Trouble opening word xp docs in word 2004

N

nickikene

Registered
Hello,

I've just had a new powerbook since last week and I am trying to move over everything from my old windows xp computer....

One problem I've been facing is opening word xp documents. Everytime I try to open any document, I get an error saying:

"Word cannot open this document. The document might be in use or might not be a valid Word document."

I've tried saving as an RTF, using programs such as OnClickConvert (which says it doesn't recognise the file), and checked the permissions on the file.

Could anyone help a mac newbie?

Thank you!
 
Dear Nicki

Welcome to the world of the Mac. Ok, you have a WordXP file from your PC, and you are trying to open the document on my Mac. Unfortunately, you have not said what application you are using to try and open the file, so I will assume that you are using Word for Mac, hopefully the latest version?

There are a few things that spring to mind as you are moving over from the world of Windows. First, and can you make sure the filename of the file is not too long and that the file extension is also there?

Are you shown the Word file icon, or is it just like a blank document or black screen?

Maybe the version of Word on your Mac is a little bit too old, and the Word file itself has a feature that is XP only. Go back to your WordXP and do a save as and save as an older version of Word.

Another tip is to make sure that all your files has the right user permissions. Using the Disk Utility application (Applications / Utilities) repair the permissions of the hard drive.

You can save the Word document as a RTF within Word. Try saving a RTF within WordXP and see if that works.

Hope it helps...
 
Word 2004 *should* have no trouble opening a Word document
from an XP machine. Don't you just hate that word?

The doc files seem to have been jumbled. How exactly are you
sending them from the peecee to the Mac? That'd be my guess
for really the only place to look.
 
Hello again,

Thank you for your helpful comments. Most of the files were transferred by email, so it may be that something is going wrong in the transition. I have tried RTF, and also opening in openoffice but neither seem to work :(

Nickikene
 
Yup, I suspected something like that. The pc-side mailer should encode
via MIME to make the transition, and each doc should be an attachment.
 
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