<div>
This sometimes happened to me when I saved a .doc file as a .doc file OR using an existing file to continue creating a larger one.<br />
<br />
Are the numbered/nested headings in your document defined as <b>Heading 1</b>, <b>Heading 2</b>, <b>Heading 3</b>, <b>Heading 4</b>, etc.?<br />
<br />
Have you tried to copy smaller parts of the original document to a new Word file (i.e. first 10 pages, then add next 10 pages)? This may give you an idea from which point in the old document the problem actually starts.
</div>


<div>
Can you do a test print to PDF (just to rule out the possibility of a screen rendering issue)?
</div>


<div>
Try updating fields like this instead, and see if you get the same issue:<br />

<pre><code class="code-1 nolinks" id="code-20-41315165-1"><span>application.Visible = False</span>
<span>application.ActiveDocument.Fields.Update</span>
<span>application.Visible = True</span>
<span>application.ScreenRefresh</span>
</code></pre>
Should isolate any issue caused by screen display :-)
</div>


<div>
DrTribos: I tried you code but unfortunately the document still corrupts. Heading 20 moves up to Heading 2.10 and other sections also change place.<br />
<br />
As I have said it is a very large document (280 pages) and even copying to a new document in batches of 10 pages will take a very long time. Don't forget that I have already tried copying the whole document to a new file with no change in the 'field update corruption'
</div>


<div>
I have tried printing to PDF also - no joy.<br />
<br />
<b>NOTE</b>: To clarify, when I say the document corrupts I don't mean the contents page is messed up. I mean text from late in the document moves up to the much earlier position and the navigation pane reflects the change in heading order. The heading text is 'moved up' but the numbers are still in sequence so the section that was 20 and on page 148 becomes section 4 on page 22 !!<br />
<br />
Any further suggestions would be most appreciated as this is now urgent !<br />
<br />
(I would award 2000 points if I could !)
</div>


<div>
Thanks for confirming. &nbsp;Well... it (MS Word) *should* work... of course it seldom does. &nbsp;<br />
<br />
How do you feel about writing a 'rescue' macro. &nbsp;I'm thinking that some sort of corruption / inconsistency has crept into the document. &nbsp;It might be using multiple styles for numbering. &nbsp;<br />
<br />
Without seeing the document (which I understand is confidential) it is only possible to speculate. &nbsp;But... perhaps &nbsp; <a href="http://shaunakelly.com/word/numbering/numbering20072010.html" rel="ugc">create a new numbering scheme as outlined by the late and highly respected Word MPV aka dreamboat</a>. <br />
<br />
And then use a macro to rip through the document and reapply the new &nbsp;style to your wayward headings...?
</div>


<div>
I don't actually have time to &nbsp;write and test a macro... but the basic structure for find and replace is illustrated here: <a href="https://www.experts-exchange.com/questions/28856899/Add-'Comment'-to-a-word.html" rel="ugc">https://www.experts-exchange.com/questions/28856899/Add-'Comment'-to-a-word.html</a>&nbsp;and there are many examples. and you can use find to match existing styles etc. <br />
<br />
It would be interesting to find out if you have multiple style definitions competing with each other.<br />
<br />
Hope this helps, good luck
</div>


<div>
DrTribos: I am sorry to say those links do not seem to apply to the problem I am having. <br />
<br />
It is not just the numbering / styles that is going wrong or anything but is physically moving blocks of text from one section to another and the re-flowing the heading numbering so that where you had the blow normal document<br />
<br />
1 - A<br />
1.1 AA<br />
1.2 AA<br />
2 - B<br />
2.1 - &nbsp;BB<br />
3 - C<br />
3.1 - CC<br />
3.2 - CC<br />
...<br />
25 - Y<br />
25.1 - YY<br />
26 - Z<br />
26.1 - ZZ<br />
<br />
You now have <br />
<br />
1 - A<br />
1.1 AA<br />
1.2 AA<br />
2 - Y<br />
2.1 - &nbsp;YY<br />
3 - C<br />
3.1 - CC<br />
3.2 - CC<br />
...<br />
25 - B<br />
25.1 - BB<br />
26 - Z<br />
26.1 - ZZ<br />
<br />
I have tried opening the file in 'repair' mode and it did not resolve the issue.<br />
<br />
Since it appears to always be the same sections that move I tried to look at any hidden control codes by 'Show Paragraph marks' shows nothing new. I don't really know what I am looking for.
</div>


<div>
Oh. That sucks. Could you save as plain text and &nbsp;run a macro through &nbsp;it to rebuild the TOC??
</div>


