Tech: Unable to open docx

Subject: Tech: Unable to open docx
From: NormanD
Date: 24 Jun 10 - 05:28 PM

I've received a couple of attachments which are .docx files. My Mac (running 10.6.4) is unable to open them, they just appear as blank pages. I do have Word:Mac X, and have no problem sending or opening Word docs.

Any ideas? Thanks.

Subject: RE: Tech: Unable to open docx
From: el_punkoid_nouveau
Date: 24 Jun 10 - 05:31 PM

Have a look on the microsoft website - docx is their version of the open standard format, implement with Office 2007. They provided a backwards compliant translator for earlier versions of Office to be able to read Office 2007 files.

el_punkoid...

Subject: RE: Tech: Unable to open docx
From: Arthur_itus
Date: 24 Jun 10 - 05:42 PM

Get the person who sent them to save them as a word 97 - 2003 document and resend them to you.

I am assuming that you can read the older version.

Subject: RE: Tech: Unable to open docx
From: buddhuu
Date: 24 Jun 10 - 05:56 PM

I believe both Open Office (a free office program suite) and Google's online service Google Docs can open Docx files. I'm pretty sure I've done it with both.

Subject: RE: Tech: Unable to open docx
From: Jack Campin
Date: 24 Jun 10 - 07:45 PM

Pages usually opens these.

Subject: RE: Tech: Unable to open docx
From: Richard Bridge
Date: 24 Jun 10 - 08:04 PM

I confirm open office

Subject: RE: Tech: Unable to open docx
From: Leadfingers
Date: 24 Jun 10 - 08:46 PM

Microsoft (In The Head) is bloody expensive but FREE Open Office seems to do the same things !

Subject: RE: Tech: Unable to open docx
From: Tattie Bogle
Date: 24 Jun 10 - 08:52 PM

Like el punkoid said: once you've downloaded the converter from Microsoft, you won't have same problem again with docx or newer versions of Excel and other MS files that might be sent to you. It takes just minutes to do.
Getting the sender to re-send in an older format will work for this time, but not for the future, and as more and more folk get new Windows based computers, you are likely to receive more docx files from them!!

Subject: RE: Tech: Unable to open docx
From: NormanD
Date: 25 Jun 10 - 04:01 AM

It does look like more people are getting new Windows + progs, but one of the senders also has a Mac. I presume he has a newer version of Mac:Office than mine. I'll follow up the tip re. a converter; I hope it applies to Macs.

Thanks - I'll report back.

Subject: RE: Tech: Unable to open docx
From: treewind
Date: 25 Jun 10 - 04:23 AM

Microsoft provide a free downloadable document viewer which can cope with docx, if all you want to do is view, print or copy/paste the text.

There is also a .DOCX converter which allows you to import DOCX into older versions of Word.

Open Office will read .DOCX files pretty well, and of course will then let you edit and export to .DOC, .ODF or many other formats including PDF.

(brief rant follows)
"docx is their version of the open standard format"
DOCX is not fully compatible with OOXML, and OOXML itself is a poorly specified and incomplete jumble which MS only got accepted as an ISO standard by bribery.

ODF (used by Open Office and much other software) is an ISO standard worthy of the title, but Microsoft's support for it (by add-on packages) is deeply flawed.

Subject: RE: Tech: Unable to open docx
From: Jack Campin
Date: 25 Jun 10 - 06:52 AM

Open Office is the only program I have ever come across that will hang an OS X Mac. It's a bloated pile of dogshit.

After discovering that Pages opens these files, I got rid of it.

Recent versions of Excel are even worse. Open Office never did anything with those and Numbers doesn't either.

Subject: RE: Tech: Unable to open docx
From: GUEST,Tom Bliss
Date: 25 Jun 10 - 06:55 AM

Erm I'm not sure about this, but someone told me you just delete the x (i.e make it .doc) and it opens in word for mac. I _think_ I tried it and it worked. But it seems unlikely, somehow

Tom

Subject: RE: Tech: Unable to open docx
From: GUEST,Wokaloh
Date: 25 Jun 10 - 09:55 AM

Howdy.

Just passing by. If you not too concern about privacy, try Google Viewer or Zoho Apps

http://viewer.zoho.com/
http://docs.google.com/viewer

Bye

Subject: RE: Tech: Unable to open docx
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 25 Jun 10 - 10:13 AM

Microsoft has released an online version of Word this year, though I haven't gone looking for it since I have the computer-based software already. You might try going to Microsoft and poke around. Or someplace like TuCows or CNet. They'll review it as well as provide links.

Google docs destroys formatting.

SRS

Subject: RE: Tech: Unable to open docx
From: Folknacious
Date: 25 Jun 10 - 12:29 PM

The suggestion to get the original sender to re-save is best. Although I have the most recent Office Mac 2008 (and OS 10.6.4) I have made the older Word 97-2004.doc version as my default for saving, since lots of people haven't felt the need to give more money to Microshite to upgrade. I've not found anything I've needed to do in the new version that I couldn't do in the old, so far. Same for Excel.

Tom Bliss said Erm I'm not sure about this, but someone told me you just delete the x (i.e make it .doc) and it opens in word for mac. I _think_ I tried it and it worked.

Yes, I think I tried it before I was gullible enough to upgrade, and I seem to remember it worked too!

Subject: RE: Tech: Unable to open docx
From: Tootler
Date: 25 Jun 10 - 01:43 PM

[Open Office] It's a bloated pile of dogshit.

No it isn't. I've been using Open Office both on Windows and latterly on Linux for more than five years now with no problems. It has not crashed nor has it caused the system to crash. The problem could well lie with your setup rather than Open Office.

Subject: RE: Tech: Unable to open docx
From: buddhuu
Date: 25 Jun 10 - 02:49 PM

Google Docs and Zoho.com both handle docx files without any need to install plugins or additional software.

Really, it couldn't be simpler. If you have a Google account then upload your docx file to Google docs and open it there. If you don't have a Google account, then it takes 2 minutes to set one up.

Subject: RE: Tech: Unable to open docx
From: JohnInKansas
Date: 25 Jun 10 - 03:28 PM

I've not found anything I've needed to do in the new version that I couldn't do in the old, so far. Same for Excel.

Microsoft OS updates crippled my older version of Office (2003 Business), and the only replacement available was Office 2007.

I have found lots of things that I could do in older versions that are (apparently) impossible to do in the new version. A few previously simple functions (done with three or fewer steps) require 15 or more steps to do "almost-but-not-quite completely" in the new.

Junk software for idiots, and apparently designed by idiots who didn't know much about the best features of the older versions.

Unfortunately, the alternatives like Open Office never had all of the best features of the old versions, so far as I could tell. Some of these functions may have been a bit obscure to the casual user, but our business relied on them.

John

Subject: RE: Tech: Unable to open docx
From: Tattie Bogle
Date: 25 Jun 10 - 05:37 PM

AS I said before, downloading the converter means that not just THIS docx that you're trying to open, but any future ones that folk send you will be converted when you try to open them (as well as any new type Excel, etc), and therefore open successfully. There's usually a warning about the formatting maybe not being available in the document, but I haven't so far found this to be a problem. I receive increasing numbers of these newer format files from people every week now, and it would be a right pain for us both to have keep emailing them back to ask them to re-send the docs in older format.
You DON'T have to change your own Office suite or use Open Office as well: I still work with MS Office 2003 on my Dell and 2004 on my Mac, but I can now open all the files that come from folk with the newer versions: and it costs nothing.