Difference between Convert and Save As Docx

[Peter Karlström]

Hi

What happens with a Word document in DOC-file format when you use the
Convert menu option in Word 2007?
Is it something more going on than if I go straight to Save As and change
fileformat to DOCX?

Thanks in advance

 

[Tony Jollans]

If you simply save a doc as a docx, the format will be converted but the new
features will not be enabled and it will continue to open in compatibility
mode. To fully upgrade and allow the saving of new features you must Convert
the document. Note that, while editing, many new features are available but,
if in compatibility mode, they will be downgraded on Save (often without any
warning).

 

[Peter Karlström]

Hi Tony

Thanks for your reply.

When I open a Word 2003 doc-format document and directly save it in docx
format, I get instant access to Themes, Word 2007 equations and so on.

If I open the same document, convert it and save it, and then compare the
resulting XML-files, I can find only minor differences in the files
footnotes.xml, fonttable.xml and footer2.xml. The difference is in
rsidDefault values.

I'm running Office Word 2007 (12.0.6510.5001) SP2 MSO (12.0.6425.1000),
which is SP2 with SP2 hotfix applied.

So question remains: What actually happens with Convert?

Regards

 

[Tony Jollans]

When I open a Word 2003 doc-format document and directly save it in docx

format, I get instant access to Themes, Word 2007 equations and so on.

Do the themes (if you use them), etc. get saved if you do that? Do colours,
say, not get converted to absolute colours when you save as the document (in
whatever format) is still in compatibility mode? I haven't dug into this
lately, so I could be wrong, but that is what I thought was the major
difference.

If I open the same document, convert it and save it, and then compare the
resulting XML-files, I can find only minor differences in the files
footnotes.xml, fonttable.xml and footer2.xml. The difference is in
rsidDefault values.

The initial differences will be minor. Where things start to differ is when
you start to use features like Theme colours or fonts.
The Convert doesn't really do much (visible) itself - it prepares the
document for having new features saved in it, when you use them.

You can ignore rsid values - they (or the equivalent) are in doc format
files as well and the actual values are irrelevant.

 

[Peter Karlström]

Hi Tony

Thanks for giving time on this.
As far as I can see, documents which is only saved as DOCX-format without
"conversion", seems to behave as fully XML-capable documents when I start
adding new features to then.

It would be nice if some Microsoft employee could confirm this.

Regards
--
Peter Karlström
Midrange AB
Sweden

When I open a Word 2003 doc-format document and directly save it in docx
format, I get instant access to Themes, Word 2007 equations and so on.

Do the themes (if you use them), etc. get saved if you do that? Do colours,
say, not get converted to absolute colours when you save as the document (in
whatever format) is still in compatibility mode? I haven't dug into this
lately, so I could be wrong, but that is what I thought was the major
difference.

If I open the same document, convert it and save it, and then compare the
resulting XML-files, I can find only minor differences in the files
footnotes.xml, fonttable.xml and footer2.xml. The difference is in
rsidDefault values.

The initial differences will be minor. Where things start to differ is when
you start to use features like Theme colours or fonts.
The Convert doesn't really do much (visible) itself - it prepares the
document for having new features saved in it, when you use them.

You can ignore rsid values - they (or the equivalent) are in doc format
files as well and the actual values are irrelevant.

 

[Colbert Zhou [MSFT]]

Hello Peter,

For the question is a Product feature one, I recommend Word General
Newsgroup for it instead,
http://www.microsoft.com/office/community/en-us/default.mspx?dg=microsoft.pu
blic.word.docmanagement&lang=en&cr=US

My opinion is,
1.Convert command do a full upgrade to make the document OpenXML format.
2.Save command will save the document in the OpenXml format in
compatibility mode.

Actually, there is a tool that can bulk cnovert doc to docx described in
the Eric's blog and technet document,
http://blogs.msdn.com/ericwhite/archive/2008/09/19/bulk-convert-doc-to-docx.
aspx
http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc179019.aspx

So I believe the Convert and Save commands' difference is just as the
FullUpgradeOnOpen switch for that tool.


Best regards,
Ji Zhou
Microsoft Managed Newsgroup Support Team

 

[Peter Karlström]

Hi Colbert

Thanks for your reply.
Valuable information even though I still don't know what will happen with
documents that haven't been "Fully converted".

Best Regards

 

[Tony Jollans]

Hi Peter,

I don't seem to be explaining myself very well. Perhaps an example will help
...

Take a .doc document and create two copies of it in 2007 - (a) by saving as
docx, and (b) by converting and then saving.

Open the document you have simply saved as docx and go to the Page Layout
tab - you will see the Themes group greyed out - it's not available in
compatibility mode.

Now open the document that you have upgraded and do the same thing - the
Themes group should be available.

Similar behaviour should be observed for all new-in-2007 features.

--
Enjoy,
Tony

www.WordArticles.com

Hi Tony

Thanks for giving time on this.
As far as I can see, documents which is only saved as DOCX-format without
"conversion", seems to behave as fully XML-capable documents when I start
adding new features to then.

It would be nice if some Microsoft employee could confirm this.

Regards