File size changes

[CarlosAntenna]

I am posting here because I am not sure which NG should get this and because
this NG seems to be fairly active.

A user emailed a Word 97 document to me. The attachment was over 3 MB. If
I save the attachment to my PC it stays the same size, but if I open it in
Word 2002 and then Save As, the file size changes to 25 KB. Is there any
explanation for this behavior? Why would his file be so large, it was a
simple 2 page letter?

My main concern is this: If he emails such documents to customers with
dial-up connections they could be very unhappy with us.

Carlos

 

[Suzanne S. Barnhill]

There are a number of reasons for excessive file size, including:

1. Fast Saves: Disable this at on the Save tab of Tools | Options.

2. Preview Picture: Clear the check box on the Summary tab of File |
Properties.

3. Versions (File | Versions): Make sure "Automatically save version on
close" is not turned on.

4. Revisions (Tools | Track Changes):
Highlight Changes: Make sure "Highlight changes on screen" is turned on
(or that "Final Showing Markup" is displayed).
Accept/Reject Changes: If "Accept All" or "Reject All" is available then
revisions are present; accept or reject all changes, then turn Track Changes
off.

5. Embedded True Type fonts (Tools | Options | Save); embedding fonts should
be avoided wherever possible.

6. Embedded graphics: When feasible, it is preferable to link the graphics.
That is, when you insert the graphic, click the arrow beside Insert in the
Picture dialog and choose Link to File rather than Insert or Insert and
Link.

7. Embedded objects: These are even worse than ordinary graphics saved with
the document. If you see an { EMBED } code, the graphic is an OLE object.
Unless you need to be able to edit the object in place, unlink it using
Ctrl+Shift+F9.

8. File format: Make sure you are saving as a Word document; in some cases
..rtf (Rich Text Format) files are significantly larger than .doc files.

9. Document corruption: See
http://www.mvps.org/word/FAQs/AppErrors/CorruptDoc.htm.

--
Suzanne S. Barnhill
Microsoft MVP (Word)
Words into Type
Fairhope, Alabama USA

Email cannot be acknowledged; please post all follow-ups to the newsgroup so
all may benefit.

 

[CarlosAntenna]

Thanks, Suzanne.

It may have something to do with graphics. The user said he deleted some
graphics from the document. We will try some of your suggestions as soon as
I can get him to let me at his PC for a few minutes.

Carlos

 

[Steve Hayes]

I am posting here because I am not sure which NG should get this and because
this NG seems to be fairly active.

A user emailed a Word 97 document to me. The attachment was over 3 MB. If
I save the attachment to my PC it stays the same size, but if I open it in
Word 2002 and then Save As, the file size changes to 25 KB. Is there any
explanation for this behavior? Why would his file be so large, it was a
simple 2 page letter?

My main concern is this: If he emails such documents to customers with
dial-up connections they could be very unhappy with us.

I am very unhappy because I received a 5Mb attachment.

When I opened it, it was just over 2Mb.

It was a three-page document, with 257 words, a border and one photograph.

I recently prepared a document to send to someone else. It was 65 pages, with
several photographs and an index, and came to just over 1,5 Mb. I saved it ans
sent it as a PDF file, which was 1,8 Mb.

A couple of days ago I received a pdf file that was over 1 Mb - it was a one
page form with a logo and it was scam/spam, which was even more annoying.

So how is it that a 65 page document with several photographs (created in Word
97) is smaller than a one or two page document?

 

[Beth Melton]

The file bloat issue doesn't have anything to do with using a specific
version of Word, it's what the creator of the document may have added
to the file. For the list of items that can cause file bloat take a
look at Suzanne Barnhill's reply in this thread.

I suspect the problem with the document you received in email either
had the image on the first page and "Preview Picture" turned on under
File/Properties/Summary, or the image in the document was around 1.5
MB and the creator merely scaled the image in Word, which doesn't
alter the image file size, rather than actually resizing the image in
an image editor.

--
Please post all follow-up questions to the newsgroup. Requests for
assistance by email can not be acknowledged.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Beth Melton
Microsoft Office MVP

Word FAQ: http://mvps.org/word
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MVP FAQ site: http://mvps.org/