Lost word document

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How do I retrieve a document I can see and it's listed in the documents but won't open

Help. I have created a word doc and can see it in lists and even a small version of it in the "created today" with all its' stats (such as length, time created) but it wont open.

opened apple symbol, then "recently created" and it shows up but still won't open.
 
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Can you give a little more info Granny ??

What did you make this document in ?/ How did you go about saving it ?/ Where is it saved to ?/ What Mac and OS are you using ?? Use About This Mac by clicking on the  Top Left and then About this Mac.

In short if you saved it correctly, you should be able to Right Click or ⌃Click (Control + Click) and in the Contextual Menu there should be Open With and the Default Application at the top of the list. . .
 
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it's a Mac with OSX 10.8.5, 2.66 GHz, Intel core 2 duo, 4GB 1067, MH2 DDR3. (I understand little of what all this means!) The document was created in Word 2011 and it just got saved by the default settings. I may have saved it once or twice. Then just before I was about to stop for awhile, I think I went to email and then couldn't get it back from "Open Recent." I tried the "More" and then I could see little preview sizes of a couple of docs, one of which is this one that now won't open. I am so inept that I don't know what you mean by the "contextual menu" but will assume it means the Word menu and try what you suggest. Thanks.
 
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Contextual Menu is the Little Menu you get that pops up when you Right Click on a Item. Its like a Sub Menu or Floating Menu.
Have you tried double clicking on it ? Doing this, will by default open it in Word but by using the Right Click you can open it in Pages, Text Edit or any other Program that accepts Word or Text Documents.
As I said double clicking it, will open it by default in Word, and if that doesn't work, come back, because something is wrong with the Document itself, OR Word.
We might need to give your Mac a Clean by Repairing Permissions.

EDIT : PS Thanks for that Info. Its your Mac Specs, and is always good to know and include it in any post you make, so now what we are dealing with.
 
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what's most frustrating is that I can see a small version of the doc. Will give up and recreate. Tomorrow. Undoubtedly a lesser work.
 
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What happens if you click on it, to highlight it (it has a border around the Doc) and hit Space Bar ?? If that comes up with a ? Mark the Doc isn't there, but hitting the spacebar rings up the Document in Quicklook . . . .
Sorry I'm a curious person and like to know the "the why" it didn't happen . . If not just recreate it and be happy in yourself :)
 
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This is the weirdest darn thing! By right click, a small box comes up with a smallnerized version of the document I'm trying to retrieve and I can even page through it! How do I open in "notes" or "text edit" or even if I have those apps (? - is that what they're called?)
 
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Yikes!!! I hit the space bar and a bigger version of the doc came up and it says Microsoft Word! How can I now get it to save normally?
 
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This is the weirdest darn thing! By right click, a small box comes up with a smallnerized version of the document I'm trying to retrieve and I can even page through it! How do I open in "notes" or "text edit" or even if I have those apps (? - is that what they're called?)

Hold down the Control Button Bottom left of Keyboard and then click on the Document. That will bring up the Contextual Menu. In that Menu you will see, Open and Open With, move your cursor over the "Open With" and it will bring up a List of things you can Open it with, Including the Default Word, at the top.
You will have Text Edit and Notes, but Opening in Text Edit, will open it in Rich Text w/ formatting, as notes will open it as a block of Text.

EDIT : Have you tried Double Clicking on it ?? If it shows in Quick Look, IT SHOULD open in Word by Double clicking it
 
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How do you copy from quicklook, or print it out or duplicate it?
 
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Double clicking did not bring it up in Word, although I tried mightily. I was able to open it with text edit. And now it's doing the spinning color wheel thing. I'd like to copy it into a word doc if I could. Would that be possible. The block of text thing isn't even so bad as recreating it. Dare I turn the machine off to get rid of the spinning thing??
 
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Force quit Text Edit holding Command+Option+Esc
This brings up a Window, click on Text Edit and then Force Quit.

Now before you shut down .. . . . . read next post !!
 
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Repair Disk permissions.H

Open Disk Utility in Applications>Utilities>Disk Utility

Now click on your HD in the left column "NOT the Very TOP HD But the one underneath"
Then Click the First Aid Tab Centre top of window, and then Repair Disk Permissions down the Bottom.
Sit back, make a coffee and wait until its done.
Don't worry about all the Errors it brings up, as this is normal (without explaining why)
When its finished, restart your Mac now.
Then go back into the Document, and try Double Clicking again. If not, right click and use the Contextual pMo open it in another Document, and see where we stand now.

Its obviously there, but something is stopping us opening it (spinning wheel in Text Edit tells me something is a miss)
If you get the spinning wheel again, Force Quit like I showed above and try right Click and opening it in another Application.
If that doesn't work, right Clcik and then Get Info and see what permission the Document has Right down the bottom of that little Window
Then come back and let us know how you went . . .

Hoping the Repair Permissions will align the OS again and let us open it. :)
 
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I don't know what happened but I shut the whole shebang down to get rid of that infernal wheel and when I rebooted, the whole thing righted itself. The document came up in word, not titled as I had originally saved it but with the first words I'd written. I took that and actually now have a second saved version because I changed the preference, as had been previously recommended, to auto backup.

YOU ARE A GENIUS!!! What's clear is that there are things about this infernal machine about which I have NO idea! Now I have NO EXCUSE not to finish the project I started this afternoon. Thank you so much. I will now figure out how I can enhance your rep! Is it really past midnight where you are? Again, thank you so much.
 
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:D
Im glad it has worked out for you, but its just gone 935am here in Western Australia, so all good. Just needs some logical thought is all :)

As to the Rep, the little man top right of the post box near the PERMALINK is where you +Rep. Click him and Agree or Disagree but I do it, to help others out, and I'm glad I could help you.

With Word it should have a Auto Save feature ?? Don't use it myself, but if not, as you go along, just hit ⌘S (command + S) and save as you do every paragraph. This will then save the Document you opened, but without you having to save through a secondary window. I use it all the time, and its so easy to just hit Command S. Its second nature to me now.
Enjoy and hope the document goes well :)
 

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Another hot tip for you Granny....

Word, Preferences, Save. Select "Always make a backup". By doing that, you'll always have a copy of the document's last saved state. Auto Save in Word is unreliable and should not be counted on.

Also, while you're in Preferences: Go to "File Locations" and select your Documents folder as the location for your backup document. That way, you'll always be able to find it. ;)
 
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Good tip Charlie. Thanks for adding that useful info :)
 
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document will not open

I had exactly the same problem. While trying to solve, I accidently clicked the right and left buttons SIMULTANEOUSLY and, voila!, the document came up. I have tried this several times and it always works,
 

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