Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Word in Microsoft 365. If you are using an earlier version (Word 2003 or earlier), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for earlier versions of Word, click here: Deleting Freezes Computer.

Deleting Freezes Computer

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated March 26, 2022)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Word in Microsoft 365


Sharon reports that a rectangle with two lines dissecting to form an X (like the back of an envelope) has appeared in her Word document. When she right-clicks on the thing to delete it, her computer freezes up.

There are several things to check on your system. First, the rectangle could be a "placeholder" for a linked graphic, and Word is having trouble locating the graphic. If Word thinks the graphic is on a network drive and it is having problems making the connection to the drive, then you may see the symptoms that appear when you try to delete the graphic. If this is the case, then the "freeze" isn't really a freeze; Word is simply trying, behind the scenes, to touch base with the missing graphic. Eventually the attempts will time out and Word should, once again, become responsive.

If the graphic is linked using a field, you could display the field codes in the document to see what underlies the rectangle. Press Alt+F9 and, if the rectangle is replaced with some codes within field braces, you can then try to figure out what the field code is doing. You can also delete the field braces, with the code contained therein, to see if the problem goes away. When you are done looking at the field codes, simply press Alt+F9 again.

If the X in the rectangle is red, then it is possible that the cause could be due to the graphic itself—it could be because it is too complex for Word to display or it could be corrupted in some way. Here is an article by Word MVP Suzanne Barnhill that explains the problem and some possible solutions:

http://wordfaqs.mvps.org/RedX.htm

Finally, it could be that the document itself is corrupted. If this is the case, then you should open a new, blank document and copy the original document (only the portions before and after the rectangle) to the new document.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (9189) applies to Microsoft Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Word in Microsoft 365. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Word here: Deleting Freezes Computer.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. ...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Status Bar Summing No Longer Available

When you select a range of cells, Excel normally displays the sum of those selected cells on the status bar. If the sum ...

Discover More

Adding an Optional Break

The no-width optional break is primarily used for Asian languages in Word. It can have value for English-speakers, as ...

Discover More

Non-standard Sorting

Information in a cell can be entered using line feeds, which results in multiple lines of data in the same cell. If you ...

Discover More

Do More in Less Time! An easy-to-understand guide to the more advanced features available in the Microsoft 365 version of Word. Enhance the quality of your documents and boost productivity in any field with this in-depth resource. Complete your Word-related tasks more efficiently as you unlock lesser-known tools and learn to quickly access the features you need. Check out Microsoft 365 Word For Professionals For Dummies today!

More WordTips (ribbon)

Using an En Dash, by Default

In publishing, it is common practice to indicate a range of numbers by using an en dash between the first number and the ...

Discover More

Quickly Finding Synonyms

If you need to find some synonyms for a specific word in your document, here's how you can do it. (Hint: All you need to ...

Discover More

Pasting Clean Text

One of the most helpful tools in Word is the ability to paste straight text into a document. This is used so much on my ...

Discover More
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

View most recent newsletter.

Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

What is 2 + 4?

There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)


This Site

Got a version of Word that uses the ribbon interface (Word 2007 or later)? This site is for you! If you use an earlier version of Word, visit our WordTips site focusing on the menu interface.

Videos
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

View the most recent newsletter.