WD: Individual Word Session Started for Each Attached Document

ID: Q102496

The information in this article applies to:

SYMPTOMS

Windows starts an individual instance of Word for Windows for each attached Word document that you open from within a Mail for Windows message. 

   -or-
Windows starts an individual instance of Word for Windows for each document file that you double-click in Microsoft Windows Explorer.

CAUSE

This behavior occurs in Mail and Windows Explorer when the file association for .doc files is incorrect or when the Word Document setting is incorrect or incomplete in the Windows registration database file (Registry in Windows 95).

For example, if you set the file association for .doc files to 

   C:\Winword\Winword.Exe
Windows starts a new instance of Word each time you start a file from Windows Explorer and each time you open a document from Mail. If you set the file association to 

   Microsoft Word Document
Windows checks the registration database and performs the specified commands for an Open action. (By default, Windows opens a document in the current instance of Word if it is already running.)

WORKAROUND

To work around this behavior, associate .doc files with Word and correct the Word Document settings in the registration database. To do this, use the steps appropriate to your version of Word.

To check the .doc file association, use the following steps:

1. In Windows Explorer, click Options on the View menu, and click 

   the File Types tab.
2. In the Registered File Types box, click Microsoft Word Document, and 
   click New Type.
3. In the Description of Type box, type "Microsoft Word Document" 
   (without the quotation marks). In the Associated Extension box, type
   ".doc" (without the quotation marks).
4. Click New in order to define an action for this file type.

5. In the New Action dialog box, in the Action box, type the action 

   that you want to define; for example, type "Open" or "New" (without the
   quotation marks).
6. In the "Application Used to Perform Action" box, type the command 
   that you want to run in order to complete the action you specified; for
   example, type:

      c:\Msoffice\Winword\Winword.exe
7. Click OK.

8. Click OK again.

For more information about associating file types in 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.

MORE INFORMATION

For additional information, please see the following articles in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: 

   ARTICLE-ID: Q138447
   TITLE     : Word 2.x/6.x: New Word Session Started for Each Attached
               File
KBCategory: KBSubcategory: winword

Additional query words: email e-mail electronic msmail attachment session multiple instances extra separate different second 2nd word97 

Keywords          : kbinterop winword 
Version           : 7.0 7.0a 97
Platform          : WINDOWS

Last Reviewed: February 6, 1998