Office 2007 & 2008 Compatibility

Microsoft's latest versions of the Office Suite, Office 2007 for Windows and Office 2008 for Macs, have changed the format of files being saved in Word, Excel, and Powerpoint. The default file format is not compatible with older versions of Office for Macs (Office 2004 or Office X) and Windows (Office 2003 or Office XP).

To avoid file compatibility issues, save Office files in Office 97-2003 format which will allow older versions of Office to open the files without problem. However, if a file is saved in Office 2007 or 2008 format and e-mailed to someone using an older version, the files will not open by default. Instead, Macintosh computers must use a converter program to read the file. Windows computers will initially need to install a compatibility pack to allow Office 2007 files to be read thereafter.

• Connect to Fileserver1  smb://fileserver1/Software/Macintosh/Office OpenXML Converter  (instructions if needed)
• Copy the OpenXMLConverter101.dmg to your desktop and double click to install.
• Copy the document you would like to convert to the desktop.
• Double click on the document.

Note: This converter will convert a document created in Office 2007 and save it on the desktop as an Office 2004 document. If you’re a faculty member and are having problems, please contact the support center at x4222. Students having problems should contact SCS at x4224

• Connect to \\fileserver1\Software\Windows\Microsoft Software\Office 2007 Compatibility (instructions if needed)
• Copy the  FileFormatConverters.exe file to your desktop and double click to install it
• Double click the document to open it