Why is Windows Automatically Renaming Documents I save with a "~$"

  • Thread starter Thread starter christinalandan
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christinalandan

Can someone please help me! I do not understand why all of the sudden
Windows started renaming any Microsoft Word document I open or
create. Let me give a simple example. I opened a document located on
the desktop entitled, "New Communication Log". I made a few
modifications to it and then saved it before closing Microsoft Word.
Then I looked at my desktop and I saw 2 files. One named "New
Communication Log" and one named "~$w Communication Log". Why does my
computer keep doing this with all of my word documents whether newly
created or not????
 
christinalandan said:
Can someone please help me! I do not understand why all of the
sudden Windows started renaming any Microsoft Word document I open
or create. Let me give a simple example. I opened a document
located on the desktop entitled, "New Communication Log". I made a
few modifications to it and then saved it before closing Microsoft
Word. Then I looked at my desktop and I saw 2 files. One named "New
Communication Log" and one named "~$w Communication Log". Why does
my computer keep doing this with all of my word documents whether
newly created or not????
Click to expand...

The ~w file should go away when you close word. It is the temporary working
file Microsoft Word has made... well - I think ever since I can remember
(Pretty sure Word 2000, XP, 2003 did it...)

So - I believe your problem is that the 'working file' is not being removed
when you close the application - not that anything is being renamed (it
isn't - if it was being 'renamed" then you would not have two files - you'd
just have one - with a different name. heh) That is - if you are actually
closing Word before looking.

Also - you will want to post your query in an Office or Word specific
newsgroup. Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, Powerpoint, Outlook and so on)
are not a PART of Windows XP --> they are seperate products. They do not
come with Windows XP and the experts with those products are more likely to
be looking in their newsgroups than this one.
 
Can someone please help me! I do not understand why all of the sudden
Windows started renaming any Microsoft Word document I open or
create. Let me give a simple example. I opened a document located on
the desktop entitled, "New Communication Log". I made a few
modifications to it and then saved it before closing Microsoft Word.
Then I looked at my desktop and I saw 2 files. One named "New
Communication Log" and one named "~$w Communication Log". Why does my
computer keep doing this with all of my word documents whether newly
created or not????
Click to expand...

Generally, when you open a document in MS Word, Word creates a temporary
working file with the same name as the document you opened except for
the first two characters of that name, which are replaced with ~$.
AFAIK, the temporary file is created in the same directory (folder)
where the original file is located.

I'm not sure what Word does with this temporary file; it's not a copy of
the original file.

If you have Word open in less than full screen mode, when you close it,
the Desktop *probably* doesn't immediately refresh (guessing here).
Next time you do this, try right-clicking in an empty area of the
Desktop and chose "Refresh." If the ~$xxxx file does not disappear, or
if you want to know *why* Word creates that temporary file, re-ask your
question in microsoft.public.word.newusers

--
Lem -- MS-MVP - Networking

To the moon and back with 2K words of RAM and 36K words of ROM.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo_Guidance_Computer
http://history.nasa.gov/afj/compessay.htm
 
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