WD97: RTF Format Given to File Saved in Word 6.0/95

This article applies to Microsoft Word 97. It does not apply to Microsoft Word 97 for Windows, Service Release 1 (SR-1). For information about saving in Word 6.0 or 7.0 format from Microsoft Word 97 SR-1, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: When you save a document in the Word 6.0/95 format, you may notice the following behavior:

• When you open the document in Word 6.0, 7.0, or 97 with the Confirm Conversions option selected (on the Tools menu, click Options, and click the Confirm Conversions check box to select it), you are prompted to convert the file from Rich Text Format (RTF).
• When you attempt to save the file, the Save As dialog box lists "Rich Text Format (*.rtf)" as the current format of the document.
• If you save the document from the Save As dialog box, the file name extension of the document is changed to .rtf (rather than .doc).

When you select the Word 6.0/95 Save As option, the document is saved as an RTF file (but Word initially uses the .doc extension with the file). This feature of Microsoft Word 97 for Windows ensures that Word 97 is compatible with earlier versions of Microsoft Word.

When you open the Word 97 document that was saved as Word 6.0/95, Word recognizes it as an RTF document.

If you use the Save As dialog box to save the file, and if you do not change the file type to Word 6.0/95, the file name extension will change to .rtf.

To restore the .doc file name extension, use the following steps:

1. On the File menu, click Save As.
2. In the Save As Type box, select "Word 6.0/95 (*.doc)," and click Save.
   
   You may be prompted with the message "Do you want to replace the existing <filename.doc>?" Click Yes to overwrite the document and return the current document to the .doc extension.
   
   CAUTION: Be sure that clicking Yes is appropriate in your case. If a document exists with the current document's name, that version of the document will be overwritten.