Help Opening Corrupt Word 2007 Doc.

[JenLyn]

Hi, I hope I am in the right forum. I have a very important document that will not open. It was fine and then our network crashed. Now, the file says "the Open Office XML file cannot be opened because there are problems with the content". I have tried just about everything and nothing will open the document. Can anyone out there help?

thanks

 

[BMcAnly]

Give Edit Pad Pro a try - the trial version is a free download. Try to open it with that.
Option #2 is try saving it as a .doc and opening it with Word.
Hope this helps......

 

[BMcAnly]

I need to correct my previous reply. It looks like that is an Open Office document. You can try to convert it to a .doc or download Open Office to read it and save as a .doc.

http://download.openoffice.org/

Sorry 'bout that.......

 

[AnotherHiggins]

->I have tried just about everything and nothing will open the document

That is not very descriptive. It would help if you actually list some of the things you've tried. That might prevent someone from spending their time suggesting something that you already know isn't going to work.

But I agree with BMcAnly - try to open with OpenOffice.

[tt]_____
[blue]-John[/blue][/tt]
[tab][red]The plural of anecdote is not data[/red]

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[JenLyn]

Thanks for the replies. My error, I should have said exactly what I did to try and open the file. The file was created with MS Word 2007 and that is what I am using to try open it with. I have tried the MS word fix and repair (no success), I have tried to rename and zip the file and open it (no success), I have tried to open the file in OpenOffice (no success), I have downloaded WinRepair, Word Recovery, Document Repair (no success) most of the free downloads do not give results unless you buy.

I think I am out of options.

 

[AnotherHiggins]

I don't suppose the file was on a network drive where it was backed up recently?

I have no idea if this will work, but try making copies of the file and change the file types on the copies to .txt and .rtf, then try opening those. (At best you would lose formatting, but at least you might get the text back.)

[tt]_____
[blue]-John[/blue][/tt]
[tab][red]The plural of anecdote is not data[/red]

Help us help you. Please read FAQ 181-2886 before posting.

 

[JenLyn]

Tried saving the file as an rtf, doc, pdf, with still no luck of opening it. It opens in word pad but the txt is unreadable or garbage.

I am not an expert user so i don't really know what else to try. Is there any was someone could try opening it if I send it?

 

[hawkdaddy]

Do you have auto save turned on? If so you can navigate to the folder where the files are auto saved and open the latest version saved.

 

[TonyJollans]

One of the nice things about the new xml format is that it is - in theory - much harder to lose a complete document; the format is much more resilient. However - in practice - you usually get little to go on to help you find the error(s) and correct or remove them.

When you try to open it and Word says it can't, is there a Details button - and, if so, does pressing it give you any information?

If it's not confidential I am happy to take a look at it. With luck most of it should be recoverable.

Enjoy,
Tony

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[tf1]

If the document looks total garbage in WordPad, then it looks like it is problably totally bombed.

The usual options (most of which you have tried) are:

Open & Repair in Word
Open in WordPad
Open with Open Office
Open using Recover Text from Any File in Word

Rename (a copy of the document) to docname.zip and open in WinZip or similar utility. That will display all the various component files that are zipped togethr to create the docx file. If all the components look intact, then it may still be possible to repair the broken element. This will require the services of an experience Word programmer though.

I am pretty sure from your efforts so far that it is not going to be a success story.


Regards: tf1

 

[bobw]

JenLyn,
There is a third party app that may do the trick - I have had success with it once or twice when nothing else would work.... you can download a free trial of "Quick View Plus 9" at

http://www.download.com/Quick-View-Plus/3000-2381_4-10045750.html

Bob W

"If the only tool you have is a hammer, you will see every problem as a nail." - Abraham Maslow