Microsoft KB Archive/166173

= XL97: How to Save Files in Other Formats =

Article ID: 166173

Article Last Modified on 10/22/2000

-

APPLIES TO


 * Microsoft Excel 97 Standard Edition

-



This article was previously published under Q166173





SUMMARY
This article explains how to save files in different formats, and provides additional information to be aware of when saving files.



How to Save a File in a Different Format
By default, Microsoft Excel 97 saves files in the Microsoft Excel Workbook format. Files saved in this format cannot be opened in earlier versions of Microsoft Excel, or in other spreadsheet programs.

If you want to save a file in a different format, do the following:


 * 1) Open the workbook you want to save.
 * 2) On the File menu, click Save As.
 * 3) In the Save As Type list, select the file format you want to use.
 * 4) If necessary, change the name of the file and click Save.

NOTE: If the file format does not support multiple sheets or plies, you may receive the following warning message:

The selected file type does not support workbooks that contain multiple sheets.

If the file format does not support multiple sheets, make sure you save the other sheets in your workbook before you close it. Otherwise, some of your work may be lost. The easiest way to save your entire workbook is to save it in the Microsoft Excel Workbook format.

What File Formats are Available?
In Microsoft Excel 97, you can save files in any of the following formats:

  Format                                 Extension    Notes -  Microsoft Excel Workbook               .xls         1 Template                              .xlt         2 Formatted Text (Space delimited)      .txt         3 Text (Tab delimited)                  .txt         3 Microsoft Excel 5.0/95 Workbook       .xls         4 Microsoft Excel 97 & 5.0/95 Workbook  .xls         5 CSV (Comma delimited)                 .csv         3 Microsoft Excel 4.0 Worksheet         .xls         3 Microsoft Excel 3.0 Worksheet         .xls         3 Microsoft Excel 2.1 Worksheet         .xls         3 Microsoft Excel 4.0 Workbook          .xlw         6 WK4 (1-2-3)                           .wk4         7 WK3,FM3 (1-2-3)                       .wk3, .fm3   7 WK3 (1-2-3)                           .wk3         7 WK1,FMT (1-2-3)                       .wk1, .fmt   8 WK1,ALL (1-2-3)                       .wk1, .all   8 WK1 (1-2-3)                           .wk1         8 WKS (1-2-3)                           .wks         8 WQ1 (Quattro Pro/DOS)                 .wq1         8 DBF 4 (dBASE IV)                      .dbf         8 DBF 3 (dBASE III)                     .dbf         8 DBF 2 (dBASE II)                      .dbf         8 Text (Macintosh)                      .txt         9 Text (OS/2 or MS-DOS)                 .txt         9 CSV (Macintosh)                       .csv         9 CSV (OS/2 or MS-DOS)                  .csv         9 DIF (Data Interchange Format)         .dif         3 SYLK (Symbolic Link)                  .slk         3 Microsoft Excel Add-In                .xla         10

Microsoft Excel Workspace             .xlw         11

Microsoft Excel 4.0 Chart             .xlc         12 Microsoft Excel 3.0 Chart             .xlc         12 Microsoft Excel 2.1 Chart             .xlc         12

Microsoft Excel 4.0 Macro             .xlm         13 Microsoft Excel 4.0 Int'l Macro       .xlm         13 Microsoft Excel 3.0 Macro             .xlm         13 Microsoft Excel 2.1 Macro             .xlm         13

How to Set a Different Default File Format
Although the default file format is Microsoft Excel Workbook, it is possible to set a different default file format. To do this, follow these steps:


 * 1) On the Tools menu, click Options.
 * 2) Click the Transition tab.
 * 3) In the Save Excel Files As list, select the desired default file format.
 * 4) Click OK.

When you save a file using the Save As, the new default file format will be selected. Note that you can override this new default by simply selecting another file format in the Save As Type list.

How Can I See this Information in Help?
To see the above information in Microsoft Excel Help, perform the following steps:

 If the Office Assistant is visible, click it. Otherwise, click the Office Assistant tool on the Standard toolbar. Type the following question:

How can I save a file in a different format?

and press ENTER.

In the help balloon that appears, there are a number of buttons:


 * Click "File format converters supplied with Microsoft Excel" to read about the different file formats included with Microsoft Excel.
 * Click "Change the default file format for saving workbooks" to read about how to change the default file format.

You can also click the other buttons to see additional help concerning opening and saving files in different formats.

Keywords: kbhowto KB166173

-

[mailto:TECHNET@MICROSOFT.COM Send feedback to Microsoft]

© Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.