MS Word hangs when it is saved to a different directory

When I save a MS Word document (Word 2003) to a new directory the program hangs up for several minutes or longer as though it is trying to find the directory or drive, or it crashes. Is this an issue to do with drive mapping and networking? Is there a batch file that can resolve this if it is? I have MS XP and operate on a work network and a home network where some drives are USB drives plugged directly into the computer.

Can any one help please?