(MS Installer woes) Emergency Help with MS Office 2000 on WinXP.

[Terry Penrod]

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I recently installed my old copy of Microsoft Office 2000 on this new Windows XP Home Edition PC without a hitch and have been able to use all the Office programs ever since. That is until MS Word acting acting up just today with a few strange anomalies like image editing / manipulation feature loss and odd text overwriting in perfectly good .doc files (as it is prone to do from time to time on any and all Windows operating systems).

In the past, I have simply uninstalled MS Office, then done a fresh, clean, full reinstall and have never had any problems (this was with Windows 95 and Windows 98 / 98SE). But a little while ago I tried doing the exact same thing and have run into a total dead end. I uninstalled the whole MS Office 2000 package, rebooted and then inserted the CD. The first time I did, it asked me for my CD code and I entered it properly, hit OK and waited. I also entered my name, etc. (I think exactly as the first time but honestly can not be sure). But then WinXP gave me a weird error message to the effect that a certain needed "patch package" was not found on my system and that MS Office 2000 installation would be aborted. It advised me to download and install this "patch package" but did not give me a link or any other information.

The patch package it referred to the first (and only the first time) was the Microsoft Internet Information Server (IIS) 4.0.

And here is the only error message I've gotten since the first attempt to reinstall:

"Windows Installer

This patch package could not be opened. Verify that the patch package exists and that you can access it, or contact the application vendor to verify that this is a valid Windows Installer patch package."

No problem I said. So I logged onto the net and went straight to my usual Microsoft Win XP Home Edition and MS Office 2000 web pages, did several searches for the file to download and install it but was met with hundreds of related and unrelated listings - most for Win NT and none of which simply gave me a clear choice for downloading and installing exactly what I need in order to fix this problem.

Does any of this sound familar to anyone here? Can anyone offer a simple, straight-foward answer to what needs doing - even better with a direct link to the specific file I need to get in order to be able to reinstall whatever this "patch package" is?

FYI:

I made absolutely no other changes / deletions to any program or to any system settings prior to encountering this snag, made zero changes to any hardware components and was able to open and use all MS Office 2000 programs right up to the moment I uninstalled the whole suite. I also double checked all my personal / business files and all my other work programs to make sure they were all still there and that they all still worked. They do, as do both my SBC Yahoo! DSL web browser and my default MS Internet Explorer browser. Outlook Express with all addresses, etc. is still intact too and all games still run fine.

So the system still works fine in every other way - except when trying to do a simple, full reinstall of the very same MS Office 2000 CD I used the first time, including the exact same CD code number. Now, it will not even get as far as asking me for my name and CD code - it just gives me that same missing "patch package" error message above and ceases the install process before it even gets started.

A few last notes that might be important:

I did install the latest SP1 for Win XP Home and all critical updates since the original installation of MS Office 2000 on this machine, as well as a couple of minor add-ons for MS Office 2000 / Word 2000 from Microsoft to add some extra templates and sounds. These worked fine too and do not seem to be related to this problem. But both updates still show-up in the main Add / Remove Programs screen. They is just is no longer a MS Office 2000 / MS Word 2000 program for them to work with at this point.

I also have Norton Anti Virus 2004 activated with auto updates turned on and installed the free ZoneAlarm firewall software that comes with all SBC Yahoo! DSL accounts. Could the firewall be blocking WinXP from rechecking for "legal" components in order to allow for normal MS software installations? Could any of the recent MS WinXP or Norton AV security updates be interfering?

There also now seems to be a problem with the CD AutoRun function and I can not find the usual setting in the Control Panel / Device Manager. The CD unit does work fine though and shows no errors that I can find anywhere in Windows XP. How do I access this usually easy-to-find setting in WinXP?

Also, after several more installation tries with no luck, I did a number of System Restore points in Win XP with the same negative results each time. Finally, I uninstalled ZoneAlarm, rebooted and tried again - still no luck. Lastly, I even tried to do a full system restore by shutting down normally and then rebooting with Disk One of the 3 CD restore set. It was rejected too, so I can not even wipe the HD and start from scratch (not that I want to do that but evidently I can not).

Please give me any qualifed feedback you can as I truly need MS Office for a number of crucial work functions and am at a total standstill until I can solve this perplexing glitch. Much thanks in advance for any help you can offer.


Cheers, Terry

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[DanTheManPR]

It's a bitch to find stuff on that microsoft website, aint it?

