WD97: "User Options" File Location Path Has No Function

ID: Q191938

The information in this article applies to:

Microsoft Word 97 for Windows

IMPORTANT: This article contains information about editing the registry. Before you edit the registry, make sure you understand how to restore it if a problem occurs. For information about how to do this, view the "Restoring the Registry" Help topic in Regedit.exe or the "Restoring a Registry Key" Help topic in Regedt32.exe.

SUMMARY

The User Options setting is no longer used as it is in some earlier versions of Microsoft Word. If a path is set for User Options, the path is ignored by Word.

MORE INFORMATION

To show the User Options setting, use the following steps:

On the Tools menu, click Options.

Click the File Locations tab.

In the File types list, select User Options. The path for User Options is displayed under Location.

NOTE: The Location path for User Options is blank by default. This option is no longer used in Word 97 for Windows.

The User Options file location in some earlier versions of Word points to the location of the Winword.opt file. The Winword.opt is a binary file that some earlier versions of Word for Windows use to store user preference settings. Most user preferences are set when you click Options on the Tools menu and make changes to the settings on the various tabs. Microsoft Word 97 for Windows does not use an .opt file to store user preferences; instead, Word uses the Windows Registry to store the settings of user preferences.

WARNING: Using Registry Editor incorrectly can cause serious problems that may require you to reinstall your operating system. Microsoft cannot guarantee that problems resulting from the incorrect use of Registry Editor can be solved. Use Registry Editor at your own risk.

For information about how to edit the registry, view the "Changing Keys And Values" Help topic in Registry Editor (Regedit.exe) or the "Add and Delete Information in the Registry" and "Edit Registry Data" Help topics in Regedt32.exe. Note that you should back up the registry before you edit it. If you are running Windows NT, you should also update your Emergency Repair Disk (ERD).

In Word 97 for Windows, user preferences are stored in the Windows Registry in the following registry keys:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\8.0\Word\Data

-and-

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\8.0\Word\Options

NOTE: If a path is set for User Options, an INI-PATH string value will be set in the Options registry key; however, since Word no longer uses this setting, it will be ignored.

REFERENCES

For additional information, please see the following article(s) in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

Q172674 WD: Where Word Settings Are Stored

Q140097 WD: How to Rebuild User Preference and Options Settings

Additional query words:

Keywords : kbdta word97
Version : WINDOWS:97
Platform : WINDOWS
Issue type : kbinfo