Knowledge Base

You receive an error message when you start the program or work with a document in Word 2003 or Word 2002

Article ID: 296493

Article Last Modified on 6/20/2007

APPLIES TO

Microsoft Office Word 2003
Microsoft Word 2002 Standard Edition

This article was previously published under Q296493

SUMMARY

When you start Microsoft Word or work with a document, you may receive the following error message:

Microsoft Word has encountered a problem and needs to close. We are sorry for the inconvenience.

If you were in the middle of something, the information you were working on might be lost.

Restart Microsoft Word

Please tell Microsoft about this problem.

We have created an error report that you can send to help us improve Microsoft Word. We will treat this report as confidential and anonymous.

To see what data this error report contains, click here.

This article describes how you can determine the exact problem description and resolution when you receive this error message.

MORE INFORMATION

Microsoft Word allows you to collect and send the error information to Microsoft. The error message dialog box in the "Summary" section of this article (which is not specific to the Microsoft Windows operating system that you use) is now displayed.

The error signature contains information such as program name, error name, and module name, which Microsoft uses to continue developing and improving Microsoft products.

If you have an Internet connection, you can send this information directly to Microsoft by using the Office Application Error Reporting tool. If you want to report this information, the tool verifies whether a solution to the problem is available, and if so, the tool sends that information to you.

For additional information about end-user reporting and privacy, click the article number below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

283768 OFFXP: End User Privacy Policy in Application Error Report

If you do not want to use the Office Application Error Reporting tool, you can use the information in the error signature to search the Microsoft Knowledge Base directly.

Find the Resolution

To find a resolution to the error message as described in the "Summary" section of this article, follow these steps.

Step 1: Search for the Specific Error Message

To search the Microsoft Knowledge Base for the specific error, follow these steps:

In the error message dialog box (as described in the "Summary" section of this article), click "click here".

In the Error signature section, the error message appears similar to the following example:

   App Name        App Version     Module Name     Module Version  Offset
   ------------------------------------------------------------------------
   winword.exe     10.0.2627.0     winword.exe     10.0.2627.0     0032a96d

Note the specifics about the error signature. In particular, note the AppName, ModName, and Offset values.
In the Address line of your Web browser, type http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx, and then press ENTER.
In the Search (KB) box, select All Microsoft Search Topics.
In the For solutions containing box, type the values that you noted for AppName, ModName, and Offset. Using the example error signature in step b, type winword.exe 0032a96d.

NOTE: If the AppName and ModName are the same, type just the values that you noted for ModName and Offset.
Click Search now.
If any search results are returned, click the link to view the article that is returned.

If the problem that you are experiencing does not appear in the list, please follow step 2.

Step 2: Troubleshoot Possible Causes of the Error

Use a systematic approach to resolve various error messages and problems in Microsoft Word. For additional information about how to do this, click the article number below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

322743 HOW TO: Troubleshoot Problems in Word 2002

If you still cannot resolve the problem, please follow step 3.

Step 3: Use an Automated Search for Other Possible Causes of the Error

Click the following link to see a list of articles about known problems that display this error message and the appropriate workaround or resolution for the problem. If the problem that you are experiencing does not appear in the list or was not resolved by the earlier steps, please follow step 4.

Click here to view a list of articles

Step 4: Request Assistance from Microsoft

Microsoft recommends that you write down the information for the error signature, as described in "Step 1: Search for the Specific Error Message," because a Microsoft Technical Support Professional may ask for this information when you request assistance. For additional information about using the error reporting dialog box, click the article number below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

289508 HOW TO: View the Error Signature from Office Application Error Reporting If Program Quits Unexpectedly

When you call or send an e-mail message, you must be at your computer and have the appropriate product documentation at hand. Be prepared to give the following information:

The version number of the Microsoft product that you are using.
The type of hardware that you are using, including the network hardware, if applicable, and the operating environment that you are using.
The contents of your Config.sys file, Autoexec.bat file, and network-configuration files, if any.
The exact wording of any messages that appeared on your screen.
A description of what occurred and what you were doing when the problem occurred.
The smallest number of steps to reproduce the problem.
The steps you already performed to correct the problem.

For more information about obtaining help with troubleshooting Microsoft Word, click Microsoft Word Help on the Help menu, type Tech Support in the Office Assistant or the Answer Wizard, and then click Search to view the topics returned.

For additional information about Microsoft support services, click the article number below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

102344 Microsoft Product Support Options Q and A

Additional query words: inf ipf

Keywords: kberrmsg kbprb KB296493

Microsoft KB Archive/296493

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