 300 driver, the LaserWriter Select 300 driver, and the StyleWriter II driver.

WORKAROUND

To work around this problem, use either of the following methods.

Method 1:   Switch to a different printer driver.

            Do this by selecting any other printer driver or the
            LaserWriter (any version) driver in the Chooser, embedding the
            object, and then changing back to the original printer driver
            to print. The resulting object will be sized appropriately.

            Also, if you use this workaround, be sure to disable the Update
            Fields. To disable this option:

             1. On the Tools menu, click Options. Click the Print tab.

             2. Ensure that the Update Fields check box under Printing
                Options is cleared (that is, it is not checked).

             3. Click OK.

Method 2:   Create the image in Microsoft Excel. Select and copy the image,
            and then use the Paste Link command to paste the image into
            Word. From the list of Paste Link options, select Formatted
            Text.

Method 3:   In Microsoft Word, scale the object's height and width to
            approximately 25% of actual size. To do this, from the Format
            menu choose Picture, set the Width and Height Scaling to 25%.

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in the products listed at the beginning of this article. We are researching this problem and will post new information here in the Microsoft Knowledge Base as it becomes available.