Microsoft KB Archive/104934

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WD: Comparison of WinWord 2.0 and 6.0 Operating Limitations

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Q104934

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The information in this article applies to:


 * Microsoft Word for Windows, versions 2.0, 2.0a, 2.0a-CD, 2.0b, 2.0c, 6.0, 6.0a, 6.0c

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SUMMARY
This article lists the operating limits for Word version 6.0 for Windows and, where applicable, compares them with those for Word version 2.x for Windows. ?? indicates that the information is unavailable.

Feature                            Word 6.0             Word 2.x ---

Number of open windows             Limited only         9 by memory

Maximum number of paths            200                  200 in Find File

Maximum file size                  32 megabytes (MB)    16 MB

Color palette size                 256 colors           16 colors

Maximum characters per line        768                  256

Maximum number of bookmarks        16,379               450

Maximum number of fields in a document                      32,000               2000

Maximum number of characters       255                  n/a in a field of mail merge Data Form

Maximum number of nested fields                             20                   20

Number of tabs set in a paragraph                     50                   50

Number of icon buttons included    245

Maximum number of characters in Fillin fields                   255                  ??

Length of Recently Used File list (MRU)                    9                    4

List of Recently Used Fonts (Font MRU list)              9                    n/a

Cache Size                         512K                 64K

Bitmap Cache (bitmapmemory WINWORD6.INI setting)              default is 1 MB      default is 256K*

* In Word 2.x, the bitmapmemory setting is stored in the WIN.INI file.

AutoText (glossary) entries        150                  150 (more, based in template or global template                           on available                                                         memory)

Maximum Number of Table Columns    31                   31

FONT FORMATTING
  Number of fonts                  32,000*              256

Maximum font size               1637 points          128 points (22 inches)

Maximum condensed character spacing               1637 points          1.75 points

Maximum expanded character spacing               1637 points          14 points

Maximum Super/Subscript         1637 points          63.5 points

* This is the number of fonts Word will accept however the WIN.INI contains the list of these fonts and is limited to 64k. This effectively limits the number of fonts in Word to about 1500. Large font lists will also affect the operating speed of Windows.

STYLE FORMATTING
  Maximum number of styles         4093                 220

Maximum length of style name    256 characters       24 characters

SECTION FORMATTING
  Maximum number of columns        45                   100

Minimum column width            .5 inch           limited by default tab setting   Maximum section number Word can display in status bar       999 (3 digits)       n/a

MACROS
  Maximum size of macro            larger than 64K      64K

Maximum number of global macros                          150                  150

Maximum number of nesting levels in macros                150                  16

Maximum length for a macro name 80 characters        80 characters

Maximum length of string variables 65,280

Maximum length for a  variable name                    80 characters        39 characters

Maximum number of arguments that can be passed to a subroutine   20                   20

Highest number                  1.7976931348623 x 10308

Maximum number of controls in a  Custom Dialog Box                 255

PROOFING TOOLS
  Maximum number user dictionaries               10                   4

Maximum custom dictionary size                 366,590 bytes        10,000 words

Main dictionary                 106,000              104,000 (U.S. English)                  words                words

Thesaurus                       44,000               24,000 (U.S. English)                  key words            key words

Thesaurus                       458,000              200,000 (U.S. English)                  synonyms             synonyms

SORTING
  Maximum number of sorting criteria                        3                    1

Date formats recognized         any                  limited

FOOTNOTES AND ENDNOTES
  Footnotes and endnotes in   same document                    yes                  no

SYMBOL CHARACTERS
Note: In Word 6.0, the Symbol command on the Insert menu inserts an actual symbol character, whereas Word 2.x inserts a SYMBOL field. By using the symbol character, the display time in Word 6.0 is shorter, and you can insert many symbols on a line without drastically slowing the operation of your computer.

PICTURES AND OBJECTS
  Maximum number of colors         256                  16

Maximum size of picture         limited to           limited by                                    Windows 16 MB        system configuration Note: OLE objects in Word 6.0 use approximately one-third less disk space than in Word 2.x, so file sizes are smaller.

TOC AND INDEX
  Maximum length of entry          unlimited            256 characters

Uses document character formatting in TOC or index      yes                  no

Page numbers based on printed output instead of current view  yes                  no

Number of repaginations needed to generate TOC          1                    2

Uses symbols and pictures as  entries                          yes                  no

FORM FIELDS
  Number of items in Drop Down FORM field list                 25                   n/a

OBJECT LINKING AND EMBEDDING (OLE)
  Supports OLE version 2.0         yes                  no

Ole Links/Objects               564                  ?? For information on the operating limitations for Word for Windows 95, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

"Q142339 WD95: Operating Parameter Limitations and Specifications" Additional query words: statistics limit graphic graphics specification requirement

Keywords : kbusage kbconversion

Issue type : kbinfo

Technology :