OFFXP: You Cannot Use the ALT+~ Key Combination to Turn On or Turn Off Japanese IME (318916)


The information in this article applies to:

  • Microsoft Office XP Developer
  • Microsoft Office XP Professional
  • Microsoft Office XP Professional with FrontPage
  • Microsoft Office XP Standard
This article was previously published under Q318916

SYMPTOMS

In the Japanese-language version of Office XP, you may find that you cannot use the ALT+~ (ALT+tilde) key combination to turn on or turn off the Japanese Input Method Editor (IME). When you press ALT+~, nothing occurs. The Japanese IME is not activated (or deactivated).

CAUSE

This problem may occur if a program that uses a 16-bit hook procedure is running on the computer. This can occur when you start the program that uses the 16-bit hook procedure before you start the Office XP program, and you use ALT+~ to activate or deactivate the Japanese IME.

RESOLUTION

A supported fix is now available from Microsoft, but it is only intended to correct the problem that is described in this article. Apply it only to computers that are experiencing this specific problem. This fix may receive additional testing. Therefore, if you are not severely affected by this problem, Microsoft recommends that you wait for the next Office XP product name Public Update that contains this fix.

To resolve this problem immediately, contact Microsoft Product Support Services to obtain the fix. For a complete list of Microsoft Product Support Services phone numbers and information about support costs, visit the following Microsoft Web site:

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=fh;EN-US;CNTACTMS

NOTE: In special cases, charges that are ordinarily incurred for support calls may be canceled if a Microsoft Support Professional determines that a specific update will resolve your problem. The typical support costs will apply to additional support questions and issues that do not qualify for the specific update in question.

The Global version of this fix has the file attributes (or later) that are listed in the following table. The dates and times for these files are listed in coordinated universal time (UTC). When you view the file information, it is converted to local time. To find the difference between UTC and local time, use the Time Zone tab in the Date and Time tool in Control Panel.
   Date           Time  Size       File name     
   --------------------------------------------
   18-Jul-2002  16:21       1,804  Hotfix.txt
   12-Jul-2002  14:05   3,161,136  Msctf.msp
   11-Mar-2002  16:05       2,809  Readme.txt
After the hotfix is installed, the Global version of this fix will have the file attributes (or later) that are listed in the following table. 
   Date         Time   Version       Size       File name     
   -------------------------------------------------------
   06-May-2002  08:00  5.1.2409.26   277,504    Msctf.dll

STATUS

Microsoft has confirmed that this is a problem in the Microsoft products that are listed at the beginning of this article.
Modification Type:MinorLast Reviewed:10/6/2005
Keywords:kbQFE kbbug kbfix kbOfficeXPPreSP2fix kbOfficeXPsp2fix KB318916 kbAudDeveloper
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