Outlook 2003
Word 2003
Norton Antivirus 2006

Hi,

After I click "reply" to an email which contains html, Outlook takes a
long time to load the page where I can enter text and send the reply. 
Usually 5-15 seconds.  There is no delay when clicking reply to any
other type of email, the reply form loads immediately. This is
definitely not an internet connection issue, my internet loads web
pages just fine otherwise.

I have discovered in google searches that a few others have had this
same problem.  The quick fix is to disable Word 2003 as the email
editor in the message format area of options.  This does indeed work,
allowing replies to html to be prompt.  However, this is a bad option
for me since I almost require the word editor for my outlook work.

I have disabled the option in Norton 2006 which specifically targets
Office documents, I do not know if it is perhaps Norton which is
causing the slowdown.  Office documents otherwise open up promptly, it
is only in the outlook circumstance described above where there is the
delay.

Is Outlook 2003 html reply with Word as the editor just flat out
bugged and unusable? Or can I fix this situation?

Please let me know if you need any clarifications.

Thanks,
Daniel

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Clarification of Question by googdan-ga on 21 Apr 2006 02:05 PDT

Edit to exact delay time:

I have started timing the delay, and 5-15 seconds is much too
generous.  The delay averages about 30 seconds, with a range of 25-35
usually.

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Clarification of Question by googdan-ga on 21 Apr 2006 09:02 PDT

If it's not clear in the post, I would consider this question answered
by instructions on how to fix the problem.

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Clarification of Question by googdan-ga on 16 May 2006 00:40 PDT

Oh well, still no luck with an answer. I've bumped it up to $50 if
anybody has a solution.

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Request for Question Clarification by arcadesdude-ga on 20 May 2006 09:12 PDT

googdan,
This sounds to me like a network timeout issue. Something may be
loading with Word or Outlook and then it may 'timeout' because of no
connection. I don't know if this will solve the problem but I would
turn off automatically searching for network files and printers
(Start->My Computer->Tools->Folder Options->View->Uncheck
Automatically search for network folders and printers). Test out the
reply again. If that does it it means Word (or toolbar in
word...Norton?) was trying to find something on the network or
internet that wasn't able to be found or was blocked by a firewall.

My next guess is that Word Outlook or Norton are loading up with your
reply and some part of those three is blocked by a firewall and so it
times out after about 30 seconds when no reply is reached.

You can test this by disabling your primary network adapter. To do
this click Start, (Settings), Control Panel, Network Connections, Then
right click on your Local Area Connection if you connect with
cable/dsl or high speed internet and click Disable. If you connect
with dialup, disconnect your dial-up connection. Then open Outlook
(work offline (don't connect if asked)) and hit reply to your problem
messages...

If it comes up instantly then we've narrowed the problem down to a
network (internet or otherwise) timeout issue with the word software
(or norton).

If that is the case then re-enable your network adapter (same as
before but Enable). Then, check your firewall settings to allow all
Word/Norton/and Outlook programs through the software firewall if you
have one. If your using the built-in Windows XP firewall then in
Network Connections, right click your network adapter (either the
dial-up connection or the local area connection ... or wireless
adapter if that is how you connect). Then click on properties, then
advanced, then settings (Windows Firewall on Service Pack 2). Click
Exceptions in the tab that comes up and then look for
Word/Norton/Outlook or anything pertaining to those programs. Make
sure they are checked (allowed through).

Another thought is it could be a toolbar like Norton, or Adobe or
something else that loads when Word loads that is slowing down the
reply by trying to check the internet for updates or check the network
for some previously opened file.

The startup location for Word add-ins is, Word Tools->Options->File
locations-> Startup. An item in the Global Templates and add-ins may
be at fault for this slow reply when used with Outlook.

Hopefully that gives you something to go on or start with in
troubleshooting this issue. If anything above is unclear please reply
back and I'll try my best to offer alternative suggestions/solutions.

I have several computers at my site with office xp, and 2k3, Word is a
terrible editor, but many of my users feel the need to use it. That is
most definitely the culprit. Try not to use word as the editor. It
isn't that it is buggy, just that is has to access a whole new
application every time you open an email with any Rich Text.

The issue is that Outlook has to load Word components into memory
which isn't terribly efficient. I've had some success with launching
Word and then just keeping it minimized - seems like the stuff Outlook
needed was loaded and ready so Outlook ran quicker. Worth a shot if
you haven't already.

Thanks for the tip.  I can't really tell if keeping word open is
helping the problem or not, there is still a delay of over 20 seconds.
 It may be helping by 5 seconds or so, so it's definitely worth
further testing.

Something interesting I noticed is that occasionally there will be an
internet glitch where I'll be disconnected and the word reply loads
immediately with the correct html information though drawn from my
computer's memory (the html I respond to is exactly the same 90% of
the time).  Also, when no html is involved it loads automatically.  It
seems to be not so much word loading, as word trying to load html from
the internet.