Passwords for Creating Macros

Subscriber Fran Nault wrote about a problem she was having with Word 2000. It seems that ever since she installed the program, she hasn't been able to create macros. When she trys, she gets a message to enter her password.

This behavior could be caused by several different things, and to correct it you will need to figure out exactly why you are being asked for a password. One place to look as at the template in which you are trying to store the macro. If the template is protected in some way, then you may be asked for a password before the template can be written to. For instance, if the template file is write protected, or if it is stored on a network drive that doesn't allow others to write to it, then the password request you are seeing may be from the operating system itself, not from Word.

It is also possible that if you are trying to save the macro to your Normal.dot file, the file could be corrupted in some manner. You should get out of Word, rename the existing Normal.dot file, and then restart the program. If you are then able to create and save macros, then you know it was a problem with Normal.dot. Someone could also have password-protected the macro module in your Normal.dot file. This is done by displaying the project in VBA Editor, and then choosing Tools | Normal Properties and clicking on the Protection tab. Of course, renaming Normal.dot will help overcome this problem, as well.

Finally, it is possible that you have contracted a macro virus. Check Tools | Macro | Macros (or just press Alt+F8) to see if there are any macros installed on your system that you do not recognize. In most cases, you can eliminate this problem by renaming your Normal.dot file, as described earlier, and making sure there are no files in your Word startup folder.

Another good idea is to make sure that you have the latest Office service packs installed. These help to correct any esoteric problems that may exist, and they help to strengthen security in case you have contracted a macro virus.