# docX to doc coverter--need answer fast!

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/docx-to-doc-coverter-need-answer-fast/543314>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [June 15, 2010, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/docx-to-doc-coverter-need-answer-fast/543314 "2010-06-15T17:02:06Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![chappachula](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d2c977/32.png) [@chappachula](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chappachula)\
**Post date:** [June 15, 2010, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/docx-to-doc-coverter-need-answer-fast/543314/1 "2010-06-15T17:02:06Z")

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Somebody just sent me a document in the new docX format.  
I tried downloading from Cnet. com a couple of programs that promised to covert the file to regular doc format, or rtf.  
One of the programs, after I installed it, wanted …gasp…money!  
And another one contained a file called docx2rtf.exe.manifest . I have no idea what a manifest file is…but it sounds suspicious, so I didnt install it.

Surely there’s a simple way to open the document, and millions of people are laughing at me for not knowing how.  
HELP !  
All I want to do is read a friend’s email attachment, dammit. Why is the world so complicated?

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**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\
**Post date:** [June 15, 2010, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/docx-to-doc-coverter-need-answer-fast/543314/2 "2010-06-15T17:04:56Z")

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The best thing is to download and install the [Microsoft Office Compatibility Pack for Word, Excel, and PowerPoint File Formats](http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=941b3470-3ae9-4aee-8f43-c6bb74cd1466&displaylang=en).

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**Author:** ![dracoi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/90db22/32.png) [@dracoi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dracoi)\
**Post date:** [June 15, 2010, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/docx-to-doc-coverter-need-answer-fast/543314/3 "2010-06-15T17:10:50Z")

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Do you have any version of Office?

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**Author:** ![maladroit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f475e1/32.png) [@maladroit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/maladroit)\
**Post date:** [June 15, 2010, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/docx-to-doc-coverter-need-answer-fast/543314/4 "2010-06-15T17:15:35Z")

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Gmail can read it. I get doc-x on my boss’s computer, that I have to forward to my gmail account to print. There’s also a website, free, [docxconverter.com,](http://docx-converter.com/) that will email you back the converted document, takes a reasonable amount of time (something under an hour iirc).

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**Author:** ![chappachula](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d2c977/32.png) [@chappachula](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chappachula)\
**Post date:** [June 15, 2010, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/docx-to-doc-coverter-need-answer-fast/543314/5 "2010-06-15T17:28:21Z")

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> [@Dewey\_Finn](#):
>
> The best thing is to download and install the [Microsoft Office Compatibility Pack for Word, Excel, and PowerPoint File Formats](http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=941b3470-3ae9-4aee-8f43-c6bb74cd1466&displaylang=en).

Thanks! it worked fine.