I’m selling forms on a website. I will show the buyer a pdf, a word docx, and the html version of each. Half of each. So the docx version is so they can picture how easy it will be to edit the forms for their needs. The html version is for google and good measure. So I have two options to show the word docx.
Option 1. Simply link to the file and let the browser download it or do what it will (ipad shows it actually). Almost all these buyers will likely have word on their computer. Plus side being the buyer has the tangible version and it will be easier for them to picture the package they are purchasing. Downside being I loose end control as all browsers handle it different.
Option 2. Upload each word docx to Word Online and link to that file. Plus side the end user doesn’t have to have word to view it (but that’s what the pdf and html version is good for) so it’s more assessable. Downside is now the buyer still has to visualize what the packact will contain.
I suggest for compability with more systems that you save the document as MsWord 97-2003 (.doc) instead of the latest docx format. The docx format is an archive format and is not suitable for other systems than later MsOffice.
MS always sets their latest file format as the default and knows it will be inaccessible for older systems, that’s the purpose of the new formats launched with every new Office version.
I think Option 1. is the most useful. Most customers regardless of system will get it opened in their word processor. If you serve it as the suggested .doc format that is.
Good info thanks Erik. Ouch though that would be a lot of work - lots of docx. In an efffort to save me from lots of googling do you know what is the default file save/name for all the msword versions? So there is office 2003 used .doc. 2007 used docx. But what about offfice 2010 and beyond? If microsoft is sticking with this new file type I don’t mind keeping my files as is. But if they change it with every new Office version then yeah I guess I will have to convert them all to .doc.
I probably exaggerated the compatibility issues for the .docx format a little regarding todays wordprocessors. Though there are subtle layout differences, Libre Office is ok with .docx but Open Office and Star Office still have issues saving MS “Office Open XML”. Main problem otherwise I think is the Ms default layout and font settings.
One advantage with the .docx besides the file size is that it can’t contain macros, only the .docm format can if I’m correct. The .doc format is not developed any more but is still supported, also in the near future Ms office suits. Latest Ms Word supported file formats.
Later Ms Office suits has improved the format some since 2007 when MS introduced it. If your customers use MsOffice earlier than 2007 they have probably installed Ms compatibility pack for pre .docx versions.
All things considered I would still use the old .doc format because of its wide spread use outside MS, but to be future safe maybe the .docx format is the right choice nowadays. That would give you two word formats to be safe, perhaps you could have a Penguin icon for the doc version.
Mind not to use the default font setting in Ms Office! Use Arial or any other common font instead of the latest Ms Office fonts, many compatibility issues is font related iirc.