OAER: Word 2002 Stops Responding When You Insert an AutoShape

When you insert an AutoShape in the midst of text, you may receive the following error message:Note When you view the data in the error report, the report contains an error signature that is similar to the error signature that is listed at the beginning of this article.

This problem may occur if the grid spacing in the document is set to zero.

To resolve this problem, obtain the latest service pack for Microsoft Office XP. For additional information, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

To temporarily work around this problem, insert the contents of your document into a new Blank Document before you insert the AutoShape. To do so, follow these steps:

1. Start Micrososft Word 2002, and then open a new Blank Document.
2. On the Insert menu, click File, select the document that has the grid spacing set to zero, and then click Insert.
3. On the Insert menu, point to Picture, and then click AutoShape.
4. Select the type of AutoShape that you want, and then click the particular shape that you want.

Microsoft has confirmed that this is a problem in the Microsoft products that are listed at the beginning of this article.

This problem was first corrected in the Word 2002 Public Update and is included in the Office XP Service Pack 1 (SP1).

The Office Error Reporting dialog box appears when an error occurs that results in a fatal event in the program. The Office Error Reporting dialog box includes a button to send the information about the fatal event to Microsoft. Microsoft gathers information about these types of events in a database to try and identify the cause. For more information about the Microsoft Data Collection Policy, visit the following Microsoft Web site: For additional information, click the following article numbers to view the articles in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: