Re: No Word 2007 Viewer?

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"Bob Buckland ?:-)" <75214.226(At Beautiful Downtown)compuserve.com> wrote
in message news:%23p7gsPq9IHA.4820@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Hi Gary,

The Word 2007 viewer is basically the Word 2003 viewer with the
Compatability Pack included in the download. You can view .docX and
.docM files with it.

No, you can't. You can view only those docs after they've been converted,
but not in their original formatting. That's my point. For every version of
Word before this, there was a Word Viewer that rendered it properly.

Using either approach (upgrading/installing the new viewer pack) or
installing the Office 2007 compatibility pack with your Word
2003 viewer should generally allow you to open Word 2007 documents for
viewing, not editing.

Not for viewing as intended by the author. What you get is a Word 2003 DOC
file that you can read, not edit.

The Office 2007 compatibility pack also adds to versions of Word 2000,
2002/XP and 2003 the ability to both open and save in the
.DocX/.DocM formats. It does not upgrade those older versions to be able
to use all of the new features of Word 2007, and some
content that is 'active' (editable) in Word 2007 will be static (picture
of) in earlier versions and the viewer. If you run Word
2007 in compatibility mode you also shut off several of the new Word 2007
only features.

As is the case with the Adobe Reader, the viewers are free, and it's the
first time in over a decade that Microsoft has chosen to
change the document file format. The XML based docucments can be edited
and manipulated (and even viewed) without having any
Microsoft Office products on your computer if you're willing to locate
other apps or create your own :)

When Office 97 came out with the then 'new format' the same choices (get a
viewer, add a conversion pack or 'save as' in the old
format were basically the ones presented).

Of course folks with Access 2007 files don't have any worries about folks
with older versions of Access being able to 'just open'
those files too? <g>

As I've pointed out, you totally misss the poiint. Yes, there was a Word 97
Viewer that showed you exactly what the document would look like in Word 97.
There is NOT a Viewer for Word 2007 DOCX/DOCM formats that show the content
as it was intended to be seen by the author. There is only the option to
convert it to Word 2003 and then view that Word 2003 document.

--
Gary S. Terhune
MS-MVP Shell/User
http://grystmill.com


=============
<<"Gary S. Terhune" <none> wrote in message
news:%23lQwQrm9IHA.1428@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
<rant>

Is it Microsoft's position that only those who actually possess Word 20007
get to see DOCX files in their original format? That all anyone else can
do
is convert to an earlier format, thereby losing possibly important
components, layout, etc.?

Microsoft (if you're reading this) or Office MVPs, if you care to carry
the
message: When I go to Downloads and ask for the Word Viewer 2007 and it
gives me "Word Viewer" and says that it replaces Word Viewer 2003, is it
unreasonable for me to assume that this new Word Viewer will allow me to
open and view Word 2007 documents? After all, there's one for PowerPoint
2007, and one for Visio 2007, and though I'm not sure about the Excel
viewer, it says it lets you view Excel 2007 documents (though maybe this
one
is like the Word one and only works by using the Conversion pack to
convert
it to some earlier format?)

Word 2007 users just don't rate? My Word 2007 was really only worth
upgrading to if I'm *only* collaborating with other Word 2007 users? For
anyone else, I have to save in an earlier format, or depend on the other
user to install "Conversion Kits" and obsolete Word 2003 viewer? Which
incredible mess I can simply bypass by creating the DOC file in Word 2003?
Where's the value in upgrading?

It's a downright crappy way to treat Word 2007 users.

</rant>

Thank you for listening. Did I get any facts wrong? Should I simply
uninstall my Office 2007 and go back to Office 2003? It was certainly
easier
to work with. Should I, in the future, strongly recommend against
upgrading
to Office 2007 unless my client is going to upgrade his whole office, his
whole family and all of his friends, not to mention others he might like
to
impress with features that only Office 2007 users can view properly?

Or, is there really any difference between the new format and the old? Is
anything really lost when you convert back to Word 2003 format?

--
Gary S. Terhune >>
--

Bob Buckland ?:-)
MS Office System Products MVP

*Courtesy is not expensive and can pay big dividends*




.

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