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HOME TOPICS ABOUT ME Do you need Microsoft Word to view or read Microsoft Word attachments? Not at all. |
technofile Al Fasoldt's reviews and commentaries, continuously available online since 1983 How to view Microsoft Word attachments when you don't have Microsoft Word, on a Windows PC or MacNov. 13, 2002 By Al Fasoldt Copyright © 2002, Al Fasoldt Copyright © 2002, The Post-Standard E-mail attachments don't have to be mystery meat. This week I'll tell you how to make sure you can open, read or view the troublesome attachments that give both Windows and Mac users headaches. I described the main problems of attachments last week. If you missed that article, you'll probably want to read it first. Text documents seem to be the most common attachments, followed by pictures, music and short videos. I'll tell you how to deal with Word attachments this week, with more on the other attachments next week. Texts that cause trouble as e-mail attachments often are Microsoft Word documents sent to people who don't have Microsoft Word. Although this kind of attachment is usually unnecessary -- a text should be sent as the body of the message, not as an attachment -- the problem isn't going to go away soon. Do you need Microsoft Word to view or read Microsoft Word attachments? Not at all. Many word processors for Windows and Macs can open Word documents easily, and you'll also find viewers for Microsoft Word documents. Here is a sampling of programs. I've tried to stick with free ones. Windows: Word viewer, free from Microsoft, from http://office.microsoft.com/downloads/2000/wd97vwr32.aspx. OpenOffice, a free office suite that can open and edit Word documents, from www.openoffice.org. AbiWord, a free word processor that can open and edit Word documents, from www.abisource.com. WordPad, a free word processor that is included with Windows. It handles most older Word documents well enough to read them. If you can't find WordPad under Accessories in the Start Menu, install it. Open the Control Panel, choose Add-Remove Programs, choose Windows components, then select WordPad. Macintosh: DocDrop, free conversion program that turns Word documents into rich-text files. (All modern computers can work with Rich Text files, also called RTF.) From www.marinersoftware.com. AppleWorks 6.22 or later, for both Mac operation systems. It's included free with some Macintosh models, $80 to $100 otherwise. Discount source: www.amazon.com (search for AppleWorks). Microsoft Office X (for modern Macs with OS X) or Office 2001 (for older Macs), costly but essential if you can afford it; I prefer it over the Windows version of Office. (Office X is $500 without a discount, but can be had for much less with an upgrade or educational discount). icWord, a polished Word viewer for both Mac operating systems. $20 from www.icword.com. |