How do I access this usually easy-to-find setting in WinXP?
I use tweak UI to do it:
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/pro/downloads/powertoys.asp

Funky! I wouldn't think that office 2000 would have any dependencies.


One thing you might try: make sure the cryptography service is running. That can make installations not work.

As for that IIS thingamagig, the only reference I could find was something that ran on windows server 2003:
http://www.microsoft.com/WindowsServer2003/iis/default.mspx
I don't think thats it...


You tried safe mode? of course you did

[Terry Penrod]

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Hi Dan -

Please don't laugh but I am just now getting into WinXP and know practically zero about it. Until very recently, I still used Win 98 SE with absolutely no hassles, no crashes and no compatibility problems whatsoever.

So, How do I boot to Safe Mode in Windows XP Home Edition?

And once I do that, what would I be trying to do, install the MS Office 2000 suite from the original CD? If so, how?

Also, in further searching through the whole MS online knowledge base for IIS 4.0 related stuff (of which there are literally thousands if you follow the links), I did find a number of "patch package" file missing Q&A references and a bunch of adminstrative tools to check HotFix Updates. Well, I just looked in my current Win XP Add / Remove Programs list and sure enough there are a bunch of HotFix patches applied to my system. From what I can gather, one of them may be the culprit as it may have replaced / overwritten an older Win XP file needed to install older programs that used the 4.0 IIS version. (The current version is 6.0.) But I would not even attempt to download and use any of those complex diagnostic tools - besides, they all seem to be in support of NT Server and newer Windows Server systems for network adminstrators, which I am anything but. .

To me, it is utterly ridiculous that MS would ever create an automatic HotFix patch for home users who run their own WinXP OS that could possibly nullify the basic installation process of their own rather recent MS Office suite/s. That would be like cutting off millions of loyal, paying customers from the essential ability to install or reinstall their own legal software on PCs that run their own primary, current and dominant home user OS the world over.

Anyway, if you could please instruct me in VERY basic terms, in simple step-by-step language as to exactly what you would do in Safe Mode to troubleshoot this specific problem, I would greatly appreciate the effort as MS Office is truly essential to my job.

Much thanks in advance.

Cheers, Terry

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[DanTheManPR]

To boot into safe mode in Win XP
M$ makes it a pain in the ass to fuigure out how to do it. On my system at least, there is no indication whatsoever how to get into safe mode
</rant>

-Restart your computer.
-When you see the BIOS crap come up, just press F8
-Im not sure exactly when you need to press it - I just hold F8 down when I restart, and keep holding it till the menu comes up.
-Anyway, a menu will come up that gives you several options, and in you're case, just take safe mode (there is also safe mode with networking, for if you need the internet in safe mode. nice!)
-Once you're there, install office like you would normaly do. Safe mode in XP is much more friendly than in 98.

[DanTheManPR]

That would be like cutting off millions of loyal, paying customers from the essential ability to install or reinstall their own legal software on PCs that run their own primary, current and dominant home user OS the world over.
Exactly :):

I've never tried to put my copy of office 2000 on an XP machine - it wouldn't surprise me if it doesn't work with the latest update. Think about it - lets say you spend a week trying to fix this problem - eventually you will break down and go out and buy office 2004 (or whatever the hell the latest one is) just to be able to function again.

[DanTheManPR]

Correct me if I'm wrong - removing the hotfixes gets rid of windows updates? I'm not sure...

If it does, then I would go ahead and remove ALL those hotfixes, then try installing office, and afterwords going back to windows update and re-installing the updates.

[Terry Penrod]

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Hi again Dan -

Muchos gracias for all the help.

Matter of fact, before I even checked back here, I went ahead and tried to uninstall every single Win XP HotFix listed in the Add / Remove Programs menu from the main Windows Control Panel. There are still two of them that do not even give the option to Remove and there is the main Win XP SP1 and SP2 OS patches that I just do not want to risk messing with. Otherwise (after a dozen or more separate Remove / Reboots in a row) all the other HotFix patches have now been deleted. I also took the advice of a guy on a different tech forum who does Windows IT work for a living. He suggested that I go into the Windows Registry with Regedit and delete all mentions of MS Office which could be hanging me up with old program installation settings fighting newer system settings including the Win XP activation code itself. I did all the above and STILL get the same error message.

So then I tried to contact MS support by web and by phone. Surprisingly, I did finally get a live human being at one of the many toll-free phone numbers and he admitted that MS is openly issuing a new master code key to all MS Office 2000 customers that seems to work great with Win XP. But when I told him that the screen where you enter the CD code no longer even comes up, he was stumped and referred me to a more specific MS Office product tech support group. Unfortunately, they are closed right now but do open again in the morning.

