# \*&^% microsoft word!!!!!! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [February 18, 2018, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microsoft-word/809064 "2018-02-18T19:15:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/malleus_incus_stapes/32/3293_2.png) [@Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malleus_Incus_Stapes)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2018, 7:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microsoft-word/809064/1 "2018-02-18T19:15:25Z")
I just spent four hours writing a fanfic. A good one. My first one that was worth finishing. And I clicked save and all the sudden my document closed and I got a message from “Microsoft upload” saying there was something wrong with my cache and I had to close and reupload or something. and I reopened Word and it wasn’t autosaved and I reopened the upload thing and it said there weren’t any recent uploads AND I NEED TO BREAKS SOMETHING!! _sobs_ oh god is there any way of getting it back please sob sob dear god i cant believe this ---
**Author:** ![Morgenstern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Morgenstern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgenstern)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2018, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microsoft-word/809064/2 "2018-02-18T19:20:04Z")
You really didn’t mean you went 4 hours without saving did you? ---
**Author:** ![Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/malleus_incus_stapes/32/3293_2.png) [@Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malleus_Incus_Stapes)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2018, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microsoft-word/809064/3 "2018-02-18T19:24:16Z")
I was in the zone! And then I looked at the clock, and I was like, I better save this before anything happens. And I sAVED IT, AND THAT’S WHAT MADE IT SHUT DOWN ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2018, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microsoft-word/809064/4 "2018-02-18T19:54:53Z")
Sometimes Word creates temporary files while you’re working. Have you tried looking for those? [How to recover a lost Word document](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/316951/how-to-recover-a-lost-word-document) [Recovery of MS Word Content from Temp Files](http://office-recovery.com/word.asp) ---
**Author:** ![Folacin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folacin/32/3195_2.png) [@Folacin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folacin)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2018, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microsoft-word/809064/5 "2018-02-18T19:56:00Z")
Usually I get a ‘recovery’ panel if my PC crashes in the middle of a document - if you didn’t get one of those, I’m not sure if anything is recoverable. Not that it helps for this one, but Word does have some auto-save/auto-recover options that you should probably turn on for the next time . . . ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2018, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microsoft-word/809064/6 "2018-02-18T19:57:04Z")
Never compose stuff in Word. It’s a hideously awful piece of software. Compose in a plain text editor. Paste it into Word and format it and correct your typos, spelling, and grammar during your second pass. ETA: Yes, I do realize this is useless advice for your current situation. I feel your pain. Sorry. ---
**Author:** ![Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/malleus_incus_stapes/32/3293_2.png) [@Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malleus_Incus_Stapes)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2018, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microsoft-word/809064/7 "2018-02-18T20:04:17Z")
> [@Folacin](#): > > Usually I get a ‘recovery’ panel if my PC crashes in the middle of a document - if you didn’t get one of those, I’m not sure if anything is recoverable. > > Not that it helps for this one, but Word does have some auto-save/auto-recover options that you should probably turn on for the next time . . . I do have autorecovery. Even if my computer crashes while I’m working on it, I get it back. That’s how it works. Ir works and works and works and then it doesn’t. ---
**Author:** ![Folacin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folacin/32/3195_2.png) [@Folacin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folacin)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2018, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microsoft-word/809064/8 "2018-02-18T20:06:37Z")
> [@Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](#): > > I do have autorecovery. Even if my computer crashes while I’m working on it, I get it back. That’s how it works. Ir works and works and works and then it doesn’t. Now I feel extra sad for you :(:o ---
