[WinPartners] Addendum: Office 2007 default file format changer clarification

[Deb Bowser]

SUMMARY:
On August 14, IS&T announced the availability of a tool to change the
default save as setting for Office 2007 documents, but have recently
discovered that the tool can only be used with the Pro Plus 2007  
version of
Office 2007.  IS&T is currently working with Microsoft to ascertain if a
file format changer for Office Enterprise 2007 will be available.

This tool changes the default save settings in Microsoft Office
Professional Plus 2007 applications (Word, Excel and Powerpoint) to
the previous Office 97-2003 formats (.doc, .xls, .ppt) to ensure
cross-platform compatibility.

The FAQ below answers the most common questions

My Department, Lab or Center uses Office Enterprise 2007.  What
should I do?

Office Enterprise 2007 users can perform a one time manual
configuration of Word, Excel and Powerpoint to automatically save in
the 97-2003 format. To configure, please follow the instructions:

	<http://itinfo.mit.edu/answer.php?id=8301>

What if I'm not upgrading to Office 2007 in the near future?

For those not upgrading to Office 2007 we recommend that Office 2003
users install Microsoft's Compatibility Pack to ensure you are able
to read the new Office formatted documents (XML). Using the
Compatibility Pack with Office 2003, will enable you to open, edit,
and save files using the XML-based file formats new to Word, Excel,
and PowerPoint 2007.

A note about the compatibility pack:
When viewing or editing an Office 2007 document, added features that
require the Office 2007 format are not available.  An example would
be the increase row and column limitations in Excel.

The Compatibility Pack can be downloaded from Microsoft:

	<http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/products/HA101686761033.aspx>


What if I'm a Macintosh user with Office 2004?

Currently files saved in XML formats cannot be opened by Office 2004
for the Macintosh, except in Word and Powerpoint where a beta version
of the file converter is available.  Office 2008 is expected to
include a compatibility pack when it ships at the end of 2007.

For additional information and instructions on how to configure your
version of Office to default to the 97-2003 format, please go to:

	<http://itinfo.mit.edu/article.php?id=8526>

For additional information on Office 2007, please visit the Office
2007 for Windows page:

	<http://itinfo.mit.edu/product.php?vid=730>


Regards,
Deb Bowser
Team Leader - Software Release Team
Client Support Services
Information Services and Technology
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
N42-250K
Cambridge, MA 02139
617-253-3879
bowser at mit.edu