Word document now scrambled

Sicard

I had a trial version on my new HP Envy of Office 365 and installed FreeOffice to compensate when the trial ran out and wrote additional copy in the program. I didn't like it as was too limiting so uninstalled it. I now have a trial version of 365 to run another month but now the document is scrambled. Is there any way of returning it to legibility?

TIA

agrinnall

I think you should be able to save the document in freeoffice as .rtf then open it in Word. You may lose some of the formatting but it shouldn't be scrambled.

Sicard

I uninstalled the program so when I open the doc it's already scrambled. I've reinstalled freeoffice but it's still scrambled in word, freeoffice and Open office. But thanks anyway. What a piece of crappio.

EdwardB

it is a long shot but you might want to look for temp versions in your temp folder and in the folder you saved in

you may need to set explorer folder options then view, so it shows hidden files, it does not by default, also set it to view system files. this applies per folder until you tell it to apply to all folders.

so once you set this faded versions of files appear, look for one with same name it may be beginning with a tilde ~mydoc.docx

i do not know the crapio app but it may be storing temp versions in your profile

For example my version of ms word stores temp docs in

C:\Users\%username%\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Word

copy the above into explorer or create a shortcut to it (note you may need to turn hidden files on to see all files)

pm me a link to the corrupt file in dropbox or mega.nz and I will have a look at the file and see if I can recover anything from it.

also in windows if you happen to have system restore on then there may be previous versions of the file

go into explorer so you see the file, right click it and choose properties, then click on previous versions tab

[URL="mshelp://"]How are previous versions created?[/URL]

Previous versions are automatically saved as part of a restore point. If system protection is turned on, Windows automatically creates previous versions of files and folders that have been modified since the last restore point was made. Typically, restore points are made once a day. If your disk is partitioned or if you have more than one hard disk on your computer, you need to turn on system protection for the other [URL="mshelp://windows/?id=75f2da20-91f7-4f31-8e17-798cce2c38c1#gtmt_partition_def"]partitions[/URL] or disks. Previous versions are also created by Windows Backup when you back up your files.
Note

• If you modify a file several times in one day, only the version that was current when the restore point or backup was made is saved as a previous version.

To turn on system protection

System protection is automatically turned on for the drive that Windows is installed on. You can turn it on for other drives by following the steps below.
1. [URL="shortcut:%25systemroot%25\system32\control.exe /name Microsoft.System"][IMG]mshelp://help/?id=Microsoft.Windows.Resources.ShellExecuteTopicIcon[/IMG]Click to open System.[/URL]
2. In the left pane, click System protection. [IMG]mshelp://windows/?id=18abb370-ac1e-4b6b-b663-e028a75bf05b[/IMG] If you are prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation.
3. Click the drive, and then click Configure.
4. Do one of the following:
   
   • To turn on the ability to restore system settings and previous version of files, click Restore system settings and previous versions of files.
   • To turn on the ability to restore previous version of files, click Only restore previous versions of files.
5. Click OK.

good luck

agrinnall

Sicard wrote: »

I uninstalled the program so when I open the doc it's already scrambled. I've reinstalled freeoffice but it's still scrambled in word, freeoffice and Open office. But thanks anyway. What a piece of crappio.

If the document that you updated and saved in freeoffice is now unreadable in freeoffice then I can only assume that when you tried to open it in Word that did something to cause the scrambling. What is the extension of that file? Does it have an update timestamp that is later than when you saved it it freeoffice?

I suspect that Edward's suggestion of finding a temp version is probably your best bet, although I wouldn't hold out a lot of hope that you'll be able to find one that's usable.

Sicard

EdwardB

I tried system restore but all 5 restore points failed for some obscure reason. First time ever. I tried troubleshooting all day thinking it could be malaware. No luck. Some of the saved files were bak. extensions. Still no luck.

I've sent you a pm with a Drop Box link.

BTW whenever I click to quote you I get the silly captcha which takes me to a blank page

Sicard

agrinnall

Thanks. Yep, I think the corruption occurred as you say.