MMWinWord: "TOOLS-PATH Not Valid" Error Message Starting Word

• Microsoft Word for Windows, MultiMedia Edition, version 2.0a-CD
• Microsoft Word for Windows, Video and Sound Edition, version 2.0c

SUMMARY

When you start Word for Windows, Multimedia Edition or Video and Sound Edition, you may receive the following error message:

   Word cannot use the TOOLS-PATH specified in the WIN.INI file
   because it is not valid.

• The Word and Bookshelf CD-ROM is not in the CD-ROM drive when you start Word.

• The Word and Bookshelf CD-ROM is in the CD-ROM drive, but you have not accessed the drive since you turned on your computer or since you placed the CD-ROM in the drive.

Use one of the following workarounds to avoid this error message:

Workaround 1

Access the CD-ROM drive before you start Word. This causes MSCDEX to become aware of the CD-ROM contents. Use one of the following methods to access the CD-ROM drive:

• Method 1: Add the following two lines to the AUTOEXEC.BAT file before the line that starts Windows

        <drive1>:
        <drive2>:
  

  where <drive1> is the drive letter of the CD-ROM drive and <drive2> is the drive letter where Windows is located. For example:

        e:
        c:
  

  Note: This method does not work with all CD-ROM drivers currently available. If it does not work, use Method 2 below.

• Method 2: Add the following line to the AUTOEXEC.BAT file before the line that starts Windows

        dir <drive1>:\ > nul
  

  where <drive1> is the drive letter of the CD-ROM drive. For example:

        dir e:\ >nul
  

• Method 3: Before you start Word, open Windows File Manager and select the CD-ROM drive letter. This causes MSCDEX to read the CD-ROM.

Workaround 2

Do the following to copy the online "Word User's Guide" file to the hard disk and run it from that location instead of from the CD-ROM:

1. Quit Word.

2. Copy WINWORD.HLP and WINWORD.IND from the WORD directory on the Word and Bookshelf CD-ROM to the Word for Windows program directory on the hard disk. To do this from an MS-DOS command prompt, type the following

         copy <drive1>:\word\winword.hlp <drive2>:\winword
         copy <drive1>:\word\winword.ind <drive2>:\winword
   

   where <drive1> is the drive letter for the CD-ROM drive and <drive2> is the drive letter where Word for Windows is located. For example:

         copy e:\word\winword.hlp c:\winword
         copy e:\word\winword.ind c:\winword
   

3. Remove the TOOLS-PATH line from the [Microsoft Word 2.0] section of your WIN.INI file. Word no longer checks the CD-ROM drive to verify the TOOLS-PATH, so the error message no longer occurs.

4. Restart Word. When you choose Word User's Guide from the Help menu, Word uses the User's Guide file from the hard disk instead of from the CD-ROM.

Workaround 3

Do the following to copy the original Word for Windows help file to the hard disk and use it instead of the online Word User's Guide:

1. Quit Word.

2. Copy WORDHELP.BAK from the WORD directory on the Word and Bookshelf CD-ROM to the Word for Windows program directory on the hard drive and name the file WINWORD.HLP. To do this, from an MS-DOS command prompt, type the following

         copy <drive1>:\word\wordhelp.bak <drive2>:\winword\winword.hlp
   

   where <drive1> is the drive letter for the CD-ROM drive and <drive2> is the drive letter where Word for Windows is located. For example:

         copy e:\word\wordhelp.bak c:\winword\winword.hlp
   

3. Remove the TOOLS-PATH line from the [Microsoft Word 2.0] section of your WIN.INI file. Word no longer checks the CD-ROM drive to verify the TOOLS-PATH, so the error message no longer occurs.

4. Restart Word. When you choose Word User's Guide from the Help menu, Word uses the standard Word for Windows help file from the hard disk instead of the online Word User's Guide from the CD-ROM.

Workaround 4

Change the HelpIndex macro so it establishes the TOOLS-PATH setting when you choose Word User's Guide from the Help menu. When you exit the Word User's Guide, the HelpIndex macro removes the TOOLS-PATH setting. If TOOLS-PATH setting currently exists in the [Microsoft Word 2.0] section of the WIN.INI file that points to the CD-ROM drive, change this setting to the appropriate directory on the hard drive or remove it completely.

Replace the existing text in the HelpIndex global macro with the following:

Sub MAIN

If OldToolsPath$ = "" Then

   ToolsOptionsWinini .Application = "Microsoft Word 2.0", \
   .Option = "TOOLS-PATH", .Delete

   ToolsOptionsWinini .Application = "Microsoft Word 2.0", \
   .Option = "TOOLS-PATH", .Setting = OldToolsPath$, .Set

End Sub

MORE INFORMATION

Multimedia Word and Bookshelf supplies the "Microsoft Word User's Guide" as a 5 MB online help file, called the Online User's Guide. To conserve disk space, Word runs this file from the CD-ROM by default.

When you launch Word, the TOOLS-PATH setting in the [Microsoft Word 2.0] section of the WIN.INI file instructs Word to access the CD-ROM instead of the Word program directory for the online help file. Word checks the validity of the TOOLS-PATH directory before it allows you to use Word. All of the installation options in the MultiMedia Word Setup program add the following TOOLS-PATH setting to your WIN.INI

   TOOLS-PATH=E:\WORD

The Microsoft CD-ROM Extensions (MSCDEX) is the interface between MS-DOS and the CD-ROM driver. MSCDEX caches information from the CD-ROM in memory and then uses this cache to respond to requests from applications, such as the request from Word to verify the TOOLS-PATH directory.

If the CD-ROM has not been accessed since you turned on the computer or since you changed disks in the CD-ROM drive, the MSCDEX cache contains no information about the current CD-ROM.

When Word verifies the TOOLS-PATH directory, it does not force MSCDEX to read the CD-ROM; instead MSCDEX checks its cache for the existence of the TOOLS-PATH directory. As a result, the TOOLS-PATH directory is considered to be invalid unless MSCDEX reads the CD-ROM and updates its cache before Word attempts to verify the TOOLS-PATH directory.

Reference(s):

"Microsoft Word for Windows User's Guide," version 2.0, page 810