Word 2007 and Word 2003 Compatibility Issues
Congratulations, you have Microsoft Word 2007. Excellent choice. But, you have to share files with less evolved colleagues still using Word 2003 (or, gasp, an even earlier version). The bad news is that while Microsoft has a free download that enables Office 2003 users to open Office 2007 files, you may experience some disruptions. Microsoft’s compatibility checker sometimes refers to these issues with a message that includes the phrase ”you may experience some minor loss of fidelity”. Well, minor is subjective - so here is a listing of issues (from Microsoft TechNet) that you should be aware of.
The next post will describe how to use Compatibility Mode when writing/editing in Word 2007 to proactively avoid these issues.
| Name |
Description |
Compatibility Mode Behavior |
| Math |
Equation building is new to Office Word 2007. |
Equations are represented as non-editable images. These images are refreshed when the document is converted. The Equations UI is disabled in compatibility mode. |
| Themes |
Themes are new to Office Word 2007. |
Themes are permanently converted to styles. The Themes UI is disabled in compatibility mode. |
| Colors (Theme Chunk) |
Themes are new to Office Word 2007. |
Themes are permanently converted to styles. The Themes UI is disabled in compatibility mode. |
| Font (Theme Chunk) |
Themes are new to Office Word 2007. |
Themes are permanently converted to styles. The Themes UI is disabled in compatibility mode. |
| Effects (Theme Chunk) |
Themes are new to Office Word 2007. |
Themes are permanently converted to styles. The Themes UI is disabled in compatibility mode. |
| Content Controls |
Content controls are new to Office Word 2007. |
Content controls are permanently converted to static text. The Content Controls UI is disabled in compatibility mode. |
| Tracked Moves |
Tracked moves are new to Office Word 2007. |
Tracked moves are permanently converted to “Insert” and “Delete.” |
| Major/Minor Fonts |
Major/minor fonts are new to Office Word 2007. |
Major and minor fonts are permanently converted to static formatting. |
| Relative Text Boxes |
The ability to set the position of a text box relative to some part of a document. Relative text boxes are new to Office Word 2007. |
Relative positioning of text boxes is permanently converted to absolute positioning. |
| Margin Tabs |
Margin tabs are new to Office Word 2007. |
Margin tabs are permanently converted to absolutely defined tabs. |
| Bibliography |
New to Office Word 2007. |
Bibiliographies are permanently converted to static text. |
| Citations |
New to Office Word 2007. |
Citations are permanently converted to static text. |
| Placeholder text |
New to Office Word 2007.. |
Placeholder text is permanently converted to static text. |
| Office Art 2007 |
Office Art engine is improved upon in the 2007 Office release. |
All Office Art 2007 objects are converted to Office 97–2003 objects. These objects are refreshed when the document is converted. When a user selects SmartArt in Office Word 2007, the Diagram Gallery from Word 2003 appears. |
| SmartArt Diagram |
Some diagrams are new to the 2007 Office release. |
Diagrams in the 2007 Office release are converted to non-editable images. When the document is converted, these images are refreshed to 2007 Office release again. When a user selects SmartArt in Office Word 2007, the Diagram Gallery from Word 2003 appears. |
| Custom XML Data store |
New to the Open XML Formats, custom-defined XML information can be stored as a separate component within the Open XML Formats, to help organizations include content from their own data sources, using their own languages. |
The XML data store is removed during conversion, and XML data and content within XML bindings are permanently converted to text. |
| Vertical Text Box Alignment |
Vertical text box alignment of center or bottom are new to Office Word 2007. |
Vertical text box alignment of center or bottom is permanently converted to top vertical text box alignment. |
| Office Charts |
Charts can now exist as native objects in Office Word 2007. |
Office charts are converted to Excel OLE objects. These objects are refreshed when the document is converted back to 2007 full functionality mode. When a user selects Charts in Office Word 2007, the Diagram Gallery from Word 2003 appears. |
| ActiveX |
Active X controls can be added to Word documents to deliver enhanced functionality. |
Disabled ActiveX controls are converted to their image representation when saved to a downlevel file type or opened in a downlevel application verison through the converter. |
Katriel
