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General discussion

page is not blank when I open word document

Nov 29, 2006 2:54AM PST

Please can anybody help me with a problem that has occured when I open up a word document.

I have word 2000 & microsoft xp pro, if this makes a difference.

I am very computer illiterate and have almost no understanding of how these things work or where to go to fix things.

Anyway, when i open a new word document, instead of a blank document, I get a page filled with images. My son downloaded images from google for a piece of homework he was doing and it is these images that are on the page when word is opened.

If i select all and clear, it clears the page, but the next time i open a document the one with all the images reappears.

if i hit the blank page icon (top LHS) of toolbar, I get the page with images.

Please help me (and my son)

Best regards

Ian

Discussion is locked

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Hint: It's in NORMAL.DOT
Nov 29, 2006 3:02AM PST

Research what NORMAL.DOT does on google.com

Bob

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Indeed, Bob's right on track.
Nov 29, 2006 3:36AM PST

Somehow, you or your son put the images in the default template. A very nice ieda, but only if you mean to put them in every new document. And seemingly you don't.

That default template is a file called normal.dot. The first thing to do is: find it using My Computer or Windows Explorer. Assuming you've got Windows XP, it's somewhere in the users Documents and Settings. Don't give up. It's surely there.

Then either simply delete it, or open it (in Word), delete all contents and save it again.

Kees

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Bob And Kees
Dec 4, 2006 3:47AM PST

Hi guys
Many thanks for your replies, I've searched high and low for the normal.dot file but for the life of me I can't find it. Even when i tick the 'show hidden files and folders' and uncheck the 'hide extensions for known file types' boxes.

Any further help you can give me would be greatly appreciated.
Best regards
Ian

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Bob and Kees
Dec 4, 2006 4:01AM PST

JUST FOUND IT!
thanks guys for your help.
I'm now speaking to my son again
Thanks again
ian

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(NT) Good job. Glad we could help.
Dec 4, 2006 6:00AM PST
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Already named word file
Dec 5, 2006 6:08PM PST

Hey
When i open a new word document it always come up with a message saying "Do you want to revert back to the saved L:/"
How can i get it to come up as a blank unnamed document?
Thanks for your help

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I'd start with ...
Dec 5, 2006 7:59PM PST

deleting normal.dot and retrying. Does this happen also if you specify another template to use in stead of the default normal.dot?

Kees

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Mysterious Document
Jun 22, 2007 5:38AM PDT

Not a mystery any more - many thanks to each of you and following
Kees Bakker's advice - problem solved.

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Window Vista 32 or 64 bits
Aug 10, 2010 2:55PM PDT

Just thought some one might want to know this too.... I encounter the same problem but none of the solution offered here helped. so I decided to to wing it.

follow this steps if nothing else works.
1. open the word.
2. point the mouse to the name of the document that appears if you know it. (I didn't so I click each on until I got it)
3. Write down, the Url where the document is located. (if you are good with memory, good for you)
4. click star
5. in the search box (I have window vista 32/64 bits) write down the url.
6. search for it.
7. open the folder and delete the accidental templates. until you are left with Normal.dot (default black page for word)


Hope this help any one that has window vista 32/64 bits and MS 2007.