GPF: Opening WinWord 1.x or 2.x Document in WinWord 6.0
  
PSS ID Number: Q108009
Article last modified on 11-01-1994
 
6.00
 
WINDOWS
 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------
The information in this article applies to:
 
 - Microsoft Word for Windows, version 6.0
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
SYMPTOM
=======
 
You receive a general protection (GP) fault when opening a Word 1.x or 2.x
for Windows document into Word 6.0 for Windows.
 
CAUSE
=====
 
Typically, this problem occurs because the original Word 1.x or 2.x
document is somehow damaged (corrupt).
 
WORKAROUND
==========
 
To determine whether a Word 1.x or Word 2.x document is damaged and
possibly recover the document for use in Word 6.0, complete the following
steps:
 
1. Reopen the document into Word 1.x or 2.x (whichever represents the
   document origin).
 
2. Save the document with a new name as Rich Text Format (RTF).
 
3. Open the RTF version of the document into Word 1.x or 2.x and resave as
   a Word document with a new name.
 
4. Open this new document into Word 6.0 and repeat the same steps that
   previously resulted in a GP fault.
 
If you no longer receive a GP fault, the original Word 1.x or 2.x document
was indeed damaged in some way, and you corrected the problem by
converting to and from RTF format. You should now be able to work with the
document in Word 6.0 without issue.
 
If instead Word 1.x or 2.x fails to save the document in RTF format or
fails to reopen the document from RTF format, the original document is
indeed corrupt. In such case, you can recover the document text (without
formatting) for use in Word 6.0 by completing the following steps:
 
1. Reopen the document into Word 1.x or 2.x.
 
2. From the File menu, choose New and choose OK to create a new document
   window.
 
3. Return to the original document window, highlight the entire document
   with the exception of the final paragraph mark, and copy the contents
   of the selection to the Windows Clipboard.
 
4. Paste the contents of the Clipboard into the new document window and
   resave as a Word document with a new name.
 
You should be able to open this document successfully into Word 6.0, but
you will have to reconstruct the formatting originally applied to the
document text.
 
MORE INFORMATION
================
 
Possible forms and causes of document corruption in a Word 1.x or 2.x
document potentially vary to the extent that Word's internal reader cannot
anticipate and avoid the cause in every case. Consequently, a GP fault may
be received when opening a damaged document into Word 6.0.
 
The internal RTF reader in each version of Word is designed to ignore
instructions within an RTF data stream that it does not understand. If you
therefore write (save) a damaged Word document to RTF format and then
reopen that file into Word, invalid instructions within the RTF file will
most often be ignored (removed) during the file open process. This
explains why saving and reopening from RTF format can result in recovery
of a damaged document. If the document is too severely damaged, the RTF
save or open process may fail, resulting in the need to pursue the second
workaround described above.
 
KBCategory: kbinterop
KBSubCategory:
Additional reference words: textconv conversion converted converts transfer
transfers translation translate gp fault gpfault gpf general protection
failure problem 6.00
=============================================================================
Copyright Microsoft Corporation 1994.