**Author:** ![Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/malleus_incus_stapes/32/3293_2.png) [@Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malleus_Incus_Stapes)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2018, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microsoft-word/809064/9 "2018-02-18T21:03:44Z")
I… guess I’m a little calmer now. It took me about an hour and a half to rewrite it (good thing it was less than two pages), although it’s not as good as my first draft because I don’t remember all the phrasing I used and I was in a hurry. The story is about a character searching for something precious to him that’s gone gone gone, and he refuses to believe he can’t get it back, and for some reason I feel the irony gods are laughing at me. ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2018, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microsoft-word/809064/10 "2018-02-18T21:36:57Z")
> [@Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](#): > > I… guess I’m a little calmer now. It took me about an hour and a half to rewrite it (good thing it was less than two pages), although it’s not as good as my first draft because I don’t remember all the phrasing I used and I was in a hurry. > > The story is about a character searching for something precious to him that’s gone gone gone, and he refuses to believe he can’t get it back, and for some reason I feel the irony gods are laughing at me. I can imagine. I do hope someone will come along with a suggestion (for getting back your original) that works. But in the meantime: it’s always possible that your brain did better by you than you think–that the second version is actually more effective than the first version was, despite your telling yourself that the original was superior. The unconscious mind is capable of some pretty wonderful feats. You may have edited yourself to the story’s betterment, without even realizing it. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2018, 9:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microsoft-word/809064/11 "2018-02-18T21:50:03Z")
**Malleus** , this sucks, what version of Word are you using and on what Operating System? It will help narrow down the possible recovery. > [@AHunter3](#): > > Never compose stuff in Word. It’s a hideously awful piece of software. Compose in a plain text editor. Paste it into Word and format it and correct your typos, spelling, and grammar during your second pass. > > ETA: Yes, I do realize this is useless advice for your current situation. I feel your pain. Sorry. This is one of the dumber posts I have ever seen. Word rarely has issues like this on a stable machine. I’ve used word since Office 4.0 on Diskette. Save and save often has always been the rule of word processing on any computer, that is sound advice. ---
**Author:** ![Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/malleus_incus_stapes/32/3293_2.png) [@Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malleus_Incus_Stapes)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2018, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microsoft-word/809064/12 "2018-02-18T22:27:29Z")
> [@What\_Exit](#): > > **Malleus** , this sucks, what version of Word are you using and on what Operating System? It will help narrow down the possible recovery. Word is 2016, OS is Win 7. But like I said, I rewrote it. It is what it is now. Thank you all for your sympathy. (I now feel kinda silly about running around the house sobbing and screaming. But’s that’s only because I managed to redo it. If it was a longer fic that couldn’t be reconstructed, I’d probably still be sulking). ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2018, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microsoft-word/809064/13 "2018-02-18T22:33:48Z")
OK, that is good news, but you can try this fix just to see if it works and compare: [ol] [li]Click File then Recent [/li][li]look for & click Recover Unsaved Documents.[/li][li]The Open dialog box opens displaying a list of your unsaved recoverable Word documents.[/li][li]The recovered Word document is now open and displays an information banner across the top recommending that you Save the file.[/li][li]Click the Save As button and save your Word document.[/li][/ol] ---
**Author:** ![galen\_ubal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/galen_ubal/32/4440_2.png) [@galen\_ubal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/galen_ubal)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2018, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microsoft-word/809064/14 "2018-02-18T22:40:04Z")
One more “closing the barn door” thought - on my copy of Word, austosave is on - I’d thought it was on by default, but I could be mistaken. Perhaps check for that, and turn it on for future writing? ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2018, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microsoft-word/809064/15 "2018-02-18T22:44:58Z")
