MS Word does occassional back-up saves as you type, but this only helps you if the power goes out or your computer crashes (and then with mixed results). When you close a document and choose not to save, however, it is all over.
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Dakota, Do you work with the auto save on? If so, there should be a back-up file saved somewhere. In older versions of WORD it was seperate file (.bkp I think). I'm not sure if the auto save still works the same.
Other than that, I'm not expert enough to know how to recover unsaved documents.
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I'm so sorry, Dakota. I've been there, too. I'd be surprised if just about everyone who uses a word processor hadn't done that at one point or another, or something similiar.
I've learned many lessons about computers the hard way. They include:
1. Save early. Save often. Honestly, I click on the little save icon every time I pause for breath. It's subconsciouss. It's about the same as hitting the spacebar now.
2. Backup, backup, backup! Hard drives fail. Hard drives and one CD backup may fail. Hard drive and 3 CD backups are entirely unlikely to fail at the same moment. I do a complete backup once a month. Of course, if bad things happen to my hard drive at the wrong moment I could lose a month's worth of work. Hmmmm...maybe I should backup more often, at least my WIP.
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You don't even have to click on the disk icon -- just do "control-s" every time your fingers pause. It becomes habit after the first day. I even find myself doing it in places where you CAN'T save what you're writing (like Hatrack posts).
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> just do "control-s" every time your > fingers pause. It becomes habit after the > first day. I even find myself doing it in > places where you CAN'T save what you're > writing (like Hatrack posts).
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Robyn_Hood, I'm afraid auto save does not do what you are suggesting. The auto save does what I said in my first post...it periodically saves the current working copy in case of a failure of some sort -- power outage or crash. Basically, if Word is improperly closed the most recent backup (it does it every so many minutes, I don't remember how often) is available.
However, if Word is properly closed out, one of the things it does as a part of the proper closing is to delete the backup file. This happens wether or not you save the current changes.
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if it deletes the backup wouldn't there be a copy in the recycle bin? go there and look for a file that has the right time and date, and ignore the file name. try to recover from that.
Posts: 2710 | Registered: Jul 2004
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No, there would not be a copy in the recycle bin. The only stuff that goes into the recycle bin is the stuff that the user sends there. Perhaps it would be more accurate to say that it unlinks it (that's my husband's term). It is gone. FInished. Game over. Caput. No chance of recovery.
Posts: 3567 | Registered: May 2003
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Ctrl-s is some good advice. I do that every time I end a sentence, and I too sometimes hit it when writing posts or chatting on AIM.
Posts: 179 | Registered: Mar 2005
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I'm also have cntl-s committed to muscle-memory. it really screwed me up when I first started the job I'm in about 6 years ago. They were using lotus products, and in cc:mail if you hit cntl-s it sends the mail. people were wondering why they kept getting these partial emails from me. Fortunately they replaced it, unfortunately, it was with outlook.
Posts: 2 | Registered: Aug 2010
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Oh, well. I did rewrite, but the new version just doesn't have the same sparkle as the lost original. Might have had something to do with the fact that I was severely depressed when I rewrote.
Sounds like a good time for one of those 1/2-pints of ice cream and a really funny movie/show. I usually watch "The Daily Show" for a pick-me-up.
Then, when you're feeling better, maybe you can get that sparkle back. Chocolate does affect the pleasure centers of the brain, after all. (Although I'm thinkint they're the ones having to do with sexual pleasure, which may or may not be useful for this project. )
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"Ben and Jerry" are wonderful friends in these times of sorrow. I watch "Friends" when I'm depressed. Totally mind-numbing and ridiculous, plus their problems always get worked out in thirty minutes or less.
Posts: 811 | Registered: Jan 2005
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My mentor in Medical Illustration (a very wise man by the name of Jim) had this to say when I messed up a sculpture: "If you did it once, you can do it again. History says that [this particular skill/technique/sculpture section] is well within your capacity." Upon further complaint that I couldn't get it the same as I had it before I messed up: "Looks like you got a golden opportunity to go back and fix the mistakes you made the first time. So you know what I think about [insert latest political controversy/sports team victory]?" Whereupon, my other mentor, Craig, would stick his head into the lab and the two of them would have a very lively and entertaining argument while I fixed my sculpture.
I've found Jim's advice to be sound and true. Even in writing.
And by the way, there is no cooler group of people to hang out with than a bunch of artists with steady, paying jobs that allow them to use their skills.
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