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pinpoint · Sep 7, 2007, 01:55 AM

I'm new to computers.I have new laptop on vista.pc on xp.tried to take file to PC via flash drive.wont read it.characters altered.does the file name have to be changed or...

NeedKarma · Sep 7, 2007, 02:30 AM

The file must be corrupted somehow because it should not make a difference that you are running XP or Vista. What kind of file is it? Word doc, exe, etc.

retsoksirhc · Sep 7, 2007, 05:38 AM

If it's a file from any part of Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, Powerpoint), and you have office 2007 on the vista computer but not on the XP computer, you need to save it as a different file type. When you go to save as, chenge where it says "Save as type: Word Document" to say "Save as type: Word 97-2003 Document", in word, or the file type you want to use (not sure what it is in excel or powerpoint)

ScottGem · Sep 7, 2007, 05:50 AM

Thewre is no such thing as a Vista file or an XP file for that matter. Vista and XP are your operating systems and don't have a file type. So the key is what software you used to create the file and whether you have the same software on the XP PC.

ScottGem · Sep 9, 2007, 11:50 AM

Comments on this post
pinpoint disagrees: save as on vista asks which operating system compatibility is required.that is what I was looking for.

First may I call your attention to these guidelines on using the comments feature.

https://www.askmehelpdesk.com/feedba...ure-24951.html

Second, you apparently are ignoring what I said. There is NO issue of OS compatibility! A flash drive works exactly the same whether its under XP or Vista. I have a flash drive I store the book I'm writing on. I work on the book, using different PCs, some Vista, some XP. I have no problems reading the files on that drive no matter what PC I use.

I don't really understand how, since you claim to be new to computers, how you can judge whether my answers was factually correct or not.

moyenda · Sep 10, 2007, 03:06 AM

Originally Posted by pinpoint

im new to computers.i have new laptop on vista.pc on xp.tried to take file to pc via flash drive.wont read it.characters altered.does the file name have to be changed or ......

I gather from your information you're saving a document of some sort, from Vista to XP... if the characters are altered you obviously need a backward compatible software since Vista uses a Four character file extension than a Three character with XP. The download should read COMPATIBILY PACK FOR OFFICE 2007 SYSTEM. This way you'll be able to switch from Vista file to XP and backwards! This is what I'm currently using.

Hope it works!

ScottGem · Sep 10, 2007, 06:10 AM

Originally Posted by moyenda

I gather from your information you're saving a document of some sort, from Vista to XP...if the characters are altered you obviously need a backward compatible software since Vista uses a Four character file extension than a Three character with XP. The download should read COMPATIBILY PACK FOR OFFICE 2007 SYSTEM. This way you'll be able to switch from Vista file to XP and backwards! This is what I'm currently using.

Hope it works!

4 character extensions have been allowed since Win 95. That's nothing new. However, Office 2007 does tend to use extension longer than the standard three characters for its 2007 format files. But this has NOTHING to do with Vista vs XP. The problem would exist if you were trying to open ANY file created in Office 2007 to an earlier Office application even on the same PC.

Again there is NO such thing as a Vista or XP file. File formats are used by applications, NOT by the operating system.