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Microsoft Word 2002 ® Footnote Software Bug
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I
ran across a bug in Microsoft Word 2002 ® with footnote reference
numbering, and I wanted to alert others who might experience the same
problem.
The Footnote Bug
The problem is that the automatic footnote numbering system built into
Word is not working correctly. You might end up with two
footnotes with a number 5. Then you might be missing footnotes
number 7 and number 8. So your footnotes might look like this:
1
2
3
4
5
5
8
9
It's terribly frustrating if you're writing a paper and are trying to rely upon Microsoft Word's ability to footnote.
I was able to determine that it was indeed a bug by moving the document
into a newer version of Word. Once it was in a newer version,
everything worked fine. From that simple test, I was able to
establish that it was clearly a bug.
The Solution: Good News & Bad News
The Bad News: There
is no solution for fixing the problem on the screen.
The Good News: Even
though the screen display has problems, when you print the document, the
footnotes will appear in correct numerical order.
It's helpful to know this in advance. I thought I would have to go out and borrow a
friend's computer to print my papers, but that's not necessary. Word 2002 will print footnotes properly.
But without knowing this in advance, the situation can be
pretty nerve wracking -- and that's why I wanted to make this information
available on the Internet. Hopefully, it will save you from spending a
sleepless night or two -- or, heaven forbid, spending an afternoon forlornly
searching Microsoft's website for an answer.
Note: There is absolutely solution for the problem if you
want the footnotes to appear properly on the screen. After considerable searching, I found no way
to get things fixed. If you need to have
your paper appear correctly on the screen, you'll need to borrow somebody
else's computer with a newer version of Word (or perhaps an older version) for
viewing purposes.
My Search for a Fix for the Problem
After an extensive search of Microsoft's website (at least to the best
of my ability), I found that it's not a documented bug. I also
searched the Internet and couldn't find any bug reports there as
well.
Like a good citizen, I wanted to report the bug to Microsoft. I
found that reporting a bug is not an easy process. In fact, the
process became so involved that I finally gave up in frustration.
It was a lesson in what's terribly wrong with large computer software and hardware companies.
With my software company, all a user has to do is to call or drop us an
email, and we immediately check out the problem. In fact, we
appreciate hearing from folks that find something amiss. And when
our users do report bugs, we thank them -- and, most importantly, we
get the problem fixed for them as quickly as possible. We
certainly would never ever think of charging them.
But, that's not the case when it comes to the big guys. Let me tell some more.
My Experiences with Dell
My version of Microsoft Word 2002 came with my computer.
Microsoft won't provide support when it comes with your computer.
When you go to their site, they refer you to your computer
manufacturer.
Mine was Dell. So I contacted Dell. What I got in response
was shocking. They told me that I would have to pay them for
support. That's right, I'd to pay.
Wait, I told them. I'm a programmer and I've found a software bug. At least, let me know if there is a fix for it.
Nope. If you want any kind of software support, you have to pay.
Back to Microsoft Labyrinth
Not getting any help from Dell, I went back to Microsoft's site and
searched again. Once again, I could find no information on the
bug. I tried to look for an update to Microsoft Word 2002, but
all I could find was an old update that said nothing about fixing a
footnote problem.
I was mystified by what I found on Microsoft's webpage. There are
few version numbers, so you can't really tell if you are downloading a
newer -- or, heaven bid, an older update. Version numbers aren't
something that are new to the computer software world, but they were
completely missing from most of the updates I found on the company's
webpage.
There's a very easy answer to the labyrinth of links and pages on the
Microsoft webpage. One central page needs to be established for
Microsoft Word 2002. (They don't need to complicate it by calling
it Office 2002. My program says Microsoft Word 2002, and that's
the program for which I need help.) On that central page, there
ought to be link for the latest upgrade. Click here.
Download it, and you have all the latest bug fixes. It's pretty
simple.
Finally, completely and utterly lost in the Microsoft labyrinth, I
retreated, took a rest and decided upon a different tack. I found
something on the Microsoft site called the "Microsoft Update Website":
"The Microsoft Update Website: scans your computer and recommends
updates that you may need for Microsoft Windows, Microsoft Office, and
other programs."
It's supposed to search for Microsoft programs on your computer and tell you if you need updates.
I thought, maybe, just maybe, that I was getting some place. With
renewed enthusiasm, I ran the search program and allowed it to work its
way through my computer, examining the installed programs. The
result: there were a couple of drivers that I could update, but
it said nothing about Microsoft Word 2002. Apparently, at least,
from what I could determine from this test, I have the latest
version. That's was it. The final toll of the bell.
That means -- if we can believe Microsoft's own search and update
software -- I do have the latest version of Word 2002. And, it
also means that the latest version has a footnote bug which has not
been fixed.
Final Words
Sure software these days is complicated, but providing decent support
is not complicated. Here are my humble suggestions on how the
situation can be improved:
1. It is true that most support questions can be answered easily by
providing users with good, informative websites. That's quite all
right with me. I'm happy to get my information off a
website. The problem is with website design, logic and
lay-out. They are simply abysmal. In the old days of
programming, there was something called spaghetti code:
programming code that jumped around here and there throughout the
program and was extremely difficult to follow. The same problem
is now found with website construction. The big software
companies have created spaghetti websites. No one should not have
to wade through Microsoft's complex labyrinth to find out if there was
an upgrade to Microsoft Word 2002. There is a real easy solution
that I've already mentioned above.
2. Software companies need to carefully list bug fixes for each
software product and make it easy for the customer to look up those
fixes.
3. No customer should be ever forced to pay to report a software bug. That bit of chicanery ought to be illegal.
4. Bug reports ought to be easy to make.
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