Change Word 2007 Default Saving Format to Compatibility Mode
March 27th, 2007 by Matthew Jabs
How annoying…for all you Microsoft bashers out there, here’s another reason to complain. With the advent of Microsoft Word 2007, Word now saves files in a new format, .docx
Microsoft reports the new format was instituted to accomodate for all the new Word 2007 features. Hogwash I say…HOGWASH! While there may be some truth to the previous statement, I believe they instituted the format change to throw off competitors like OpenOffice.org. ***Let it be noted that OpenOffice does not currently support the new OpenXML format, but it is being worked on, and will be a feature in future realeases.
For the general Microsoft Word user this new “feature” is nothing but a burden. Take my wife for example, she could be considered a “basic PC user” per the computer knowledge she has. The other day she was working on a MS Word document in Word 2007 on our home PC. She save the document, transferred it to her USB drive, and then to her business laptop. When at work the next day, she tried to access the file on her business laptop using Word 2003. To her dismay, she was unable to open the document due to an “incompatibility issue”. She didn’t know what to do, so she called me. I told her to rename it from whatever.docx to whatever.doc. That didn’t work so I had her email the file to me, I opened it in Word 2007, saved it in compatibility mode, and emailed it back to her. She opened it successfully and was happier than a tick on a fat dog!
Here’s my point, the average PC user is not going to know what to do in a similar situation. If nothing else, this will slow the user down, and frustrate them. To help avoid this unnecessary stress Microsoft has imposed upon the general computing public, here are instructions on how to change Word 2007 to save every file, by default, in compatibility mode (Word 97 - 2003 mode, or .doc):
- Open Microsoft Word 2007
- Click the “Office Button” (top left of your screen), then on the bottom of the list click “Word Options”
- The “Word Options” window will open. Now click on “Save” in the left panel
- Change the top option (in the right panel) “save files in this format” from “Word Document (*.docx)” to “Word 97-2003 Document (*.doc)“
- Click “OK” and you’re all done!
Following the above steps will give you the ability to save all your documents as *.doc files, and will save a lot of compatibility headaches! If you want to save a document in the new *.docx format, just select the new format when saving individual documents.
I hope this helps!
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Good tip Matt, but here’s a better one: Don’t install Office 2007
What an awful company Microsoft is….
I have Office 2007 and find it a huge improvement over the previous 2002 and 2003 versions.
Saving is not much different to the older versions - they had compatibility problems at first and I had to choose to save as word97 - haven’t had to do that for ages though.
It’s good that you actually can set the default file type to save as.
http://goldcoaster.wordpress.com
My office upgraded to Office 2007. There was not ONE single user out of about 30 that liked it. There were so many complaints to the help desk that we ended up removing it and re-installing Office 2003.
The problem is that task users are used to doing things in a certain order. Such as Edit Paste Special, or Format Change case, now they have to play hide a seek to find the commands. Office 2007 while it may be pretty is a huge productivity slowdown.
I personally have tried to find some things in Word 2007 by looking around and using help, most of the time I have to Google the problem to find out how to do a certain task.
As it is out of the box, Office 2007 is not an aceptable product in an office environment. I would only recommend giving it to Power Users that can learn it on their own or find solutions without constantly calling the help desk.
Now, why not put in a command to use the CLASSIC menu system?
Reluctant to change, I see.
Oh my Randy!!!
You just penned my frustrations just as they appear in my mind! I feel the exact same way. No one that I’ve dealt with likes Office 2007, and everyone has told me how much slower it is. The productivity comment is right on…users cannot be nearly as productive because Microsoft changed the entire menu system, and like you said, they don’t give us any option to change it to the “Classic” style.
Also, I too have tried to find answers in the Office 2007 help system…but cannot. Just as you do, I have to go to Google to find out how to use Microsoft’s products! How horrible is this company getting??!!
I think MS were correct in not have a Classic menu option.
The new ribbon, for me, works great. I still have Office 2003 at work but at home 2007 is fine.
I am guessing most users would also whinge if you replaced their PC and put a Mac in place - they would need to learn again. Office2007 is the same, a little training and it’s miles better.
http://goldcoaster.wordpress.com
But isn’t the learning curve one of the top arguments MS-people use against products like OpenOffice, when they defend staying on the MS platform?
Why would it not behoove Microsoft to give their users an option?
Consider, especially, the business environment. The new user interface may be better, but it is going to take some time before users are as productive as they were on the classic interface. This alone will cost companies money. Money that could be reclaimed if the Classic Menu Option was there.
Replacing the Microsoft PC with a MAC, or better yet, with a Linux PC…has never been a more attractive option.
Microsoft has given people a viable reason to switch. Upgrade costs for the operating system, office suite, and PC hardware, along with new training costs may push some organizations over the Linux/MAC edge!
Thank You
I use Office 2007 at home and obviously Office 2003 at school.
Way I see it is, the internet and computer environment has no place for xenophibics who fear change. It took me all of 3 days to get used to the new Office layout. Compatability issues are never with the computers, its with the people.
If you dont think you’re compatable with the newest Office, then just dont get it. If the workplace or school in your life still uses Office 2003, it’s their fault, not Microsoft’s. Replacing a PC with a MAC or a linux computer, OR downgrading microsoft office because employees have compatability issues– this only digs your own business’s grave in the way of keeping up with others who are more technologically ‘compatable.’
