'Unknown file type' error given for Word attachments in email

[shazzzzee]

I am sending a Word document to someone -- I've done it millions of times in
the past. I attach a Word 2007 document to the email, but the recipient
receives an error when she tries to open it: "Unknown File type'.

The attachment was created first as a Microsoft Office Word document (.doc)
using Word 2007. Then i decided to save it as a 97 - 2003 compatible
document (.docx). She hasn't been able to open either.

I installed MicroSoft office last summer/fall. I haven't had any problems
up to this point. I've checked the properities and Security information --
nothing is set which would block one's access, as far as i can tell.

Has anyone else had this problem? How do I resolve it?

 

[Gordon Bentley-Mix]

Please confirm a few details:

When the document was created initially in Word 2007 it was saved in .docx
format, not .doc as you stated, correct?

And when you saved it in 97-2003 compatible format. it was saved in .doc
format, not .docx as you stated, correct?

Please describe the process you used to save it in 97-2003 compatible format.

Please confirm that the recipient does have Word 97 or later installed on
her computer.

I know the answers to all of these things should be obvious, but sometimes
it's a little thing...
--
Cheers!

Gordon Bentley-Mix
Word MVP

Uninvited email contact will be marked as SPAM and ignored. Please post all
follow-ups to the newsgroup.

 

[shazzzzee]

The answer to the first two questions is 'Yes'. I saved it originally as a
Word 2007 .docx document. Within the hour, i decided to save it in the
earlier version as well, to ensure that I covered all bases.

To save it in Word 97 - 2003, I clicked the Office button in the upper
left-hand corner, went down to Save As, then over to Word 97 - 2003 document.
When the dialog box came up, i ensured that the 'Save as Type' field
indicated Word 97 - 2003 document. And that was it.

I'm shooting the other person an email tonight to confirm her Word version.

Thanks so much for your help -- it has driven me slightly batty today!!

 

[Gordon Bentley-Mix]

One last question (that I probably should have asked before): Have you tried
sending this document to someone else? And if so, can they open it?
--
Cheers!

Gordon Bentley-Mix
Word MVP

Uninvited email contact will be marked as SPAM and ignored. Please post all
follow-ups to the newsgroup.

 

[shazzzzee]

Yes, I did and they couldn't. But we also discovered another weird piece of
the puzzle.

Since I regularly download the Microsoft fixes when prompted, this other
friend wondered if the problem is related to a recent fix. So she
instructed me to copy the contents of my Word document into an old document
that's AT LEAST a few weeks old, since it had been that long since I last
successfully sent an attachment. I followed her directions, and she was
able to open it!

No formatting changes, no deletions... so maybe it's one of the infamous
bugs-within-a-fix that Microsoft is known for?? The question is now, how do
I find the change and make it stop on newer documents?

Are you looking as confused as we are, now?

 

[Gordon Bentley-Mix]

The results of my own testing are inconclusive. I followed the process you
described and cannot replicate the behaviour. I, too, am running the latest
version of Office 2007 with all updates, and yet I can open the resultant
document with Word 2003 without any problems.

Perhaps, if the document isn't sensitive, you could send it to me at the
email address listed in my profile, and I could try opening it. Perhaps you
could send me the one that opened successfully as well.
--
Cheers!

Gordon Bentley-Mix
Word MVP

Uninvited email contact will be marked as SPAM and ignored. Please post all
follow-ups to the newsgroup.