There are several potential considerations, some of which you can't control.
What You Can Do:
On your end, always use the checkbox in the Save As dialog to 'Append file
extension'. Otherwise the recipient's OS may not be able to determine the
appropriate app to use for opening the file. It also leaves the file
vulnerable to having the email software on either end 'make up' a file type
which is incorrect.
Additionally, make sure your email software is set correctly for encoding
attachments. The actual setting will vary depending on the program: Apple
Mail has a menu selection (Edit> Attachments> Always Send Windows-Friendly
Attachments) whereas in Entourage it is a Preference setting (Entourage>
Preferences> Compose. Use the option for 'Windows (MIME/Base64)).
It's also a good idea to Zip the attachment to further protect it.
Of course, you always have the option of saving the file in a different
format (such as .doc, .rtf, or some such) but that may very well cause
changes in the file which you don't want. If the recipient does not need to
edit/revise the file you can send a PDF instead of a Word file.
What's Out of Your Hands:
If recipients still have difficulty opening the Word file it's quite likely
that they are using Office 2003 or prior & their software is not updated to
provide the necessary filters for opening files in the newer OXML format, or
possibly they do not have a program capable of opening Word files. If they
are using Office 2000, 2002 or 2003 they can get the free OXML Converters
from the Microsoft web site.
They may be trying to open the files directly from the mail server rather
than saving them locally and/or they may be attempting to use the
'convenience' of double-clicking rather than using File> Open from the app's
menu. These are user issues about which you probably can do very little.
HTH |:>)
Bob Jones
[MVP] Office:Mac
