Modern Excel can't open Excel version 1 files

[BDMSB]

Version: 2008
Operating System: Mac OS X 10.5 (Leopard)
Processor: Intel

I have accounting records that were created with Excel version 1 on the Macintosh in 1988. Modern versions of Excel can't open these files. It kind of argues against keeping financial records in Excel if they become inaccessible after a number of years. Is there no converter to allow access to this outdated format?

 

[CyberTaz]

This is the only thing I know of that would have a chance:

http://www.dataviz.com/products/maclinkplus/mlp_xlators.html

However, even it stipulates only as far back as Excel 2.0 so you might want
to contact them first with as much specific info as you can supply.

HTH |:>)
Bob Jones
[MVP] Office:Mac

 

[BDMSB]

Thanks for the reply. But it's version 1.0 and 1.5 that I need. It just seems like Microsoft ought to have such a utility to support those businesses that adopted and supported Excel in the beginning.

 

[CyberTaz]

Well, in all fairness it did - for about 5 successive versions
[approximately 10 years] beyond the ones you cite. Backward compatibility
has always been high on the MS list of priorities & one of the industry-wide
expectations is that users will continue to upgrade their software as
technology advances. By doing so existing files are converted & saved in the
later format - at some point the newest release will open & read but not
write to the oldest preceding formats.

However, that continuum can only be extended for so long. Considering the
dramatic changes that have taken place with the hardware & the operating
system as well as the software there may very well be technical reasons why
that file type can't be dealt with by current systems - after all, the link
I gave you is for a product from a company whose primary business is file
conversion. That's why I suggested you contact DataViz directly.

Good Luck |:>)
Bob Jones
[MVP] Office:Mac

 

[Jim Gordon MVP]

Version: 2008
Operating System: Mac OS X 10.5 (Leopard)
Processor: Intel

I have accounting records that were created with Excel version 1 on the Macintosh in 1988. Modern versions of Excel can't open these files. It kind of argues against keeping financial records in Excel if they become inaccessible after a number of years. Is there no converter to allow access to this outdated format?

Hi,

I have no idea whether this will work or not, but I'd give it a try:

Use Word > File > Open and change Enable to Recover Text From Any File.
Maybe you can get your data that way.

-Jim

 

[BDMSB]

Well, in all fairness it did - for about 5 successive versions

[approximately 10 years] beyond the ones you cite.

I would not expect Microsoft to keep compatibility for version 1.0 in Excel 2008. But it does not seem unreasonable for them to keep a utility available that would convert the earliest files to a modern format. I expect I am not the only person who has not religiously updated archived files by cycling them through newer versions of the program every decade. It's a loss that is not discovered until you have a need for the archive.

 

[BDMSB]

Use Word > File > Open and change Enable to Recover Text From Any File.

Maybe you can get your data that way.

It's a good thought, but I already looked for text in the files and the data is stored in binary formats.

 

[Bob Greenblatt]

It's a good thought, but I already looked for text in the files and the data
is stored in binary formats.

Google DataViz, they may have a converter for Excel 1.

 

[BDMSB]

Google DataViz, they may have a converter for Excel 1.

Thanks for the reply. It's a good thought, but DataViz only goes back to Excel version 2 (modern Excel will open version 2 also). I was hoping Microsoft had a utility to convert their original Excel files to a modern format.

 

[Jim Gordon MVP]

Thanks for the reply. It's a good thought, but DataViz only goes back to Excel version 2 (modern Excel will open version 2 also). I was hoping Microsoft had a utility to convert their original Excel files to a modern format.

I wonder if old versions of Appleworks or other programs that can open
Excel files might work.....

-Jim

 

[BDMSB]

I wonder if old versions of Appleworks or other programs that can open

Excel files might work.....

Nope! At least I tried Appleworks on a Classic system.

 

[JE McGimpsey]

Version: 2008
Operating System: Mac OS X 10.5 (Leopard)
Processor: Intel

I have accounting records that were created with Excel version 1 on the
Macintosh in 1988. Modern versions of Excel can't open these files. It kind
of argues against keeping financial records in Excel if they become
inaccessible after a number of years. Is there no converter to allow access
to this outdated format?

Well, that "number of years" *is* about 20!

XL1 formats haven't been supported in either Mac or WinXL for several
versions now - at least the last 8 years, and IIRC, it may have been
dropped in 1998 (XL98). So these files obviously haven't been accessed
for a long while...

I don't think XL1 was ever supported on Windows, since the first WinXL
version was XL2.0 - but it may well have had a compatibility mode, I've
forgotten.

AFAIK, the only converter is your copy of XL5 running on a pre-OSX Mac.

That said, you're absolutely right - archiving data in ANY proprietary
file format is foolish!

And if one *is* so foolish, one is more so for upgrading to a version
that can't read the format without converting it first. If you're
talking about records generated by a business, that should have been
looked at in the IT data plan.

And one could of course argue that keeping accounting records in XL at
ALL is foolish. XL is not a particularly good or reliable accounting
program, though for light duty where data integrity isn't a necessity it
can be convenient.

(FWIW, lest I appear too snarky, I've been exactly that foolish in all
those variations at various times, and regretted it.)

 

[JE McGimpsey]

This is the only thing I know of that would have a chance:

http://www.dataviz.com/products/maclinkplus/mlp_xlators.html

However, even it stipulates only as far back as Excel 2.0 so you might want
to contact them first with as much specific info as you can supply.

It doesn't. XL1 is dead, dead, dead...