<div>
Hmmm possibly but that would be my last resort since it would be hard for the macro to identify a specific piece of plain text should be a heading or not.<br />
<br />
I must apologize - my question heading was a bit misleading - as I have explained it is not just the headings that get corrupted but also the text body. <br />
<br />
Since the corruption always moves the same sections it suggests there is some corrupt field code or heading but only about 25 % of the sections move so the corruption can't be with the heading style itself. Is there any 'developer view' / 'field code view' I could look at for the headings ? <br />
<br />
I have not fond any so far but hopefully you or another expert know more than me.
</div>


<div>
Alt F9 or Ctrl F9, i can't remember which, &nbsp;toggles the field codes <br />
<br />
Alt &gt;&nbsp;i &gt;&nbsp;k shows the bookmark dialogue
</div>


<div>
A macro could loop through the doc and print a list of fields, bookmarks, heading styles...<br />
<br />
Dim oFld as Field<br />
For each oFld in ActiveDocument.Fields<br />
&nbsp; &nbsp;Debug.Print oFld.Range.paragraphs (1).range.text <br />
' might be ofld.code.range ....<br />
Next oFld<br />
<br />
Might be enough to get you started - using phone (&amp; memory). No pc to test.
</div>


<div>
Interestingly &nbsp;have just added so more pages (to make 277) and then updated the TOC and the document didn't corrupt !<br />
<br />
When I update all fields (CTRL+A then ALT+F9) or open print preview (which updates all fields automatically) it still corrupts.<br />
<br />
It definately used to corrupt when I updated the TOC.
</div>


<div>
When you say 'sections' do you mean 'section breaks' - document information should tell you how many sections there are. <br />
<br />
Could some of the text be caught up in headers or footers?<br />
<br />
Have you investigated with style explorer - perhaps there are multiple heading styles defined and they may sort differently. &nbsp;<br />
<br />
Just some ideas
</div>


<div>
I did suggest:
<blockquote>
 Have you tried to copy smaller parts of the original document to a new Word file (i.e. first 10 pages, then add next 10 pages)? This may give you an idea from which point in the old document the problem actually starts. 
</blockquote>
But, I did not explicitly say <b>each section one by one</b>...<br />
<br />
No objection to closing the question! <b>Feliz año nuevo</b> <b>:-)</b>
</div>


<div>
Paul: As I say I tried to copy 10 pages a time but that turned out to preserve the corruption so I had to copy &nbsp;smaller and smaller numbers of pages
</div>


<div>
This was the only solution that worked
</div>


<div>
<div class="content wysiwyg-content">
<b>Background</b><br />
<br />
I have a large (279 page) document which has numbered and nested headings (i.e. '15.6' to '21.4.5.18')<br />
<br />
<b>Situation</b><br />
<br />
When I either open the Print view form Backstage or highlight everything and press F9, both of which update all field values in the document, sections at the bottom of the document are moved to the top were they appear to be 'inserted' under other sections and the numbering / headings are jumbled.<br />
<br />
(Unfortunately for confidentiality reasons I cannot post the actual document)<br />
<br />
<b>NOTE:</b> This happens even when the contents are copied to an entirely new document and saved.<br />
<br />
<b>Question</b><br />
<br />
How can I resolve this and stop it from happening ?<br />
<br />
Has anyone had such a severe issue before ?
</div>
</div>


Background

I have a large (279 page) document which has numbered and nested headings (i.e. '15.6' to '21.4.5.18')

Situation

When I either open the Print view form Backstage or highlight everything and press F9, both of which update all field values in the document, sections at the bottom of the document are moved to the top were they appear to be 'inserted' under other sections and the numbering / headings are jumbled.

(Unfortunately for confidentiality reasons I cannot post the actual document)

NOTE: This happens even when the contents are copied to an entirely new document and saved.

Question

How can I resolve this and stop it from happening ?

Has anyone had such a severe issue before ?

Word 2010: Heading corruption on print preview

Microsoft Word is a commercial document editing program that is part of the Microsoft Office suite. It features numerous text-editing tools for creating richly formatted documents, along with tools for the use of macros in Word documents. Word's native file formats are denoted either by a .doc or .docx file extension. Plugins permitting the Windows versions of Word to read and write formats it does not natively support, such as the OpenDocument format (ODF) are available. Word can import and display images in common bitmap formats such as JPG and GIF. It can also be used to create and display simple line-art.

Microsoft Word

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Document Management

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