DOCX is the new default file format being introduced to save Microsoft Office documents instead of the usual DOC file. It is a combination of XML architecture in combination with ZIP compression for file storage-size reduction. DOCX files are open format (meaning that the documentation is published for anyone to use). This format is not the same as the OpenDocument standard, which is also based on the XML-standard and zip compression. The OpenDocument standard format for word processing has an (.ODT file extension).
With Microsoft’s latest move of introducing the .docx file format in its new Office 2007 and later applications, the corporate giant has clearly stated that they want docx files to replace the commonly used doc format. Many users are still working with prior versions of Word and eventually as the DOC file extension phases out, they will face the problem at some point that they can’t load DOCX files in their older versions of Microsoft Office since it is not supported in their older application. Another example which happened to me, was a few weeks ago. I sent a Word DOCX file to my sister by e-mail, and since she had an Old Microsoft Word version, it didn’t support it and she could not open it. She was able to access it the next time she came to my house, however this is quite a common frustrating occurrence especially if you need to share an important document quickly and find out that your version does not support that files’ extension.
There is a solution to this issue for those users who would like to open a docx file on a Microsoft Office package prior to the 2007 release. Let me outline several options available to be able to open and work with docx files without using the latest Microsoft Office application.
