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Troubleshooting

Office 2007 Information

Issue 1 - File Compatibility

Office 2007 has new file formats including docx, xlsx, pptx, etc. which are based on open source standards. While Office 2007 can open older versions of Office documents, older versions of Office will not immediately be able to open Office 2007 files. This makes sharing files a bit more complex but not impossible.

For Office 2003 users to be able to open Office 2007 files, a converter needs to be installed from Microsoft. The converter makes opening 2007 files in Office 2003 seamless.

Alternatively, Office 2007 users can always save their files as the old file types--doc, xls, etc. Just click the Office Button in the upper left corner and choose Save As. The Office 2003 format will be an available option.

Issue 2 - Office 2007 Files Become Zip Files

When you download a docx, xlsx, pptx, etc. file in Internet Explorer, it is automatically saved as a zip file. This is because the Office 2007 file format is actually a zip file with docx (etc.) as the extension rather than zip. This means when you download a 2007 file using IE, it will be renamed as a zip file. The solution is to rename the file with its original extension or to open the zip file in Word, Excel, etc. Alternatively, you can use Firefox since it downloads the files without changing the file extension.

Issue 3 - Opening Attachments in Office 2007 Times Out WebCT

If you have Office 2007 installed on your PC, when you click a Word (or other Office 2007 file) in WebCT and it opens in Office 2007, your WebCT sessions will be timed out, forcing you to have to log back in. There are some work-arounds for this. When you click the link to the attachment, rather than choosing to open the file, click Save instead. When the file is finished downloading, click the Open button. The file will open in Office 2007 but it will not time out your WebCT session. You will need to then delete the saved files from your desktop. Alternatively, you can use Firefox, which will not time out your session.