Windows 7 can do many things well, from multi tasking to providing a stable platform for getting your work done. One thing that Windows 7 can"t do is play properly with Office 97.
Microsoft has posted up a knowledge article on its support web site stating that when Office 97 is installed, there is no way to save any changes made to users" User Account Control (UAC) settings . Essentially, having Office 97 installed will break UAC for the user and render it useless.
"In the Windows 7 "System and Security" control panel category, the Action Center lets you change User Account Control (UAC) settings. In the User Account Control Settings dialog box, you move the slide bar control for notifications, and then you click the OK button. In this scenario, the dialog box does not close, and no change is made. When the mouse pointer is positioned on the OK button, and you press ENTER, the dialog box still does not close, and no change is made."
There is a known fix which you can find on Microsoft"s support site but it does involve a fair bit of registry modification.
Thanks for the tip Mephistopheles