I lost two hours’ worth of design work. The Irony Gods were tweaking my tush, too, because it happened in a computer lab. At my school. Where I teach Intro to Computer Graphics. And where I’d spent weeks beating “Save Save Save, Backup, Backup, Backup!” into the kids’ heads. And it happened in front of a dozen of those kids. Who chimed in with glee: “Oh, _poor_ Professor… when’s the last time you saved?” “Poor Prof, but of _course_ you’d backed that up to an external drive…” And the mantra that I used on them: “Did that file exist only ONE place in the WHOLE UNIVERSE?” “Okay, gang, I’ll laugh along with you in ten minutes. But til then it’s not funny!” What I learned that day is that if you have to start over, it takes 25% the time. Which goes to show how much time you spend making decisions and undoing. So half an hour later I was caught up. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2018, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microsoft-word/809064/16 "2018-02-18T22:46:17Z")
> [@galen\_ubal](#): > > One more “closing the barn door” thought - on my copy of Word, austosave is on - I’d thought it was on by default, but I could be mistaken. Perhaps check for that, and turn it on for future writing? For that check File - options - Save and ensure Save AutoRecover information … is check and set the time to a number you like. Mine is 5 minutes. Though \*\*Malleus \*\*said it was on. ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2018, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microsoft-word/809064/17 "2018-02-18T23:12:09Z")
> [@What\_Exit](#): > > … > This is one of the dumber posts I have ever seen. Word rarely has issues like this on a stable machine. I’ve used word since Office 4.0 on Diskette. Word has these issues and about 19,347 pages more of them. I detest it. The only reason I’m willing to have it installed on my computer is that it has become “the standard” and every-freaking-body expects you to submit stuff in Word. For casual use I would not care and would compose it in Nisus Writer and do a Save As –\> MS Word format but I can’t depend on a converter to put in front of other people exactly what I need them to see, so Microsoft Word it is. But whoever designed it (yes, since MS Word on diskette days, when they ignored what was standard in other Mac apps and gave us keystroke shortcuts that annoyed the starch out of me) should be pelted with rotten cabbage and dead fish heads and the contents of people’s chamber pots. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [February 18, 2018, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microsoft-word/809064/18 "2018-02-18T23:20:29Z")
> [@AHunter3](#): > > Word has these issues and about 19,347 pages more of them. I detest it. The only reason I’m willing to have it installed on my computer is that it has become “the standard” and every-freaking-body expects you to submit stuff in Word. For casual use I would not care and would compose it in Nisus Writer and do a Save As –\> MS Word format but I can’t depend on a converter to put in front of other people exactly what I need them to see, so Microsoft Word it is. > > But whoever designed it (yes, since MS Word on diskette days, when they ignored what was standard in other Mac apps and gave us keystroke shortcuts that annoyed the starch out of me) should be pelted with rotten cabbage and dead fish heads and the contents of people’s chamber pots. It is true it wasn’t really designed for Mac back in the diskette days, so if you are a Mac user, it explains why 20 years later you still can’t get the hang of a simple and stable piece of software and still hate it for no good reason. Over a billion people use MS-Word without issues, I suspect it is you. The software even works on iPhones and Galaxies for free, why you still have problems with it is inexplicable. Be proud of your irrational hatreds I guess. Everyone needs something to be proud of. ---
**Author:** ![Balthisar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/balthisar/32/2825_2.png) [@Balthisar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balthisar)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2018, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microsoft-word/809064/19 "2018-02-19T01:14:33Z")
> [@What\_Exit](#): > > It is true it wasn’t really designed for Mac back in the diskette days, so if you are a Mac user, it explains why 20 years later you still can’t get the hang of a simple and stable piece of software and still hate it for no good reason. He runs an older OS that may not be compatible, and is still kind of stuck in the past about it. I think I remember a complaint that Eudora would no longer work for him. In any case, for the OP, being “in the zone” is not excuse. Just remember Open-Apple-S. Or Command-S. Or Control-S. Whatever your keyboard uses. It’s almost a reflex for me. ---
**Author:** ![galen\_ubal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/galen_ubal/32/4440_2.png) [@galen\_ubal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/galen_ubal)\ **Post date:** [February 19, 2018, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microsoft-word/809064/20 "2018-02-19T01:20:42Z")
> [@What\_Exit](#): > > For that check File - options - Save and ensure Save AutoRecover information … is check and set the time to a number you like. Mine is 5 minutes. > > Though \*\*Malleus \*\*said it was on. :smack: [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/microsoft-word/809064.md?page=2)