My reccomendation is, just get used to it. It may take a while but it is worth it because in the end you will have more features than before.
lol…I think you meant xenophobics.
“just get used to it”…I don’t think so my friend…instead I’ll just choose something that I like better!
Apparently there is a related bug with Word 2007 and how [Compatibility Mode] behaves.
My Office Button / Word Options / Save / “Save files in this format” is set to: “Word 97 - 2003 Document (*.doc)”, but every time I create a new blank document (Office Button / New / Blank Document / Create), [Compatibility Mode] won’t kick-in until I after I save the document in the legacy format for the first time.
Excel and PowerPoint don’t behave this way: If you’ve got your default save format set to the legacy formats, anytime you create a new workbook or presentation, you’re automatically in [Compatibility Mode] when you create a new workbook or presentation… even before you save for the first time.
So conceivably, you could create a new file in Word, and get all happy about the hour you just spent creating your first SmartArt diagram, only to find out that when you save it, you get a nasty prompt saying it’s not compatible!
As someone who\’s spent many years working with computers in universities (going back to CP/M, DOS, etc) I\’m always in two minds about Microsoft\’s \’usability policy\’ (well, as a Mac user by choice, possibly only one mind but I like to give credit where it\’s due).
We are a smallish university (5,000 students) and have just upgraded to Office 7 and it\’s certainly resulted in more problems for users than any previous upgrade.
Yes, it\’s got many useful features that I like (but probably won\’t use) however compatibility is the most frequent complaint. Thanks to Matthew I now have a clear explanation I can point my colleagues to. Respect!
The biggest problem we have had with the compatibilty issues in Office 2007 has come from the defauklt changing after updates, or whenever it feels like it. I have several users that I have switched to Office 2007 and those they have not have installed Microsoft’s compatibility Pack for Office 2007 so they can read the .docx documents. We have changed the default Save option to Word 97-2003 .doc, but for some reason (probably updates) it will change back to the 2007 format. Internally it is OK becasue everyone has the fix installed so they can view them, but when you send documents out of the organization the end user probably does not have the compatibility pack installed. Updates should not change this setting back to the default. It’s almost as if Microsoft wants to piss off their customers just to see if we will ever adopt Linux as the cure. I move closer to it with each update installed.
I have the same problem with multiple users, but still do not know what triggers this issue. I do not think updates make the change since it switches back to docx some times twice during a same day.
Does somebody found the the cause?
Interesting…when our university installed Office 2007, IT set the compatibility mode as the default until all offices and all locations were installed. Once installed, we were given the direction to change our default so that the files will save to the new format. Every time I open Word, it has reverted back to compatibility mode. I can\’t get it to stay with 2007…which seems to be the reverse of what some of you are saying!
If they are changing back to compatibility mode automatically I would contact your system administrator. Most likely they used group policy to make sure they were in compatibility mode and never removed the GPO setting.
I would never use MS Office 2007, if I have this option. I had Office 2007 for about 10 minutes at home. What happend? I pressed shift + Del on it’s folder. I couldn’t stand it any longer. Now I’m back on Office 2003
Can someone please help me?!
I have saved a microsoft word 2007 file onto my memory stick after spending hours writing part of my uni dissertation in the library. I really need to work on it tonight but cannot open the file on my home computer as I only have windows 1997. Is there any way I can access it even if it means I can just read it?
Please help
Microsoft do have a word viewer
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=3657ce88-7cfa-457a-9aec-f4f827f20cac&displaylang=en
Hope this might help
Woe. Not being a complainer, I have given Word 2007 over four months, seeing if I could adapt. So far I have not learned how to do 90 percent of what I used to do in Word 97. Microsoft has lost it - sell your stock! I used to teach WordStar in the early 80’s and THAT was far easier to use than Word 2007. What were they thinking? Surely that had access to research on human factor ergonomics. Hello Open Office!
Oh for the good old WordStar days! Seriously. I only do two things with my computer: write letters and write books — fiction and nonfiction, published by mainstream publishers. I have no need for pictures, charts, or or other complications, I just want to write letters in 12-point Times Roman with spaces between paragraphs. Nice if my type-only letterhead came up automatically. Manuscripts should have indented continuous paragraphs, 12-point Bookman Oldstyle double spaced with Arial chapter titles and headers. All other choices should hide far, far away. I’ve had 2007 for months and cannot get what I want. I’m no techie and don’t want to be one. Word 97 was fine. Suggestions?
Microsoft knows as do we all that time is money. They need to conform their products to be compatible with existing versions. Not shuffle the functions around just to make things seem new. When they eliminated the menu in order to bring in the ribbon they alienated many once satisfied customers by costing them hours of learning. Change is not something to be afraid of but change for change sake is foolish.
freeringtones…
freeringtones…
You guys must be doing some awfully sophisticated stuff with Word. Word 07 is fine with me. Everything is logically located where you’d imagine it would be by looking at the category tabs. And all the formatting options are right there on the right-click menu. It’s clearly better organized for new users. The rest of us need to take some time to learn it. No big deal.
cheers mate - just found you in google while trying to get my mums word/powerpoint presentations to work on her xp machine that doesn’t have 2007 on it. ?why did they change the normal file types - I use open office as it opens everything and saves in PDF without the need for a PDF writer/printer. thanks again.