WD: "Word is Converting <Filename>" Message Opening Document

ID: Q179242

The information in this article applies to:

SYMPTOMS

When you open any document in Microsoft Word, including a Word document, you will see the following information in the status bar: 

   Word is converting <file name>.
When the file finally opens, it will appear with unreadable characters or garbled text.

CAUSE

The file associations are not set correctly.

RESOLUTION

To resolve this behavior, reregister Word by running Word or Office Setup with the /r and /y switches. To do this, follow these steps:

1. Insert the Word or Office compact disc into the CD-ROM drive. 

   If you installed Word or Office from floppy disks insert Setup Disk
   1 in the floppy disk drive of your computer.
2. On the Windows Start menu, click Run.

3. In the Open box, type the following 

      <drive>:\Setup.exe /r /y

    where <drive> is the letter of the drive that contains the compact disc
    or Setup Disk 1.
4. Click OK.

MORE INFORMATION

To check the file association for Word for Windows documents, follow these steps:

1. Double-click My Computer.

2. On the View menu, click Options or Folder Options.

3. Click the File Types tab.

4. In the Registered File Types box, click Microsoft Word Document. In the 

   File Type Details section verify that the extension is DOC.
8. Click Cancel.

For additional information about associating file types in Microsoft Windows, see your Windows printed documentation or click the Index tab in Microsoft Windows Help, type the following text 

   associating, file types
and then double-click the selected text to view the "Creating or modifying a file type" topic.

Additional query words: garbage characters. 

Version           : WINDOWS:7.0,7.0a,97
Platform          : WINDOWS
Issue type        : kbprb

Last Reviewed: February 11, 1999