Thank you for your repsonse.

After swapping the computer, reinstalling Word, eliminating all printer
drivers, resetting word via the normal.dot and dumping the data registry key,
I finally threw up my hands and built a new profile for the user from scratch.

It fixed the issue. Why? Who knows.....

Bob

"Leon Hao [MSFT]" wrote:

> Hi,
>
> I agree with Beth's suggestion. Sometimes this option can cause such
> problems.
>
> If this does not correct the problem, please get back here with the
> following information for further investigation:
>
> * Information Collection
> ===================
> 1. Have you applied all the latest Office XP updates for this user?
> 2. Does this occur on another Word document? Please also create a new one
> to test.
> 3. Does this occur with an Excel workbook or a PowerPoint presentation?
> 4. Create a new user account on the problematic machine and see if this
> issue still persists.
>
> Meanwhile, you may want to try the following:
>
> * Start Word with /a switch
> ================
> The /a switch is a troubleshooting tool that is used to determine where a
> problem may exist when you are working with Microsoft Word. To start Word
> using /a switch, please follow the steps below:
>
> 1. Click Start>Run.
> 2. Type ¡°winword /a¡± (without the quotation marks) and press Enter.
> 3. After Word starts, try to create a new document and test again.
>
> If it works fine with Word /a switch, please consider the following methods
> to fix this issue:
>
> # 1 Do Not Run Auto Macros
> # 2 Empty the Startup Folder
> # 3 Check for COM Add-Ins
> # 4 Rename the Global Template
> # 5 Rename the Data Key and Options Key in the Windows Registry
>
> The detailed steps can be obtained at the following KB article:
>
> 259413 How to troubleshoot problems that may occur when you start or work
> in Word 2000, in Word 2002, and in Word 2003
> http://support.microsoft.com/default...b;EN-US;259413
>
> * Perform a Safe Mode with networking in Windows XP
> =======================
> 1. Restart Windows.
> 2. At the boot sequence, long press F8 key to invoke startup menu.
> 3. Choose Safe Mode with network connection on the menu and press Enter.
> 4. After Windows starts, determine if this issue still persists.
>
>
> Regards,
>
> Leon Hao
>
> Microsoft Online Partner Support
> Get Secure! - www.microsoft.com/security
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>