spelling and grammar checker malfunction

I use Word 2004 for Mac.

I've created a several hundred page manuscript. Suddenly when I
activate the spelling/grammar checker a note appears across the bottom
of the panel saying spelling and grammar is being checked. The usual
window for spell check doesn't appear anymore. (It does so in other
word docs I have including another version of this manuscript). So
this is my only Word Doc that does this. All other actions are
disallowed. So I have to force quit the doc. It can't be anything in
my prefs for Word because this same problem doesn't surface for other
Word docs. I've tried discarding the very last carriage return symbol
at the end of the text (preceding end notes and index).
Any help?

Spike,

Your document is corrupt, as you suspect. Therefore, copying into a new
blank document without the last paragraph mark is a good start to
de-corrupting, as you have attempted.

However, the last paragraph mark MUST be just that, because the last
paragraph mark sits just *before* the invisible "master section break",
which contains about 250 types of document-related formatting. You can't
select before an index.

It's best to do it in Normal view.

To de-select the final paragraph mark I normally key Command-a to select the
document and then key Shift-[left arrow]. But if you prefer to do the
selecting by hand, first turn non-printing characters on via the "Show/hide
¶" button or by keying Commend-8 to make it easier.

Post back if that doesn't work.

Cheers,

Clive Huggan
Canberra, Australia
(My time zone is 5-11 hours different from North America and Europe, so my
follow-on responses to those regions can be delayed)
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On 7/4/07 8:34 AM, in article
1175898854.674536.113860.TakeThisOut@d57g2000hsg.googlegroups.com, "spike"
<demarsjohnson.TakeThisOut@comcast.net> wrote:

> I use Word 2004 for Mac.
>
> I've created a several hundred page manuscript. Suddenly when I
> activate the spelling/grammar checker a note appears across the bottom
> of the panel saying spelling and grammar is being checked. The usual
> window for spell check doesn't appear anymore. (It does so in other
> word docs I have including another version of this manuscript). So
> this is my only Word Doc that does this. All other actions are
> disallowed. So I have to force quit the doc. It can't be anything in
> my prefs for Word because this same problem doesn't surface for other
> Word docs. I've tried discarding the very last carriage return symbol
> at the end of the text (preceding end notes and index).
> Any help?
>