i left a word doc open and it is lost... any advice?

[smile5]

I left a 2003 Word document open around 2 this morning at 8 when I came back
to it was closed. and all the work I did from 10-2 is gone... I thought I
could use the auto recovery but I've been unsuccesful even finding it..
please help
os is vista

 

[grammatim]

Now you've learned to save your work every few minutes, so it wasn't a
total loss.

 

[Suzanne S. Barnhill]

It is foolish to leave a document open unattended (much less overnight). It
is insane to leave an unsaved document open. AutoRecovery helps only if Word
crashes, but in this case what has happened is that Windows Update, running
in full-auto mode, downloaded updates while you were away, installed them,
and then needed to restart Word. It did ask if you wanted to save your
document, but you weren't around to see that, so it autocratically shut down
your document and Word in order to restart Windows.

 

[RBlan]

I left a 2003 Word document open around 2 this morning at 8 when I came back
to it was closed. and all the work I did from 10-2 is gone... I thought I
could use the auto recovery but I've been unsuccesful even finding it..
please help
os is vista

See: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/316951

 

[4blove]

Ok, it may have been "foolish" or "Insane " to leave a document open over
night. but your comment about the behavior is not needed. I did the same
thing on 7/17/08. And I too, am very devestated. So please refrain from
your opinion of the action, but give us helpful advice. Because if that
person was nearly as hurt as I was then they already cried, screamed,
belittled ourselves and more. So what advice do you have to retrieve this
document.

 

[Graham Mayor]

That's the point - if the document was not saved, there is nothing to
retrieve.

--
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Graham Mayor - Word MVP

My web site www.gmayor.com

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[4blove]

ok. maybe you can help me. I did he exact same thing butthis has happen to
me before. therfore, i set my 10 minute auto save. but when i went back to
retrieve my document, my computer shut down(I assume to update). But i do
not understand why it did not auto save prior. becasue i worked on it
several hours before i left it idiling. also, i am not able to retrieve any
activites for that day. i had several windows open, but it will not show
those activities. do you ahve any suggestions on where i might can retrive
this data. Also, I am using vista

 

[Suzanne S. Barnhill]

AutoRecovery backups are meant to protect against Word hangs or system
crashes. They are deleted when the document is intentionally closed without
saving, which is what happens in such events as these. The advice we are
offering is therefore not only never to leave an unsaved document open
unattended but also (insofar as it is within your control) not to allow
Windows Update to run in full automatic mode. You will have much more
control if you set it to notify you when updates are available. You then
control what you download and when you install it, and you are able to shut
down programs yourself (saving files as needed) before Windows is allowed to
restart.

 

[4blove]

I just changed my auto update to ask me to download and update. So as far as
the rest of the information, there is not way that I can get that back. is
that correct?

 

[Suzanne S. Barnhill]

It's very unlikely. Although the information may be somewhere on your HD, it
is probably not in a form that is retrievable.

 

[Graham Mayor]

There is no 'autosave' in Word - merely autosave recovery information, and
that only occurs if Word crashes. A forced shutdown by update is not a
crash. You can, using macros force Word to autosave, but personally I would
find it very intrusive - see http://www.gmayor.com/automatically_backup.htm.
You should not be working on a document *for several hours* without saving.!
Save manually and often!

--
<>>< ><<> ><<> <>>< ><<> <>>< <>><<>
Graham Mayor - Word MVP

My web site www.gmayor.com

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