Too many Microsoft temp files

The moment I launch a blank Word document, about fifteen Microsoft temporary files immediately pop up, even though I haven't typed a single solitary word yet.

Why does this phenomenon occur, and is there any way to prevent it from happening? Just yesterday, while I was nearing completion on a critical document, my computer abruptly crashed out of Word without any warning at all. I was in the middle of translating a text—which was an incredibly grueling and frantic process—and to lose those final few lines due to such a sudden exit was nothing short of devastating.

You sure you aren't running some kind of malware?
First thing—run a scan with an antivirus and Malwarebytes. If it isn't a virus or something similar, then you probably just have a setting messed up somewhere...
Btw, which version of Word are you using?

Maybe you've got some malware on your PC that's duplicating files. With Word, if you end up with about 15 different versions, it usually means you've hit "save" at least 15 times—that's definitely how it works on my machine. Try what the guy above suggested and let us know how it goes.

silentwolf53 said:Is there any chance you've picked up some malware?
To start off, try running a scan with an antivirus and Malwarebytes. If it isn't a virus or something similar, then perhaps there is a specific setting that needs adjusting.
By the way, which version of Word are you using?

I ran an Avast scan, and it claims everything is clean. I also tried Malwarebytes, but I didn't find any Microsoft files initially, only to have them reappear later. Honestly, I am losing patience with Malwarebytes because the scans take forever, and even when they work, the fix is only temporary. My setup consists of an Intel Sempron 3000+ with 512 MB of RAM, the 2003 American version of Word, and Windows XP.

If the issue is indeed related to settings, what specific configurations should I be investigating?

I believe my auto-save frequency is set to every ten minutes. However, the real mystery is that as soon as I launch Word—even if I haven't typed a single letter—I already see about fifteen of those Microsoft files waiting for me when I try to open a document. This happens even in a completely blank document where nothing has been written at all.

start -> search -> all files and folders... then just type in *.tmp.
once the scan finishes, sort them by file location. find the ones sitting in the folder where you installed Office and kill those. honestly, you could probably just wipe everything. won't hurt anything...
there's a second way—way easier. just grab CCleaner and check everything like this. just make sure you back up your saved passwords somewhere first, just in case.

It’s possible you’ve got some "preload" setting enabled in your options... which basically just means the next time you try to open that file, it’ll pop up way faster than usual...

If we're talking about this latest version of Office, I'm pretty much useless to you there...

Why don't you just make the jump to LibreOffice and call it a day? It’s free, it actually works, and hey, it's from Sol, right?😁

Robin Roberts said:It’s entirely possible that your settings have resource "preloading" enabled. This essentially means that the next time you go to open the file, it will launch much faster since it was already cached...

If we are discussing this latest version of Office, I am afraid I can offer no assistance whatsoever...

Why don't you simply make the switch to LibreOffice? It is free, and more importantly, it is incredibly robust—not to mention it originates from Sol! 😁

I am currently using Office 2003 en. Where might I locate those specific settings so that I may immediately disable preloading if it happens to be active? Thanks in advance!

There seem to be several versions of LibreOffice available, but is that Sol Microsystems version compatible with Windows XP?