Opening "structures" in equation editor, hangs Word

Hello Mike,

I understand your concern and will assist you with this issue.

Let’s start Word in safe mode and verify whether issue re-occurs. Follow the below mentioned steps to start Word in safe mode:

* Hold Windows key + R.
* Copy and paste, or type the following command in the Open box, and then press Enter:
Winword /safe
Note: There is space between Winword and '/'.

If Word safe works, disable the add-ins following steps mentioned below and determine the problem causing add-in:
a) Click on File menu, click Options, Add-ins, Go button besides Manage:Com-in Add.
b) Check if there are add-ins listed, clear the check box.
c) Close Word and restart it.
d) Disable each add-in one at a time, restart the Word, and repeat the above procedure. If the issue reappears again, it will help you to determine which add-in is causing this issue.

Reply with the result and I'll be glad to further assist you.

Thank You.

Hello Mike,

Thank you for replying.

Let's run 'Fix it' from the following KB article and try using equation and verify the result:
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/822005

Note: Save the ‘Fix it’ before running it as you’re working on 64 bit Windows. If you're unable to run 'Fix it', follow instructions mentioned in the section 'Let me fix it myself' and see if it helps.
http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows7/Back-up-the-registry

Hope it helps. Reply with the result and I’ll be glad to further assist you.

Thank You.

Hello Mike,

Lets try the couple of methods and check whether issue still re-occurs.

Method 1

1) Lets start the computer in clean boot state and verify the result.
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/929135/en-us

Note: Ensure to restart the computer in normal mode after the troubleshooting process.

2) If issue still occurs, create new Windows user and check if you're able to work in Word as expected. You may refer to the following article for instructions on how to create new Windows user account:
http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/create-user-account#create-user-account=windows-7

Hope the above information helps. Reply with the result and I'll be glad to further assist you.

Thank You.

Hello Mike,

Thanks for sharing the solution.

Word uses printer fonts. Thus choosing equation editor, triggers Word to acquire fonts/font settings from printer. As you're on network printer, probably connecting the printer could've caused Word to hang.  

Word uses printer settings to load printer fonts. Check the following article which contains detailed information about fonts and its connection with print driver:  
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/918791 (Overview of fonts)

Hope the above information helps. If you need further assistance for issues related to Office, please feel free reply me.

Thank You.