I recieve Vista files in my email and I cannot read them
 

When I open a Vista attachment .docx its a zipped file of bits and I cannot read the document. What do I do to read it?
Thanks for any help DPS

Hi -

.docx is a Microsoft Office 2007 (MS Word 2007) file.

You can't open it on *any* PC (Windows, Mac or Linux) unless you have the MS Word 2007 installed. Even MS Office 2003 won't work - the new Office 2007 file format is deliberately incompatible.

There are several options; I would recommend Open Office 3.0:

http://www.openoffice.org/

If you installed Linux from a CD/DVD, the odds are very good that Open Office is either already installed, or easily installed directly from your DVD!

'Hope that helps .. PSM

This is not entirely accurate. You can download the Microsoft Office Compatibility Pack for Word, Excel, and PowerPoint 2007 File Formats which will allow you to open .docx files in Word 2003.

Yes, David1357 - I've had the Compatibility Pack loaded on all my Windows PCs for many years now ... which has saved me from having to install that Office 2007 crap anywhere but a few select PCs (for example, my son's laptop, where he needs Office 2007 for school).

But the Compatibility Pack won't help at all for Linux. Hence the suggestion about OpenOffice 3.x (which understands Office 2007, Office 2003 and lots of other formats, and natively *writes* an *open - not *closed* - file format, Open Document):

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_Document_Architecture

Another good alternative, btw, is Abiword.

Just FYI .. PSM

I use OpenOffice 3.1 to open those MS Office pos format .docx files

but the MS windows "liberation" fonts should be installed and any other MS font too.

Hi Dps

Ask whomever sent you the file to resave them in the office 2003 format instead of
office 2007. All they have to do is "save as" instead of "save".

They can also set their default save file type as "doc" instead of "docx",
if they send a lot of files to you.

Vanessa

Hi Dps

Ask whomever sent you the file to resave them in the office 2003 format instead of
office 2007. All they have to do is "save as" instead of "save".

They can also set their default save file type as "doc" instead of "docx",
if they send a lot of files to you.

Vanessa