How to be Compatible

In 2007, Microsoft brought out a new version of MS Office. It came with a new file format called the Microsoft Open Office XML format. Documents ending in .docx, .excx and .pptx formats are similar to the old .doc, .exc and .ppt formats, but cannot be opened by Office 2003 applications. If you're still using Office 2003 software, don't despair. You can convert the new formats to make them compatible with Office 2003.

Software developers have come up with a number of solutions to solve the program compatibility problem. The easiest way is to download the Microsoft Office Compatibility Pack directly from Microsoft (www.bit.ly/TOm2). Once you've installed the program, you'll be able to open, print, edit and save files in the new format without losing any of the data. If you're using a Mac, download the Mac version from www.bit.ly/xBuGY. It converts .docx files to a rich text format. You can then open the files in Office for Mac and any other word processing program.

Alternatively, you can convert files online using free software like Zamzar (www.zamzar.com ). Select the file you want to convert and choose the desired format. The program will convert the file and e-mail it to you. Follow the link in the e-mail to download a converted version of your file. The whole process takes less than a minute, depending on the speed of your mail service.

Docxtodoc (www.docxtodoc.com) is another free document converter service that converts files from the new format to the old format. Neither Docxtodoc nor Zamzar require the user to have Microsoft Office installed, which is great news for people using Open Office software.

If you have Microsoft Office 2007, you can still save documents in the old format. This may be a good idea if you plan to send the files to someone who may not have the latest software.