So...

I'll try the Safe Mode route tonight (thanks again for the info) and if that doesn't work, at least I now have a direct number for the right human support staff to call toll-free tomorrow. If worse comes to worse, I'll just go down to OfficeMax or MicroCenter this weekend and buy a brand new retail copy of MS Office XP or whatever the very latest version is and try to do a completely fresh install of a whole new version with a whole new CD key. Otherwise, I am losing money every day that I can not access Office and that simply will not do.

Cheers, Terry

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[Terry Penrod]

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Just a quick follow-up -

After pulling an intense all-nighter trying to solve this utterly moronic and all-to-common MS Windows problem, I finally just gave up in exasperation and dug through my ancient archives of MS Offices past to find a dusty old Office Pro 97 CD. How odd that after I cleaned-off the cobwebs and I put it in the CD tray, it AutoPlayed immediately, installed fully without any snags and even works seamlessly with Win XP. And how much odder is it that this same old version of MS Office had the same kind of problems eventually under Win 98 SE (to the point that I had no choice but to replace it with this same copy of MS Office 2000 that is currently refusing to reinstall under Win XP).

BTW, I actually like Office 97 much better in many ways than I ever did Office 2000 and best of all, 100% of those lost functions for image manipulation in MS Word, etc. that started this whole pathetic mess are all fixed now and working better than ever.

What a total joke MS is!

They keep "upgrading" the same perfectly good programs and offsetting them with leapfrogged OS releases which are then endlessly patched to the point that they render many of their very own apps useless for millions of users the world over. Whoever handles those decisions ought not just to be fired but fried alive, slowly and very painfully, in plain view of every person that ever got burned by this ridiculously overbloated, puffed-up, self-serving excuse for a company.

I hate them so very, very much and truly, honestly, definitely, positively, absolutely, without a shred of doubt now or at any time ever, do NOT need them nor want them in my life period.

Cheers, Terry

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[DanTheManPR]

Glad you got it somewhat resolved. There are actual human beings at MS? :1eek:

[Terry Penrod]

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Well, it looks like I spoke too soon Dan.

I called that supposedly "focused" MS Office 2000 product support group this morning and geuss what? I got the DUMBEST Indian girl with the THICKEST Indian accent ever who knew zilch about zilch and had exactly two suggestions to offer (that is after asking what time zone I was in three different times and telling me the local support desk hours over and over).

She came up with these two brilliant recommendations:

1. Visit support. microsoft.com (well duh...)

2. Pay them $35 for actual "professional" help (yeah right)

What a total joke huh?

Anyway, thanks for at least trying to help.

BTW, I am the only user account on this new Alienware system and am listed as the sole administaror. Have also done the little Win XP TweakUI power toy thing and have full Admin listings in the Start Menu and Control Panel plus have tried all the manual Registry edits suggested in the best tutorials I can find on the web. I honestly think that given the nature of IIS (admin server level stuff), that this has something to do with Win XP's native activation code / verification scheme that has simply gone terribly, terribly awry.

Oh well... it's just more typical MS crap IMO.

Beats me why in the world my original system restore CDs are not being recognized though and that does bother me to no end. So now I will pursue a new set of those CDs and hopefully more intelligent support from Alienware proper and simply demand some action. That will have to wait for tomorrow though as I'm just too damned tired to care at this point and need some sleep. In the meantime, I have already redownloaded and installed all the final service packs and enhancement add-ons for MS Office 97 Pro, which makes it highly useful for all sorts of things I need for work every day in Word, Excel and Powerpoint.

Cheers, Terry

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[0x64657200 0x6A61636B616C00]

Terry, may I suggest;

Star Office (http://wwws.sun.com/software/star/staroffice/)


Exchange files with other office suites, including Microsoft Office

[Terry Penrod]

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Terry, may I suggest;

Star Office (http://wwws.sun.com/software/star/staroffice/)


Exchange files with other office suites, including Microsoft Office



That's funny because last night I bookmarked the same web page just in case I could not resolve the problem "quickly".

I've heard good things about StarOffice and would use it in a heartbeat if I had not already spent so much time and money on native MS Office products. Not that the cost is all that important and I am just getting fed-up with these hassles and the downtime. But since MS Office 97 Pro did install this morning without a hitch and I have since downloaded all the final service packs, etc., and have now tested every type of file old and new in all the aprograms, I do have a fully functional suite at the moment. But the very next time it starts acting up again, I think I may just try that alternative.

