Viewing Documents Created Within Microsoft Office 2007 in Previous Versions of Microsoft Office - TB8266

Overview

This article will help users make Office 2007 documents editable or viewable within previous versions of Microsoft Office.

How to access files saved within Office 2007 within Windows

Users may notice that files saved in the new XML-based Office 2007 file formats may not be editable or viewable in previous versions of Office products. There are currently two solutions to this issue:

• When saving a file from an Office 2007 application there is an option to save it in "XP - 2003 Compatibility Mode". This will allow the document to be viewable within the older applications. However it may restrict some of the new functionality or formatting of the Office 2007 products when using compatibility mode. Users may want to keep a copy of the file in the Office 2007 file format as well.

• If you are using an older version of Microsoft Office and wish to convert a document created within Microsoft Office 2007, Microsoft has made a software converter pack download available. By installing the Compatibility Pack in addition to Microsoft Office 2000, Office XP, or Office 2003, you will be able to open, edit, and save files using the file formats new to Word, Excel, and PowerPoint 2007. The Compatibility Pack can also be used in conjunction with the Microsoft Office Word Viewer 2003, Excel Viewer 2003, and PowerPoint Viewer 2003 to view files saved in these new formats.

  To download the compatilbity pack, go to Microsoft Office Compatibility Pack for Word, Excel, and PowerPoint 2007 File Formats. For more details please refer to MS KB Article 924074.

  Note: you must use Internet Explorer and be logged in as Administrator to download and install the patch.

Common file extensions for Office 2007 Documents are:

• Word 2007: .docx, .docm, .dotx, .dotm
• Excel 2007: .xlsx, .xlsm, .xltx, .xlsb, .xlam
• PowerPoint: .pptx, .pptm, .potx, .potm, .ppam, .ppsx, .ppsm

Accessing docX (Office 2007/2008) Files with MacOS Office 2004

MacOS Office 2004 users can install the Open XML Converter available from Microsoft. Once installed, you can use Office 2004 applications to open and save files in the Open XML Formats that were introduced in the 2007 Microsoft Office system for Windows and in Microsoft Office 2008 for Mac.