Microsoft KB Archive/181668

= XL98: Read-Only Recommended Opening 97/98 & 5.0/95 Workbook File Format =

Article ID: 181668

Article Last Modified on 9/11/2002

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APPLIES TO


 * Microsoft Excel 98 for Macintosh

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This article was previously published under Q181668



SYMPTOMS
When you open a Microsoft Excel 98 file that you previously saved in the "Microsoft Excel 97/98 & 5.0/95 Workbook" file format, the following error message may appear

 should be opened as read-only unless you need to save changes to it. Open as read-only?

where  is the name of the file that you are opening.



CAUSE
This behavior occurs when all of the following conditions are true:
 * You save the file by clicking "Microsoft Excel 97/98 & 5.0/95 Workbook" in the Save As list in the Save As dialog box in Microsoft Excel 98. -and-


 * You open the file in Microsoft Excel version 5.0 and click No when you are prompted to open the file as read-only. -and-


 * You then save the file from Microsoft Excel 5.0 with the same name.

NOTE: When you do this, the Microsoft Excel 98 portion of the file format no longer exists.



WORKAROUND
To work around this behavior and recover the workbook in the "Microsoft Excel 97/98 & 5.0/95 Workbook" file format, you must use a backup copy of the original file.



MORE INFORMATION
In Microsoft Excel 98, you can use a new hybrid file format that allows you to save a file in both the Microsoft Excel 98 workbook format and the Microsoft Excel 5.0 workbook format. This dual file format allows you to open and view the file in Microsoft Excel 5.0 and maintain the advanced features in Microsoft Excel 98.

A workbook that you save in this dual format contains two file formats; the file size is roughly twice as large as the Microsoft Excel 98 format. However, Microsoft Excel 5.0 does not recognize the Microsoft Excel 98 portion of the file. When you open and revise the file in Microsoft Excel 98, changes are also automatically updated in the Microsoft Excel 5.0 portion of the file.

NOTE: If you edit the file and save the changes in Microsoft Excel 5.0, the Microsoft Excel 98 portion of the file is permanently lost, and the file contains only the data in the remaining Microsoft Excel 5.0 workbook file portion.

The Read-Only Recommended option is selected for the Microsoft Excel 5.0 portion of the file. However, you can open and save the file in Microsoft Excel 5.0. Because Read-Only Recommended is selected by default for the "Microsoft Excel 5.0/95 Workbook" format, the workbook file that you save also uses the Read-Only Recommended option.

Disabling the Read-Only Recommended Prompt and Resaving the File in the "Microsoft Excel 97/98 & 5.0/95 Workbook" Format
To disable the prompt and resave the file, follow these steps:
 * 1) On the File menu, click Open, click the workbook file name, and then click Open to open the file in Microsoft Excel 98.
 * 2) When you are prompted to open the file as read-only, click No.
 * 3) On the File menu, click Save As and click "Microsoft Excel 97/98 & 5.0/95 Workbook" in the Save As Type list.
 * 4) Click Options in the Save As dialog box.
 * 5) Clear the Read-Only Recommended check box. Then, click OK, and click Save.

For additional information, please see the following articles in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

157497 XL: Saving a File for 5.0/7.0 and MS Excel 97 or MS Excel 98

