Word 2003 has stopped working

[desperately seeking help]

Help please....just recently I have been having trouble opening Word 2003 in
a VISTA operating system. I immediately get an error message that tells me
Word has stopped working when it hasn't even opened. It then tells me a
problem has stopped it from working but doesn't indiate what problem and
tells me "a solution will be sent to me once one is found.

When I again try to open a document, it tells me it can't locate it. I then
try to open WORD 1st (not the document 1st) and I get an error message:
Word failed to start correctly last time. Starting word in safe mode will
help you correct or isolate a start up problem in order to successfully start
the program. Some functionality may be disabled in this mode.

I tried to detect and repair and it said it was successful but I still have
the problem. Has anyone else experienced this and do you have any advice how
to resolve this? Thanks in Advance!

[Carey Frisch [MVP]]

Uninstall, then reinstall Word 2003.

I'm not even getting into that argument. I'm simply trying to help the OP
get work done.

[Sharon Machado]

Help please....just recently I have been having trouble when I exit Word
or Powerpoint 2007 in a VISTA operating system. I immediately get an
error message
"Windows is checking for a Solution". It then tells me that "A problem
caused the program to stop working correctly. Windows will close the
program and notify you if a solution is available.

[measekite]

Try downloading OpenOffice. It works better than MS Office and handles
graphics better. You get Writer, Calc, and Impress replacing Word,
Excel and Powerpoint and it allows you to use either Open Source format
or MS Office format. You can also use Writer to create PDF files.

You also get a drawing pakage. The only module that is not as good as
Microsoft's Access is Base.

Open Office is cross platform so it runs under Windows, Mac and Linux
and it is FREE. It is managed by Sun Computers.

[jojobakerman]

I have the same problem (Word 2003 crashes on Vista), and I think its SP3. Try uninstalling Office 2003, then reinstall it. Then don't install SP3. That worked for me. I welcome other suggestions that would allow me to upgrade to SP3 and use word at the same time.

Looks like everything they say about Vista is... true. Even Microsoft software isn't compatible!

[Bill Kibbe]

I know that the original post is old by now, but maybe this will help
someone just now encountering the problem like I just did.

I had the exact same thing happen to me. I agonized for five days
before I finally found the fix. I tried everything I could think of at
the time and everything suggested on the internet forums. I ran every
registry repair software I could find, every malware, antivirus I could
get my hands on. Removed and reinstalled Office and a host of other
things.
The Microsoft company tech people were the least helpful; the only
thing they know how to do is insult you.
This is what worked for me:
1. go to RUN from your start button
2. in the field type command
3. A black popup window will appear
4. at the prompt (flashing | ) type in cd\
5. this will take you to your root directory for the c drive
6. At the c:\> prompt type bcdedit.exe /set nx OptOut
7. Close all open windows
8. Reboot your computer
9. Try to open your Office application again
10. Don’t freak out when you get that same “do you want
to run in safe mode?” Popup again.
11. answer yes
12. If the application opens – close down office
13. reopen the office application again - it should now open
normally
This worked for me; I sure hope it fixes your concern too!

[Alienplayer]

HERE'S MY FIX. I have vista home premium...and Word 2003...which suddenly stopped working with the error code, "Microsoft word has stopped working," on start up.

Uninstall MS office, or Word if it will let you. Reinstall word...install service pack 2...but do not install service pack 3. That seems to be the problem.

If this doesn't work...run Reg Cure after the uninstall, and then reinstall. That way you will get all of the trash out of the registry so you can do a clean install.

After looking all over the Internet and trying several fixes, this one suggest on an other forum worked. Don't ask me why...it's Vista.

I feel for anyone having this problem. I've been using Word for 10 years and this is the first time that I've had any problem with it. One day it's working and then...boom..."MS word has stopped working."

Who are you? And, what are you talking about? No, I don't have to reformat my system. I fixed the problem. Did you not read my post.

My computer and word are now working flawlessly.

I can't see why you would suggest reformatting my system. Anyway...not doing it.

Read the thread...it appears that it's about Word 2003 issues as related to it being used under Vista.

sorry about that. I'm new to the service. I can see all of the posters above me...about 5 or 6...and my final post was to Peter. The post just above mine. Peter suggested that I had to reformat my system in order to solve the issue. I didn't have to as I had already fixed the problem and was just posting the fix that worked for me in order to help others that might Google the problem and be brought here, as I was.

Originally the post, to which I was replying, while in search of an answer for my own problem, was about MS Word not working under Vista...with the error message, "Word has stopped working."

I simply found that by reinstalling the application, Word, with Service pack 3, that I still had the issue and error message. But, as suggested here by a previous poster, an installation without installing Service pack 3 did in fact work.

[Peter Foldes]

Although this is a newsgroup for the Vista OS and you are posting about Word which
is a part of Office which you should have posted to the Office Word newsgroup, I can
pretty well tell you about your issue.
You need to reformat your system to get it back to working condition. Using a
Registry Cleaning Tool was not a very bright idea.
The tool removed some lines from the Registry Hive and to repair that you will need
to reformat and start over again.

DO NOT USE any registry tools. They are all snake oil remedies and will not make
your computer more efficient or faster. All they do is cause issues beyond repair

[Gene E. Bloch]

It's not so easy to read the thread when the earlier posts are not present
on the news provider - and you failed to quote the post you replied to.

You want us to read your mind. Ain't gonna happen.

FYI - the post you replied to without quoting shows here as a header dated
12 January 2009, and the body is no longer available on the Microsoft
server.

[Gene E. Bloch]

There is a lot of "reformat your system" out there (they really mean
reformat your hard drive, but what the heck...).

I'm *very* glad you solved your problem without that, since it is a *last*
resort, not a first resort. It would wipe out all your work, all your
software installations, and all the updates to everything. You would be a
long time getting back up to speed, even if everything was backed up.

[BertramDick]

I was struggling with the Microsoft Word problem for a couple of days until I read this post. Bill Kibbe solution worked for me. Thanks Bill!

[Surendar Agarwal]

I know that the original post is old by now, but maybe this will help
someone just now encountering the problem like I just did.

I had the exact same thing happen to me. I agonized for five days
before I finally found the fix. I tried everything I could think of at
the time and everything suggested on the internet forums. I ran every
registry repair software I could find, every malware, antivirus I could
get my hands on. Removed and reinstalled Office and a host of other
things.
The Microsoft company tech people were the least helpful; the only
thing they know how to do is insult you.
This is what worked for me:
1. go to RUN from your start button
2. in the field type command
3. A black popup window will appear
4. at the prompt (flashing | ) type in cd\
5. this will take you to your root directory for the c drive
6. At the c:\> prompt type bcdedit.exe /set nx OptOut
7. Close all open windows
8. Reboot your computer
9. Try to open your Office application again
10. Don’t freak out when you get that same “do you want
to run in safe mode?” Popup again.
11. answer yes
12. If the application opens – close down office
13. reopen the office application again - it should now open
normally
This worked for me; I sure hope it fixes your concern too!

The solution provided by Bill Kibbs worked for me perfectly. Thanks a lot. Run cmd command as an administrator.