AboutPamela Mullenix-Croft Expertise I have been a member of the AllExperts team since October 2008. As a graphic layout artist I can address Word layout issues which may arise. I work with graphic challenges, and I work with both the Mac and PC platforms. I own my own contract training business. I train for both government and private entities.
Experience I have taught Microsoft Word since 1991
Education/Credentials Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS), Microsoft Certified Application Specialist (MCAS), IC3 Instructor, Certifort SME (IC3), A Plus Computer Repair Technician, State of California Credentialed Teacher, Certified Graphic Layout Artist
Question when i download a word document, the computer gives me an
option to select the encoding that makes the document
readable. i dont know what to do, no matter what i do it looks
like gibberish
Answer Hello Rex,
This is a large question, in that the answer could be any number of things. I will give you the answer to the most common problems, and then if they do not work, I would suggest that you write back to the Experts board, and perhaps another person might provide a suggestion.
The file could be a newer version of Word. The newest version, Word 2007, saves a file with what is called a .docx extension. It cannot be read by Word 2003 or before. The person sending the file can send the file as a previous version though, so if you can make that happen, that could be a real solution.
I have a link below, from Microsoft’s Office site, which provides you with a free convertor for 2007 files, so that you can open them in previous versions of Word, in the event that you cannot request that the files be sent in previous versions of Word:
Another problem is that someone sends a Word file through Outlook, and Outlook sends it through the system as a .dat file, even though the Sender states that they are sending a Word file. When you double-click on the attachment, you get the Word info window that you describe, asking the format of the attachment. Unfortunately, it is not really a Word file, so any selections you make will not help if you do not have Outlook.
Here is a link which provides a suggestion for decoding the .dat file:
http://facstaff.gpc.edu/~jbenson/resource/winmail.htm
I would need the exact remark given when attempting to open the file, but without that information, I am guessing that this may help, as it is a rather common problem.
Write back though, to our board, if it does not work, and I am pretty sure one of the folks can help.
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