Thanks for the suggestion though.

Cheers, Terry

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[Ojnod]

Ironic the MS employee suggests star office?

[Terry Penrod]

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Ironic the MS employee suggests star office?


Well, he should know.

Cheers, Terry

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[Terry Penrod]

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For anyone else that may experience the above type of problems reinstalling Microsoft programs in Windows XP or if you also find dead listings in your Add / Remove Programs menu in the Control Panel that simply don't want to go away. I found a GREAT web site with all sorts of good Win XP tips that actually work PLUS they have a terrific, little free program that will dump those unwanted registry entries that persist in your unistall list.

Here is a link to their home page:

http://www.mvps.org/sramesh2k/index.html

And here is a link to the download page for the Windows Installer Cleanup Utility:

http://www.mvps.org/sramesh2k/MSICLEAN.htm

I think that the above program will work in all versions of Windows.

Cheers, Terry


P.S. To Tim -

The above info might make a good addition to our Reference Forum.

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[Terry Penrod]

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Just as a last word on the above series of problems, I also read a shocking report on one the many web sites I searched this weekend, that if you try to do a clean install of Win XP (with or without reformatting) on a system that has Symantec's commonly used Norton AntiVirus software, it can actually block access to your original, official system restore CDs and sometimes even your emergency boot disk. I think that is what happened in part two of the above fiasco when I tried to reinstall Win XP and could not.

How could any company in their right mind ever implement such an utterly stupic feature for any possible reason? The system restore CD and basic boot disk should NEVER be blocked for any reason by any legitimate third party programs period. That deifies the entire purpose of system restore and I am appalled that they and Microsoft have not been class-action sued into bankruptcy long ago for this kind of PC crippling crap. We all know that AV programs can mess-up other third party Windows based installations, reinstallations and proper running of games. But THAT is a downright sin and I can't believe they are unaware of it. So too is the ridiculously convoluted process for finding simple, direct answers to VERY common questions about dominant Windows Operating Systems and MS Office problems - their virtual meat & potatoes - ESPECIALLY when they are in direct conflict with each other due specifically to decisions that Microsoft itself knowingly made.

The question is WHY did they create an app that could under ANY circumstances ever do such an outrageous thing? And why have they not fixed it? Can you imagine anyone stupid enough to make the essential installer for Windows own native productivity programs blockable by Windows itself? Even worse, since this same thing happens so often and so many people have called MS from around the world about it and many related issues, WHY have they simply not sent a huge, bold warning out to 100% of their global customer base to warn them of it along with a very clear, concise solution like the above linked free prog that simply fixes it? Why does a small third party even have to deal with these issues, support independent servers and distribute these critical utilites at their own cost and why do WE have to search through massive piles of total BS just to find out about them? Isn't that exactly what MS should have done from the outset?

It baffles me how MS can get continually away with such a self-serving, LAZY approach to the most basic things that every single user has to put up with every single day. Wouldn't it actually make them MORE money to stop millions of tech support calls and keep their primary customers from having to go through living hell every time their own OS screws-up their own Office suite or when any other common system stopping problem is reported? It's almost as if they TRY to make their users as unhappy as possible all the time and I think that it will be their eventual downfall.

Frankly, that couldn't come soon enough for me and I would have long since dumped anything and everything associated with MS if it weren't for PC gaming. Star Office works great on Linux as does the whole suite of pro level Adobe apps and many other essentials. I can get even better web browsers and e-mail clients than MS IE / Outlook / Outlook Express for free and for a few bucks, I can have a super productive system that is rock solid, easy to manipulate as I see fit and does 100% of the jobs I need to do 100% of the time as well or in many cases better than using Windows / Office, etc. It would also be far less vunerable to all this Windows targeted virus writing BS.

But for gaming in the genres I like best, it would suck and that is the one and ONLY reason I even consider putting up with this endless stream of MS and Windows related crap at this point.

Cheers, Terry

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[DanTheManPR]

Hold on a second...

How could a program such as norton AV, which must run under windows, block the installation of it after you re-format? That doesn't seem physicaly possible.

On a side note, some BIOS'es have an AV function built in that stops the install of windows. This was the cause of much grief awhile back when I attempted to re-install windows 98 on my computer. Fortunately, Herr Jackal figured out that I had to turn off the AV in the BIOS. Retarded, is it not?

[Terry Penrod]

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Hold on a second...

