Weird Characters in File Names

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated June 5, 2021)
This tip applies to Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003


Barbara wrote about a problem she noticed when saving files in Word. She reported that Word is putting a %02 in the document name, every place that there was a space. For example, if she named the document "report one", Word would save it as "report%02one.doc".

This is, indeed, weird behavior. But there is an explanation. First, a clarification: I suspect that the actual code that is being used for spaces is %20, as in "report%20one.doc". The %20 is actually a "code" for a space. The percent sign indicates the start of the code, and the two digits after the percent sign indicate the hexadecimal value of the character. 20 (hex) is the same as 32 (decimal), which is the ASCII value for a space.

Why is this happening? My guess is that somehow the file name is becoming "encoded" for use on the Web. This may sound strange, but the standards accepted for the Internet indicate that URLs cannot contain spaces in them. Thus, the standard allows for the "encoding" of URLs that must contain spaces and other forbidden characters. This encoding calls for a percent sign, followed by the hex value of the forbidden character—%20 in this case.

Word—from all the information I can find—does not do encoding of file names to remove spaces and other Web-forbidden characters in URLs. Even if you save a file, with spaces in the name, as a Web page, Word still includes spaces; it does not do encoding.

This means that the change must be occurring at the operating-system level. If this file is being saved on a network drive, then the change could be introduced by the network operating system. In such a case, you should check with your system administrator. First, however, save the file—within Word—to a local hard drive, such as C:. If the problem still exhibits itself, then it is not a network issue, but something on your system. This could include the addition of a unique device driver that encodes file names. Again, your system administrator may be able to shed light on why this is happening.

You should understand that if the encoding is happening at an operating-system level, it won't do any good to reinstall Word, since Word isn't the source of the problem. Instead, you will need to search for how your operating system is different from the operating system on a computer that does not exhibit the problem.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (1319) applies to Microsoft Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. ...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Quickly Displaying the Font Dialog Box

Want to quickly format some text in your document? Select, right-click, and make a selection, and you can get to the ...

Discover More

Adding a ScreenTip

If you want people to know something about a hyperlink you added to your worksheet, one way to help them is to use ...

Discover More

Microsoft Word's Amazing Autos

Word provides several tools that can aid in developing your documents. This e-book focuses on a few of those tools. You ...

Discover More

Discover the Power of Microsoft Office This beginner-friendly guide reveals the expert tips and strategies you need to skyrocket your productivity and use Office 365 like a pro. Mastering software like Word, Excel, and PowerPoint is essential to be more efficient and advance your career. Simple lessons guide you through every step, providing the knowledge you need to get started. Check out Microsoft Office 365 For Beginners today!

More WordTips (menu)

A Real AutoSave

When you enable AutoSave in Word, it doesn't really save your document; it just saves a temporary file that allows your ...

Discover More

Document Shows as 'In Use' by Another User

Word tries to constantly track who is using various documents, in order to prevent two users from clashing in their edits ...

Discover More

Extra Document File Being Saved

You may be surprised sometime to save a document and find out that Word actually saves what appear to be two copies of ...

Discover More
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

View most recent newsletter.

Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

What is 5 + 3?

There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)


This Site

Got a version of Word that uses the menu interface (Word 97, Word 2000, Word 2002, or Word 2003)? This site is for you! If you use a later version of Word, visit our WordTips site focusing on the ribbon interface.

Videos
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

View the most recent newsletter.