Microsoft Office 2007
Discussion of Compatability Issues

When Microsoft created the new version of Office they also created a new format for documents to be saved in. They did this because the new format offers a number of new benefits including: increased security, increased integration with the internet, they are less likely to be corrupted, as well as a host other benefits. However, this also brought the downside that older versions of Microsoft Office could not read the new format.

To fix this problem Microsoft offered one of two solutions. The first is if someone has a computer with Microsoft Office 2003 they can download a compatibility patch from Microsoft that will let them open and change Office 2007 documents (Get the Patch Here), however, this fix only works for Windows based computers and not Macintosh systems. Apple has provided Mac users a tool which can convert some Office 2007 documents using the Microsoft Office Open XML File Format Converter. Additionally, some free online conversion resources can be found (i.e. http://zamzar.com).

The second solution to the problem is Microsoft gives us the capability to save documents, created in Office 2007, in the older version of Microsoft Office. To save a document in the older format so it will be compatible with Macintosh based systems and older versions of Office, all you have to do is click "Save As" and choose "Word 97 – 2003 Document". If you desire to have all Office 2007 documents save in the older format, view the directions below for details.

Hopefully this helps answer some of those questions and concerns about Microsoft Office 2007. If you have any questions about this or any other issues you may have found with Office 2007 feel free to contact the helpdesk at 405-208-7777 or helpdesk@okcu.edu.

Configuring Office 2007 to Always Save in Older File Formats

1. Click on the Office Button in the top right corner.





2. Go down to "Word Options" or "Excel Options" depending on which application you are in.





3. Click on "Save" at the left.





4. Where it says "Save files in this format" change the drop-down box to "Word 97-2003 Document (*.doc)" or "Excel 97-2003 Document (*.xls)"





5. Click on OK and restart Word or Excel.

Congratulations!!! You have just changed the default file type.