How could a program such as norton AV, which must run under windows, block the installation of it after you re-format? That doesn't seem physicaly possible.

On a side note, some BIOS'es have an AV function built in that stops the install of windows. This was the cause of much grief awhile back when I attempted to re-install windows 98 on my computer. Fortunately, Herr Jackal figured out that I had to turn off the AV in the BIOS. Retarded, is it not?


That is the same common problem I was referring to Dan.

It can block HD reformatting and/or reinstallations of the OS due to the fact that Norton AV and similar programs can and often do function at that level (upon initial system boot before anything else can load). The solution if I recall was to disable it in the BIOS prior to attempting a reinstall from the restore CD. I think that they should put that little fact in huge, bold letters right on the front of every box, every CD case, every CD label, on the cover of the program manual, atop every ad and all over their web pages. It really is that basic.

Cheers, Terry

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[RangerRick]

I earlier today installed Windows 2000 on a Dell XP machine with no issues. The AV on the system is Mckaffee. We disabled the AV before installing 2000.
I've never seen a issue myself with XP and 2000. I've had no problem with my system. I'm using XP pro with Windows 2000. I use Norton AV software.
I had to reinstall everything almost 2 years ago, and that went without a hitch.

I guess I've just been very fortunate.

[Terry Penrod]

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I earlier today installed Windows 2000 on a Dell XP machine with no issues. The AV on the system is Mckaffee. We disabled the AV before installing 2000.
I've never seen a issue myself with XP and 2000. I've had no problem with my system. I'm using XP pro with Windows 2000. I use Norton AV software.
I had to reinstall everything almost 2 years ago, and that went without a hitch.

I guess I've just been very fortunate.


I assume you meant Office 2000 on a Win XP system Rick?

Nonetheless, as you stated, you wisely disabled AV in the BIOS before installing things and that seems to be the whole point. If AV can interfere with such fundamentally important procedures as using your basic system restore disks or installing / reinstalling universally critical productivity suites like MS Office, then why don't companies like Symantec make sure that every single user knows about it right up front? If all that is needed is a simple, straight-forward warning to disable AV in the BIOS before starting along with some step-by-step instructions for most common PC systems, then it really should be a big, bold statement that nobody could possible miss like I described above.

And, if these are such common problems with various Windows OS / OS updates and MS Office installations, then why in God's name hasn't MS made it perferctly clear to millions of users the world over by now? I mean their OS messing-up their own Office suite and Norton AV having such a (possibly) critical effect on system retsores is a HUGE deal for people in almost every country on earth these days. But when pressed for simple answers and honest help and instead of just taking the lead and informing us all about it, they do NOT. Instead, they give you a gigantic runaround and in the end you get no assistance from them at all, are left hanging at the mercy of small third party companies / individuals on the net and dumb luck. In the end, you feel like they are going out of their way to make your life miserable at all costs, which is just plain stupid and very, very counter-productive for all concerned.

Cheers, Terry

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[RangerRick]

I assume you meant Office 2000 on a Win XP system Rick?

Oops! Me Bad!

Correct Terry. I meant office 2000. :blush:

[Mr. Natural]

Terry sorry I wasn't able to pitch in with some thoughts earlier. My guess would be that something was screwy with the MS installer. I see you found a link to one MS installer utility. The official Microsoft one can be found here. (http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;q290301)
I run Office 2000 on a lot of Windows XP machines at work. However I never have had to uninstall and attempt re-install. Perhaps sometime if I ever get slow with work I'll try it. My guess is that whatever caused your word program to go screwy probably caused the MS Installer (re-install) problems however. That would be the point things went wrong. Any recent programs or patches installed at about the time the problem began? Maybe an unexpected shutdown or crash?
I have run into a corrupted Installer on pc's before and it can be a real pain in the ass.

[Terry Penrod]

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Thanks Tim.

I assume the same as Win XP HotFix patches from MS are almost a daily routine these days and who knows what one or more of them may have changed on the system after the original installations of the OS and Office 2000?

FYI: There were no other apparent problems like crashes or bugs in other programs that I could determine and I had made no recent changes to any software, personal settings or hardware and installed no new game patches or anything else that might help pinpoint exactly what and when the Windows Installer got corrupted. But it did and is now fixed, so there is a solution for anyone else who experiences the same dead end.

Cheers, Terry

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[Mr. Natural]

I'll let this ride here for a while and later will move it to the vault. Maybe change the title to "MS Installer fix" or something if that's ok.

[Terry Penrod]

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OK by me.

Cheers, Terry

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