Microsoft KB Archive/130155

Err Msg: “Sorry There Was an Error 253 Accessing the File”

PSS ID Number: Q130155 Article last modified on 05-16-1998

windows:4.0,4.0a,4.0c

WINDOWS

================================================================ ==

The information in this article applies to:

 == Microsoft PowerPoint for Windows, versions 4.0, 4.0a, 4.0c == 

= SYMPTOMS =

When you attempt to save or open a PowerPoint 4.0 for Windows presentation, you may encounter the following error message:

Sorry there was an error 253 accessing the file

= CAUSE =

This error is sometimes caused by a damaged file; for example, you might receive this error message when a file is saved to a bad sector on your hard disk.

To test for this cause, run ScanDisk to check the drive. If the file has been damaged, copy the file to another folder or try to have ScanDisk fix the problem.

= WORKAROUNDS =

To work around this problem, use any of the following methods:

Method 1: Error While Saving
If you received the Message When You Were Saving the Presentation, use the following steps:

  On the File menu, click Save As, and try to save the file with a different name to a different drive or directory. -or-   If you are editing a presentation that was created on another computer, take the most-recent successfully saved copy back to the computer on which it was created. Try editing it and saving it on that computer. 

If neither of these steps leads to a resolution of the problem, try the following:

  Open a new PowerPoint presentation in Slide Sorter view.   Select Slide Sorter view in the problem presentation as well.   In the problem presentation, click Select All on the Edit menu. NOTE: If there are a large number of slides, you may want to hold down the SHIFT key while you click a series of slides to select them; this way you can copy a few of them at a time. </li>  In the new presentation, click Paste on the Edit menu. </li>  on the File menu, click Save, and try to save the new presentation. </li>  If you receive the same error message, start removing OLE objects (objects from WordArt, Graph, Equation Editor, ClipArt Gallery, CorelDRAW, and so forth) one or two at a time. Try saving the file again. </li>  When the new presentation is saved successfully, you know that the most-recently deleted object was the problem. Switch back to the problem presentation and delete (and re-create if necessary) the object that was causing the problem. </li></ol>

Method 2: Error While Opening
If you receive the error message when you open a presentation:


 * Try to open the presentation from another computer.
 * If the presentation originated on another computer, try to open it on that specific computer.

If neither Method 1 nor Method 2 resolves the problem, try the following methods.

Method 3: Create A New Presentation
Try to create a new presentation by following these steps:


 * 1) On the Insert menu, click Slides From File.
 * 2) Click the problem file, and click Open.

Method 4: Change The Default Printer
Use the following steps to change the default printer:


 * 1) Click Start, point to settings, and then click Printers.
 * 2) Select a printer other than the default printer.
 * 3) Use the right mouse button to click Set as Default Printer.

Method 5: Salvage Information Using Screen Captures
Use PowerPoint Viewer to display the presentation, and use the following steps to salvage any information possible by way of screen captures:


 * 1) Start PowerPoint Viewer.
 * 2) Click the file you want to display, and then click Show.
 * 3) When the first slide is shown, click the PrintScrn button on the keyboard.
 * 4) Use the ALT+TAB key combination to switch to PowerPoint.
 * 5) Click Edit, and then point to Paste Special.
 * 6) Click Bitmap, then click OK.

Repeat these steps to capture as much of the information as possible.

Method 6: Open File on Macintosh or PC
Copy the file to a floppy disk and then to open it on a Macintosh computer. If the file is a Macintosh file to begin with, try opening it on a Windows computer. When open the file on a different type of computer (platform), PowerPoint will completely rebuild the structure of the file, and in doing so may eradicate problems in that structure.

Once the file is saved on the alternative platform, attempt to bring it back to it’s home platform.

= STATUS =

Microsoft is researching this problem and will post new information here in the Microsoft Knowledge Base as it becomes available.

= Additional query words: 4.00 ppt bad sector corrupt recover =

Keywords : kberrmsg Version : windows:4.0,4.0a,4.0c Platform : WINDOWS Hardware : x86 Issue type : kbprb ============================================================================= Copyright Microsoft Corporation 1998.