On this page:
- About Office 2007 for Windows
- Known issues
- If you use Office 2003/2004 and collaborate with people who use Office 2007
- If you use Office 2007 and collaborate with people using earlier versions of Office
- Boston College support and recommendations
- Related links
About Office 2007 for Windows
Microsoft Office 2007 for Windows was commercially released in January 2007. This most recent version of the Office suite of applications incorporates a dramatic makeover of the look, feel, and file formats for Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and companion software.
- These changes can affect all Office users, whether or not they upgrade, due to compatibility issues.
Microsoft has released the Office 2007 suite of software in seven different versions for Windows computers. Microsoft also released Office 2008 for Apple Macintosh computers.
Known Issues
New User Interface is dramatically different
The user interface changes to Office 2007 are so dramatic that it will require you to change old habits and dedicate some time to learning the new interface. Paradoxically, because the new interface is focused on making Office features more accessible to the average user, this relearning will disproportionately affect the more advanced Office users.
Compatibility Mode
In Office 2007, you can open files created in previous versions of Office, from Office 95 to Office 2003. When you open a document in Office 2007 that was created in earlier versions of Office, Compatibility Mode is turned on. Learn more about compatibility mode and how it affects the file.
New file format and extensions create compatibility issues with earlier versions of Office
Office 2007 uses a new file format. By default, the 2007 versions of Word, Excel, and PowerPoint will save in a new XML file format that can NOT be read by other versions of Office. For example, Word documents will have the file extension .docx instead of .doc. This can make collaboration difficult. You can recognize a file from someone using Office 2007 by its different file extension (.docx, .xlsx, .pptx). Files also have different icons:
Learn more about these new file formats from Microsoft.
Oracle (CampusTime) Connector and Outlook 2007
Users of the Oracle Connector for Outlook (OCFO) must be using or must upgrade to the latest version of OCFO (10.1.3.0.10) before upgrading to Office 2007. Learn how to upgrade OCFO.
If you use Office 2003/2004 and collaborate with people who use Office 2007:
Either Microsoft Office 2003 (Windows) or Office 2004 (Macintosh) is installed on faculty/staff computers.
To open Office 2007 files, you have a couple of options:
- Ask the person who sent you the file to Save As in an older file format that can be read by your version of Office.
- Windows users can download and install the free Microsoft Office Compatibility Pack. This Compatibility Pack will allow you to read the new file formats in Office XP or Office 2003. It will also allow you to open, edit, and save files using the file formats new to Word, Excel, and PowerPoint 2007.
Important: Make sure you follow the instructions carefully and install Microsoft Updates before installing the Compatibility Pack.
Macintosh users can download and install the free Microsoft Office Open XML File Format Converter for Mac 1.1.3 which was released by Microsoft on November 10, 2009. Once installed, you are able to convert Word documents, Excel workbooks, and PowerPoint documents to a format that is compatible with Microsoft Office 2004. The File Format Converter will allow you convert a single file or a large number of files at one time.
- Windows users can install the upgrade: www.bc.edu/upgradeoffice
Note: Faculty & staff who use Microsoft Office at work are entitled to install it at home for free.
If you use Office 2007 and collaborate with people using earlier versions of Office
Due to Office 2007's new XML-based file formats (.docx, .xlsx, .pptx), previous versions of Microsoft Office applications cannot read documents saved using the Office 2007 default settings without special conversion software. The conversion software available for Macintosh users is currently in Beta release and will not convert Excel files. Note that most of the BC campus uses an older version of Office.
Use Save As
Important recommendation: If you use Office 2007, please make sure to use the Save as feature to save your documents in a file format that previous versions of Office and Mac users can read (.doc, .xls, .ppt). For example, in Word, use Save as and select Word 2003.
Compatibility Mode
When you open a Word 2003 document in Word 2007, Compatibility Mode is automatically turned on. In Compatibility Mode, you can open, edit, and save Word 2003 documents but you won't be able to use any of the new Word 2007 features.
Boston College support and recommendations
Supported: Yes | Recommended: Yes
Support at BC = Yes
Information Technology Services (ITS) fully supports use of Office 2007.
BC recommendations = Upgrade Now
At this time, ITS strongly recommends that BC community members upgrade now.
Faculty & Staff: Learn how and why to upgrade to Office 2007: www.bc.edu/upgradeoffice
Note: Faculty & staff who use Microsoft Office at work are entitled to install it at home for free.
Related links
Note: Known issues listed on this page were adapted from this MIT IS&T article.