WD2000: WordPerfect File Contains Garbled Text If Opened in Word

When you try to open in Microsoft Word a WordPerfect file that has an extension other than "doc" or "wpd", Word may open the file in text-only format.

NOTE: When the file is opened as text, the document may be displayed incorrectly, and you may see strange or incorrect (garbage) characters.

When the WordPerfect file you are opening has an extension other than .doc or .wpd, Word may not recognize the file as a WordPerfect document and may use the wrong file converter to open the file.

When Word cannot determine which file converter to use, it uses the Text Only file converter.

Use one of the following methods appropriate for your situation:

Method 1: Specify Which File Converter to Use When Opening a File

To specify which file converter to use when Word opens a WordPerfect file, follow these steps:

1. Start Word and open a new, blank document. Do not try to open your WordPerfect file.
2. On the Tools menu, click Options, and then click the General tab.
3. On the General tab, select the Confirm conversion at open check box, and then click OK.
4. On the File menu, click Open.
5. Select the WordPerfect document you want to open, and then click Open.
6. In the Convert File dialog box, select WordPerfect 6.x, and then click OK.

Word now opens your WordPerfect document correctly using the WordPerfect 6.x converter.

Method 2: Set Word to Open a WordPerfect File with a Different Extension

Important This section, method, or task contains steps that tell you how to modify the registry. However, serious problems might occur if you modify the registry incorrectly. Therefore, make sure that you follow these steps carefully. For added protection, back up the registry before you modify it. Then, you can restore the registry if a problem occurs. For more information about how to back up and restore the registry, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
To set Word to open a WordPerfect file with a different extension, follow these steps:

1. Quit Word and all other Windows programs.
2. On the Windows Start menu, click Run.
3. In the Open box, type RegEdit and click OK.
4. In the Registry Editor, open the following Import registry key:
   HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Shared Tools\Text Converters\Import
5. In the left pane, click WordPerfect6x. In the right pane, click Extensions.
6. On the Edit menu, click Modify.
7. In the Value Data box, you may see some extensions similar to the following:
   doc wpd
   Add your specific extension to this list.
   
   For example, if you have saved files in WordPerfect with a "wp7" extension, add the wp7 extension to the Value Data box. The Value Data box should now resemble the following:
   doc wpd wp7
   NOTE: You can add all the different extensions you use for saving your WordPerfect files to this list.
8. Repeat step 7 for each extension you want to add, and then click OK.
9. On the Registry menu, click Exit.

After you restart Word, it will use the WordPerfect 6.x file converter to open your WordPerfect files with the different extensions.

Method 3: Check Font Substitution

If Methods 1 and 2 do not resolve this problem, check for any font substitution in the document. To do this, click Font Substitution on the Compatibility tab (on the Tools menu, click Options). If there are font substitutions in the document, try changing the substituted font to a common TrueType font, such as Arial or Times New Roman.

Microsoft has a Font Repair macro that may automatically correct font-mapping and character-mapping issues in the document. For more information about the Font Repair macro, browse to the following Microsoft Web site:

Starting with WordPerfect version 6.x, the default file extension when saving files from WordPerfect is "wpd." Microsoft Word automatically recognizes and opens files created in WordPerfect 6.x and later with the .wpd file extension.

For additional information, click the article number below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: The third-party products that are discussed in this article are manufactured by companies that are independent of Microsoft. Microsoft makes no warranty, implied or otherwise, regarding the performance or reliability of these products.
For information about how to contact the companies mentioned in this article, visit the following Microsoft Web site: