Unspecified Error, word/document.xml, Line:2, Column: 0

Anonymous
2012-05-27T15:48:53+00:00

Dear document savers,

It appears that due dates for assignments makes Word eat documents.

Like others I have a corrupted .docx document.  I have tried every trick in the book I can find and am now resorting to the next level of knowledgeable help.

The document crashed whilst working on a formula around the 3rd last page from memory (page 12 I believe).  After waiting etc. I closed and reopened the document and found then that it would go crazy when I got to the area I was last working in, and wouldn't scroll or display content properly.  When I tried again to close and open it wouldn't open it.  Nothing so far has worked.

It now gives the message:

"The file Assign 3 Answers.docx cannot be opened because there are problems with the contents."

"Details"

"Unspecified Error"

"Location: Part: /word/document.xml, line: 2, column: 0"

I have uploaded the file here

https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B8CyUQXlwkYeUXdmVl9acWZTUEU

I can open in Googledocs but without drawings or equations.  It opens in viewer.zoho.com but still cannot open a saved copy in Word 2010

I would greatly appreciate if anyone had any fixes for me.

Sincerely,

Rowan

Microsoft 365 and Office | Word | For home | Windows

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Anonymous
2012-05-27T18:16:27+00:00

... https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B8CyUQXlwkYeUXdmVl9acWZTUEU ...

The Google Docs copy was a DOC rather than a DOCX, but I downloaded it and had a look. I snipped out the  BH  from the second formula following "for Triangle CBH" on page 19. That will need replacing and close proofreading that area is highly recommended.

                  

There is some strange pagination and I don't know exactly why that is nor even if the pagination is intentional.  The actual corruption looked like it was due to many reformatting changes, resulting in empty formatting tags.

I've uploaded a repaired copy of the DOCX to my SkyDrive here for you to download . Be sure to get service packs for Office 2007 or 2010 installed whenever possible before further editing is performed.

Office service packs

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  1. Doug Robbins - MVP - Office Apps and Services 323.6K Reputation points MVP Volunteer Moderator
    2015-03-17T10:38:48+00:00

    This one looks promising:

    http://www.firstobject.com/dn\_editor.htm

    Note that you need to use Tools>Preferences to set the indentation - either by the number of tab spaces or the number of spaces and then invoke the Indentation via Tools>Indent (or F8) for the preference to be activated.

    The response (screen refresh) when moving through the file is virtually instantaneous, whereas NotePad++ is more like watching grass grow.

    One minor drawback is that Word gives the error location in the format Line 2, Column # and while the status bar shows the offset from the beginning of the file (characters in Line 1 + position in Line 2) the Go To facility only provides for going to a Line.

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  2. Anonymous
    2015-03-17T00:51:43+00:00

    Here are some notes about XML editors:

    • I found XMLMarker2 to be the best for finding and correcting XML mistakes, better than Notepad++. However it is expensive at $125 for commercial use. It is only $50 for non-commercial use.
    • XMLDoctor is a free piece of software that works OK. It doesn't work as well for document.xml repair if I remember correctly. It could use some updating by the author.
    • XMLNotepad is Microsoft's foray into the field. I also think it doesn't work as well as XMLMarker2. It looks like it is now OpenSource.

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  3. Anonymous
    2015-03-16T23:15:33+00:00

    For me, delving into XML files with notepad++ is still a black art, and I am not always successful.  I really only know enough to be dangerous.  But then, nothing ventured, nothing gained.

    In the case of your file, when attempting to open it in Word, the details of the first error message are not very helpful, but when you click on OK, the following dialog appears

    and if you click on the Yes button, another error message with Details button on it appears and clicking on the Details button, this time we see

    which tells us that there is a problem in the document.xml file at line 2 column2698443

    So, when we have changed the file extension to .zip and have extracted the files from the archive and opened the document.xml file in Notepad++, we use the search facility to find that position in the file

    Thanks Doug.

    One tip that I've found helpful is to use another (free) XML editor other than notpad ++ (sorry, I won't be able to suggest any specific ones because I currently don't have access to the partition with those tools installed <sigh> ).

    When I'm looking at an XML (HTML) editor I look for one that provides the option of formatting / indenting the code.  Each XML tag is on a separate line in the display and related tags are "indented" with spaces or tabs to make the relationships visible.  I find this makes finding "wonky" code easier.  The trick (lately) has been finding the right XML reader application.

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  4. Anonymous
    2015-03-08T17:00:36+00:00

    OK, I've removed all the files. Good luck with finishing your thesis :-).

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