WD97: How to Open Documents into an Earlier Version of Word

This article describes how to open a Word 97 document in an earlier version of Word for Windows or in an earlier version of Word for the Macintosh.

NOTE: Word 97 for Windows documents open directly in Microsoft Word 98 Macintosh Edition.

Windows

The best way to open a Word 97 document in an earlier version of Word for Windows is to use the Word 97-2000 Import Converter.

NOTE: Word 97 does not have an import converter for Word 2.0 for Windows and earlier.

For additional information, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

Macintosh

The best way to open a Word 97 for Windows document in an earlier version of Word for the Macintosh is to use the Word 97-98-2000 Import Converter.

For additional information, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

METHODS FOR CONVERSION

Method 1: Save the Document as Word 6.0/95

NOTE: If you want to open your Word 97 document in Word 2.x for Windows, use either Method 2 or Method 3.

In Word 97, follow these steps to save the document using the Microsoft Word 6.0/95 converter:

1. Open the document in Word 97.
2. On the File menu, click Save As.
3. In the Save As Type list, select Word 6.0/95 (*.doc).

For additional information, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

Method 2: Save the Document as Rich Text Format (*.rtf)

In Word 97, follow these steps to save the document using the Rich Text Format converter:

1. Open the document in Word 97.
2. On the File menu, click Save As.
3. In the Save As Type list, select Rich Text Format (*.rtf).

Method 3: Save the Document as Word 2.0 for Windows

In Word 97, use the following steps to save the document using the Word 2.x for Windows converter:

1. Open the document in Word 97.
2. On the File menu, click Save As.
3. In the Save As Type list, click Word 2.x for Windows.