It can be extremely frustrating when you're working on a project or typing a paper, and then, without warning, the computer or program crashes before you were able to save your work. However, it is not always necessary to start over. Many programs in Microsoft Windows create an autosaved temp file after the first 10 minutes, so if it it shuts down more than 10 minutes after you started it, chances are there is a temp file that can be recovered and used.
Step 1
Open "My Computer."
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Step 2
Double-click the "C:" drive. This will display all the folders listed on the disk.
Step 3
Open the "Documents and Settings" folder, followed by the "User" folder. Select the user name that was being used when the program crashed. This is most likely where the temp file was saved.
Step 4
Double-click the "Application Data", and finally "Microsoft." This is where the temporary autosaved files will be kept. Select the file you believe is the temp, then double-click it. It should launch the program that was being used at the time and load the content of the file. However, if this doesn't work, open the program up, then drag the temp file into it. It should now be displayed and ready to be used.
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