Apache OpenOffice Community Forum

Edit: Split from [Solved] Cannot open file: not a winword 97 file since that is solved so RuthC needs her own topic

Cannot open file Apache OpenOffice 4.1.10 Windows 10. Type: Microsoft Word 97-2003 Document. When try to open document get a: Read Error. This is not a WinWord97 File.

...And what we can help you without the specific file?

I can give to you two short answers only:

- Try the LibreOffice
- Upload the file here

This is an Apache OpenOffice 4.1.10 document. "Read error" appears, cannot open file: not a winword 97 file.

I cannot open this document "Prayer Daily Oct 2021" because when last closed a shadow document appeared beginning with the symbols as on the keys in the uppermost left hand corner of the keyboard that look like a "slanted dash and wavey line.Prayer Daily Oct 2021". These two did not marry up when document was closed after saving.

How do I get these two to marry up so the document will open?

You say this is an OpenOffice 4.1.10 document - I accept that you used OpenOffice to generate it. What is the file extension (the three letters after the file name)? How was this extension chosen?

Edit: If you upload the document to the Forum, someone will try to open it.

Prayer Daily Oct 2021 is followed by "Microsoftword 97-2003 Document 56 KB
"slanted hyphen wavey line.Prayer Daily Oct 2021" is followed by DOC#File 1 KB

RuthC wrote: "slanted hyphen wavey line.Prayer Daily Oct 2021" is followed by DOC#File 1 KB

That is the lock file generated when OpenOffice has control of a file, to prevent editing by a second instance of OpenOffice; that small file (1 Kb according to your info) will contain nothing useful. If you upload the other file, the 56KB file, I'll take a look at it and see if I can open or recover it.

How do I "upload". Do I just grab and drop in this message box?

The Upload tab is below the Submit button on FullEditor or PostReply screens, not on the QuickReply screen.

Please open. "Lock" did not marry up with this document. thank you

Internal evidence tells that the file is Saved in Word 6 format, which is many years out of date.

Best to work in ODF format (.odt - OO's native format) and Save As Word 97/2000/XP (if needed) _only_ when editing is complete.

Try the attached

thank you RoryOF for recovering this document. In future OO use will always use (.0dt -- OO's native format)!!!!!. Let is be known to all users!!!!

Created this document with .doc so others could easily open it. Worked on it for weeks. The last time I added to it (tonight), saved it and tried to reopen it, got an error that said Read Error "This is not a WinWord97 file".

I would like to recover this document since it took quite a while to create. Can you recover it?
Diversity Programming

I can not open your file with my LibreOffice nor a portable Apache OpenOffice.

The available content is mined by a pure text editor of the Double Commander:

The internal format of the file is strange: text is stored in 16 bit format, and there is evidence of it having been converted to .doc format at some earlier(?) stage. As far as I can ascertain Zizi64's file contains the text.

No matter what final format one requires, it is _always_ best practice to work and Save in a program's native format, in this case .odt, exporting only in another format after all changes have been made to the original file in native format.

Can anybody please read this file? It was too large to upload here, so here is the link to the file on my site:
[[[ I had the URL here, but removed it ]]]
The DOC file is in zipped format.
If anyone can read the file and convert it to ODT, that would be GREATLY appreciated. Thanks.

NEVER MIND. I SOLVED MY PROBLEM. WHEW.
How did I solve it? I uploaded the DOC file to Google Docs. The upload went just fine. I was nervous when it paused, but then it continued. Looking at the file, there was some garbage from something I had pasted, but 99% looked OK. Then I download the file in ODT format and this was OK. If I have a problem in the future, this is what I will do. I will also try to use the ODT format whenever possible, as others have suggested.

anschwartz, my LibreOffice can open your sample file.

If you must work with .doc filesthen better to change to the LibreOffice, because it has a littlebit higher compatibility with the foreign, obsolete and never standardized file formats.

You can install a Portable version of the LO (near the AOO) for a first try.

There are several good reasons to switch from OpenOffice to LibreOffice, some of which are given here: [Tutorial] Considering a Switch from OpenOffice to LibreOffice? Some Useful Information

AbiWord was able to open this file and Save in .odt format.