Innovative Technology at the University of Northern Colorado

Innovative Technology
Office 2007 Compatibility

Office 2007 Compatibility Pack

Microsoft Office 2007 allows users to save documents in a new format. For example: Word 2007 enables clients to save documents with the file extension ‘.docx’, Excel will save spreadsheets as ‘.xlsx’, etc. Keep in mind that you can always save Office 2007 documents in the older, fully compatible formats (.doc, .xls, etc.) as shown here:
How to save files in pre-2007 format

The new format is XML based and is not readable by older versions of Office unless you have installed Microsoft’s free compatibility tool on the older versions of Office which can be downloaded at:
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=941B3470-3AE9-4AEE-8F43-C6BB74CD1466&.

NOTE: Information Technology will be installing the Microsoft Office 2007 Compatibility Pack to all campus computers running the Microsoft Windows Operating System starting August 1, 2007. There is no compatibility pack currently available for Apple users. See Compatibility with Apple Computers below for additional information.

The new Office 2007 file format is not compatible with Microsoft Office 2003. Information Technology is deploying a compatibility pack that will allow Office 2003 users to open files created in Office 2007 format. Additionally, If a document is saved in Office 2003 format from a computer running Office 2007, the computer running Office 2003 will be able to open the file. When a file is saved in Office 2003 format, the new formatting features associated with Office 2007 are disabled.

The new Office 2007 file format is not compatible with Apple Computers. This means that if a file is created in Office 2007 an Apple computer running Microsoft Office 2004 cannot open the file. Office 2008 for Apple computers is scheduled to be delivered in the fall of 2007. This latest version of the Office suite for the Mac will use the Office Open XML formats natively, making it compatible with Office 2007.

There is a work around for Apple users. If a document is saved in Office 2003 format from a computer running Office 2007, the Apple computer will be able to open the file. When a file is saved in Office 2003 format, the new formatting features associated with Office 2007 are disabled.

The new Office 2007 file format is not compatible with Windows Mobile 5.0. Users who have smart phones or PDA's running Windows Mobile 5.0 will not be able to open files or attachments created in Office 2007 file format. This will be resolved with the new release of Windows Mobile 6. There is no compatibility pack.

There is a work around for Windows Mobile 5.0 users. If a document is saved in Office 2003 format from a computer running Office 2007, the smart phone or PDA will be able to open the file. When a file is saved in Office 2003 format, the new formatting features associated with Office 2007 are disabled.