The Compatibility Checker: Finding Elements Not Supported by Word 97-2003
Applies to: Office 2007
Free Word Tips!
Get the WordXpert Newsletter
Introduction to the Compatibility Checker
The Office 2007 applications of Word, PowerPoint and Excel incorporate a total of 54 new features unavailable when working in earlier versions of the Office suite. This means that when a document, spreadsheet or presentation is created with Office 2007, and the destination is a client and/or collaborator who has not yet upgraded to Office 2007, some preparation and planning may be necessary before sending the file along.
Microsoft provides a tool to check the compatibility of features used in the open document, spreadsheet or presentation that may cause differences for uses working with the file in a lesser version. That tool— aptly named the Compatibility Checker —can be found on the Office Button beneath the Prepare menu.
Running the Compatibility Checker
To run the Compatibility Checker in Word, Excel or PowerPoint 2007:
- With the document open, select the Office Button > Prepare > choose the Run Compatibility Checker option.
An informational dialogue appears, providing a list of—and occasionally navigation, location of or occurrences of—features that may impact the fidelity of the document when given to users running lesser versions of Office.
Outcomes of the Compatibility Checker and Example Recommendations
A few example outcomes of the Compatibility Checker are illustrated below, along with explanations and recommendations.
 |
PowerPoint 2007 Example: No compatibility issues were found, indicating this file can safely travel between differing versions of PowerPoint without feature, function or design fidelity impact. |
 |
Word 2007 Example: Use of SmartArt in this document means that the recipient receives the same look and feel, but a different behavior for that image. The use of Charts in this Word document, however, indicates some risk that data extended beyond 65,536 rows may be truncated. Recommendation: Ensure source data for your Chart does not appear beyond the 256 column or 65,536 row limit before saving or sharing this with a lesser version. If the limit is reached, you risk a loss of content upon the file’s return. |
 |
Excel 2007 Example: Formulas used in this spreadsheet are not supported in earlier versions of Excel, thus the Compatibility Checker warns of a Significant loss of functionality. Recommendation: Ensure your collaboration remains in Excel 2007, or provide fixed-format PDF or XPS files for review. |
 |
PowerPoint 2007 Example: Charts, Shapes, Text effects and Tables in this PowerPoint are not supported in earlier versions of PowerPoint, thus the Compatibility Checker warns of loss or degradation when saved in an earlier file format. Recommendation: Ensure your collaboration remains in PowerPoint 2007, or provide fixed-format PDF or XPS files for review. |
A Closer Look at Word 2007 Compatibility
The most frequent compatibility issues that arise when saving a Word 2007 document as a 97-2003 format are:
- Alignment tabs are converted to absolute tabs
- The Building Blocks/Quick Parts distributed with native Word may lose some information
- Citations and Bibliographies become static and are no longer automatically updated
- Content Controls used by native Word’s Building Blocks or some automation vendors become static text
- Embedded objects can no longer be edited
- Equations are converted to images
- Dynamic SmartArt objects are converted to static pictures that cannot be edited
- Text box positioning and its layout may change
- Tracked moves are shown as deletions and insertions
After you run the Compatibility Checker determine whether:
- to make changes in the document for higher compatibility and run the Compatibility Checker again.
- to create a fixed-file format (PDF or XPS) edition of the document for sharing.
- to simply select OK to acknowledge features will be lost or degraded and proceed with the document.
The Help link will take you to the Word Help screen where you are able to search for Help on the various features highlighted. The checkbox located near the bottom of the Compatibility Checker allows you to select whether the Compatibility Checker is run each time a document is saved into Word 97-2003 formats.
A Closer Look at PowerPoint 2007 Compatibility
PowerPoint is the application where new 2007 graphic features are readily adopted by every user, thus running the Compatibility Checker helps make important decisions about working across varying versions of PowerPoint. Degradation of design functionality may be so great that sharing via PDF or XPS will become your default with anyone working in a lesser version of PowerPoint.
A Closer Look at Excel 2007 Compatibility
Running the Compatibility Checker in Excel provides some additional options to correct. Along with the number of occurrences and the help link, you can also choose to Find and navigate to the area of concern, or if the issue is a simple one to resolve, you are able to select Fix.
Additionally, you can select “Copy to New Sheet” to generate a report of the errors and their locations into another worksheet for further review.
Add the Compatibility Checker to the Quick Access Toolbar
Tip: Because the Compatibility Checker can ease and inform document exchange and collaboration workflow, you might consider unleashing it from the Office Button and Prepare menu. Simply add it to your Quick Access Toolbar using the instructions in this tip: Word 2007's Quick Access Toolbar.
