How does XLS and XLSX files differ?
XLS was the default file format up until 2003. It is a proprietary Microsoft format which can usually only be read by Excel.XLSX\XLSM save the Excel file in XML, which is kind of like HTML for documents. It’s universally readable, including by humans, so preferable if you’re sharing with Google docs or Open Office users. As Serdar points out, you can also rename it to .zip and open it up with a zip program to see how it’s laid out (the same is true for PPT files as well).Since it’s XML and readable by humans, you can modify it directly with a text editor to change values, resave it and open in Excel to see the changes.A final format worth a mention is XLSB, which is kind of a modern day equivalent to XLS. Since it doesn’t have the overhead of converting things into XML, it’s much more efficient in file size and opening time, especially for large files. If you ever find yourself working on a 20mb Excel file, try resaving it in XLSB and check out the speed improvements. (Note: XLSB can also contain macros)So:XLSX is good for sharing, and uses XML.XLSB is good for larger files.XLS is good for backwards compatibility if there are really still people using 2003.
Excel cannot open the file .xlsx because the file or format or file extension is not vaid?
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How can I open an Excel file that Excel "does not recognize this file format"?
It seems like the file format of your Excel file is changed or the problem occurs due to the unsupported file extension of your excel file and this is the reason you are not able to open the Excel file. To fix the issues simply change the file extension.To do so, follow the steps:Go to My Computer > browse Tools > Folder Options > File Types.Make sure that the ‘XLSX’ extension is included there or not.If not then rename this file and change ‘.xlsx’ to ‘.xls’.Hope this works. Good Luck!!!To know more about Excel visit: http://excelfilerecovery.weebly....
How to view attachments using xls?
I forward emails and other attachments to the desktop. These attachments use "xls". Once i get them to the desktop they cant be opened. It says windows needs to know what program created it. I used the web svc to find and and am directed to Microsoft downloads. Didnt work..I might need microsoft excel???
How can I open very old (circa 1991) Mac Word files, on my Mac?
First, try opening it with TextEdit. You will find that in your Applications folder. If that doesn't work, try launching Word and select Open from the File menu. Then select the file you are trying to open. Does the Convert File dialog box come up? If so, scroll down to the bottom and select "Recover Text from any File." The formatting might be off, but that should get rid of the garbage characters.Next thing to try would be to run the file through Zamzar - Free online file conversion. I've used it in the past and it has always worked. Can't remember if I ever ran a Word file that old through it, though.If that still doesn't work, see if you can find someone with a copy of Snow Leopard and MacLink Plus 6. That will definitely open it.
Every time I try to open a documents in word pad it comes out gibberish?
When a program saves information to a file, it writes all the information in a format, using various characters and strings etc; that enables it to understand the contents of the file the next time the program opens the file. So you must open the file using the program that created it or any program that understands that file format. In other words if you save a document using word and open it with notepad you'll see a whole bunch of gibberish because notepad doesn't know how to interpret word 2007 files. If you open that same document using the latest Open Office for example, it will display correctly. If you type the word hello in notepad and save it, the file will be 5 bytes big. If you type the word hello in Microsoft word and save the document the file will be about 24064 bytes big. This difference is created because MS word needs to save information about what the document like what colour each word was typed in, the font, who typed it, security settings etc. When you open the word document using notepad, theres a whole bunch of gibberish because notepad reads each byte of saved information as a character, whereas MS Word would interpret it as formating or text to be displayed. What you need to do is find out what program created the file. Go to Control Panel. Open Folder Options. Click on the VIEW tab. Uncheck "Hide extensions for known file types". Now goto where the document is saved and check the file extension. Search for the file extension online or ask another question about it and see if you can find out what program created it or can read the file. A file extension is the three letters (some times more) at the end of the filename usually after the last dot in the filename (assuming your operating system isn't hiding it). For example: .doc, .xls, .docx, .dat. .xls is a microsoft excel file and can be opened using microsoft excel or any other program that understands how to read a MS excel document, like Open Office. If the file opens and displays correctly on the screen in notepad but when you us the print function and your printer prints it as gibberish; it's more likely that the problem is the printer driver. Check that you selected to print to the correct printer. I hope that points you in the right direction.
How can I open files that say there is no app to open file?
It is called a file association. The convention is that the file suffx (like .doc) is associated with the application which reads the file. Different applications store data in their files in different formats. Like Word files and Excel files look very different, these files are typically binary data which the application reads and converts into something useful on screen. Using the wrong application can often produce what looks like garbage. If the application stores data in the file as simple text, then a number of other applications can read it. Similarly, there are many applications which can read an MP3 file and know how to play the sound in that file. But the MP3 player has no idea how to read the data in a word .doc file.So you need to look at the file associations and find the application used for your file. If your file has not suffix, then things get more difficult that what I could write here.
Why does "this file is not in a recognizable format" error occur in Excel?
You can try First manual method to fix this recognizable format using the following method:Change Excel File Extension:Go to My Computer > browse Tools > Folder Options > File Types.Make sure that the ‘XLSX’ extension is included there or not.If not then rename this file and change ‘.xlsx’ to ‘.xls’.Before using Open & Repair Utility Tool, first, check whether the file corrupted or not for that you can following the below check tips.How to Check Excel File For Corruption In 2013 & 2016 ?Use Open and Repair Inbuilt Utility:Open the Excel workbook > go to File > Open option.After that go to the ‘Open’ dialog box > select ‘Open and Repair‘ option from there. This process will fix the corrupt excelAutomated Solution to Repair Excel FileTry SysTools Excel File Recovery Software for Corrupt Excel File. An Automated Solution to repair corrupt Excel File.Thanks & RegardsRobinsan Shaw