We have an xml word doc with image on title page that downloads correctly via ftp but the image is always missing if we try to download it via a link in an html page. We're using Firefox if that makes a difference. But we also tried it using Opera, with the same results. Here's the link we're using:
$fileDest = './mydoc.xml';
<a type="msword" href="<?php echo $fileDest; ?>"><input type="button" value="Download Document" /></a>
You serve different files via FTP and HTTP.