# Opening .pub files **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 10, 2000, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/opening-pub-files/40639 "2000-11-10T14:10:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Drew\_Blade](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/958977/32.png) [@Drew\_Blade](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drew_Blade)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2000, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/opening-pub-files/40639/1 "2000-11-10T14:10:36Z")
I work for a small company that can’t afford to buy every software package that goes on the market. We don’t have any version of Microsoft Publisher. Does anyone have any advice for opening .pub files? All we have to be able to do is read them. Thanks . . . ---
**Author:** ![A\_V\_Club](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f475e1/32.png) [@A\_V\_Club](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/A_V_Club)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2000, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/opening-pub-files/40639/2 "2000-11-10T17:12:04Z")
If you just need to be able to read the text you can try using Microsoft Word and where you specify ‘Files of type:’ take the ‘Recover text from any file option.’ You’ll see the text from the Publisher document buried in with a lot of other text describing formatting and such. Be sure to reset ‘Files of type:’ back to your normal setting after you’re done. ---
**Author:** ![Drew\_Blade](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/958977/32.png) [@Drew\_Blade](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drew_Blade)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2000, 5:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/opening-pub-files/40639/3 "2000-11-10T17:55:13Z")
Thanks, A/V Club. I will see how that works for us, ---
**Author:** ![casdave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c6cbf5/32.png) [@casdave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/casdave)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2000, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/opening-pub-files/40639/4 "2000-11-10T22:33:48Z")
I assume that the reason you have qyuite a few viewings of this thread is due to some of us hoping that beer was involved. Terrible dissapointement. ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2000, 11:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/opening-pub-files/40639/5 "2000-11-10T23:59:54Z")
well you could email it to one of us & ask us to open it for you & convert it to something else like PDF? ---
**Author:** ![Drew\_Blade](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/958977/32.png) [@Drew\_Blade](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drew_Blade)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2000, 2:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/opening-pub-files/40639/6 "2000-11-11T02:12:31Z")
Not likely–it’s my bosses email & he wouldn’t like that–besides, it will be an ongoing problem as he gets more & more of it . . . but thanks for the idea. ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2000, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/opening-pub-files/40639/7 "2000-11-11T16:36:55Z")
Try [ebay.com](http://ebay.com) Im sure you can get the software there pretty cheap. ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2000, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/opening-pub-files/40639/8 "2000-11-12T00:00:54Z")
So Far So Good, see if there is a demo of Publisher on the net you coulduse that to open files. Demos usually don’t save though.