I can't control the mouse in Word 2007

Q I use Word 2007 (part of Microsoft Office 2007) and Windows Vista Home Premium. The problem is that the mouse doesn’t work in Word. It works fine normally, but as soon as I load Word I can no longer control it with the mouse. The menus work, but I can’t click on any text inside the window. Other programs work fine with the mouse, even when Word is running. Also, when I close Word it always crashes and shows the Windows message saying there has been a problem with it. Are the two problems related and is there any way to fix them?
Simon Jacobson

A This seems to be related to a plug-in or add-on for Word. Lots of programs can install these plug-ins to allow them to work with Word more easily. For example, if you have any PDF creation software installed, it may have installed a plug-in that’s not working properly. Similarly, screen capture, document management or speech recognition software, among others, may have installed a plug-in that is causing a problem.

This can be fixed relatively quickly, but it involves editing the Registry. Long-term readers will know that this can be a tricky process because you need to follow the instructions exactly because a wrong move can render your computer inoperable (it won’t be permanently so, but the recovery process will be arduous and you may lose documents or files). Make sure you set a system restore point before starting and that you also back up the Registry.

You can find the instructions for the process here. Follow the instructions listed under the heading ‘Delete the Word Data registry key’. Make sure you follow them to the letter, including all parts up to step 8, ‘Start Word’.