• Go to the Microsoft Office Updates Web page, http://office.microsoft.com and click the Downloads tab
• Select Office Updates under Updates 
• Updating Microsoft Office will automatically install the Compatibility Pack for the 2007 Office system 
• After updating Office, you will be able to open, edit some items, and Save As…Word 2007/Excel 2007 document when using a previous version of Office applications

• Using the "Office Open XML Converter," you can convert Office 2007 files
  to a format that is compatible with Microsoft Office 2004 for Mac and
  with older versions of Microsoft Office for Mac
• You can choose to convert and open one file, or convert a large number of files at a time
• Go to Microsoft Downloads, http://www.microsoft.com/mac/downloads.mspx, and click on Office 2004
• Select Microsoft Office Open XML File Format Converter for Mac 12.0.1 - (Beta)
• When you have an Office 2007 document saved, double-click on the document to open it. This action will cause the converter to run
• Drag the Word 2007 document into the top window of the converter that says, Drag document here
• After you drag the document to the window, a message appears saying the conversion is successful and the document will open
• At this point, you can save the file for future use before you close it . After saving, your file will not need converting again
  

• Click the Office Button  to choose Save As, and then select the Word/Excel 97-2003 Document 
• This will save the file in Compatibility Mode. Word/Excel 2007’s new features will not be available until the file is resaved as a 2007 document

How do I run the Compatibility Checker in Excel 2007?

• Some features may be lost or degraded when a document is saved in an older version
• The Excel/Word Compatibility Checker scans the document for features that are not supported by earlier versions
• To run Compatibility Checker , click the Office Button, select Prepare and Run Compatibility Checker

• If you experience a problem sending emails or adding attachments to your email message, you will need to change the text formatting to Plain Text in Lotus Notes
• To do this, select Preferences located on the top bar, open Mail and select General
• To change the Default Editor to Plain Text,  (1) select the Plain Text radio button, and (2) from the “Send message in this format” dropdown menu, select Plain Text

• Internet Explorer 7 (IE 7) is the only Microsoft browser that will function properly with Vista.  Older versions of IE experience problems 
• If you experience a problem with IE 7, try using the latest version of Firefox

• Vista is still new and software companies are trying to catch-up so keep all software, such as Adobe Acrobat, JAVA, and Internet browsers current with all available updates to minimize errors
• If a program says it does not have rights to do something; run the program as “Administrator” by right clicking the program icon and selecting the “Run as Administrator” option

• If you experience problems with Clean Access in the dorms, try saving the program installation file to your PC instead of opening it from your Web browser, then run the file as “Administrator” by right clicking the downloaded file and selecting Run as Administrator 
• If you have problems, contact Student Affairs at https://www.pubapps.vcu.edu/resnet/index.aspx

• All user accounts default to a standard user account which needs to be elevated to an administrative account for certain purposes
• To do this, right-click on the application you want to run and select, Run as administrator

• PODCAST: Vista - Informal In-House Training Session Video

How do I improve my computer processing speed in Vista?

• If Vista runs slower than your old XP computer then consider changing the default “Power Saver” to “High Performance.” To do this, go to the Start button and open the Control Panel > Hardware and Sound > Power Options and change powersaving settings to High Performance. This will increase your computer’s performance by 50%
• To improve the speed of your computer and increase the ability to run more programs simultaneously, you can temporarily expand RAM memory on your computer. By connecting a flash thumb drive to your computer, the PC reads small and random bits of frequently accessed data through the ReadyBoost feature of Vista. To use this feature, connect a flash drive with free space that equals the built in computer RAM memory, example: 2GB flash drive to 2GB Ram computer memory. Upon inserting the flash drive, the Properties menu displays the ReadyBoost Tab. Select “Use this device” and adjust the slider to the amount of space you desire and click OK

• SPSS 15 and SPSS 16 will run on a Vista computer.  SPSS 16 is designed to run on Vista, but SPSS 15 requires a special "hotfix" between the installation and the licensing procedures. Please see SPSS special instructions for Vista
• See minimum hardware and software requirements for SPSS 16.0 for Windows (workstation)
• SAS has a limited availability for the Vista platform. For more information, please see the notes about Vista in the System Requirements section at http://www.ts.vcu.edu/faq/stats/sas_soft.html
• ITunes and Nero Burning software tends to have issues in Vista, but the latest version of these applications will work correctly 
• Microsoft has released an Application Compatibility Toolkit to help with older software. This toolkit can be found by searching the Microsoft Download Center at www.microsoft.com/downloads or installed with all the updates for Microsoft Office 2003

• If you experience Blackboard problems with VISTA, go to Blackboard Help at http://faq.vcu.edu/ts/

• Microsoft has developed Interactive Command Quick Reference Guides using Flash for users who are transitioning from Office 2003 to Office 2007. These tools allow you to perform a function in 2003 and the location of the feature in 2007 appears automatically. To access the Quick Reference Guides, click on the titles listed below:

Microsoft Interactive Command Quick Reference Guides

• Word 2003 to Word 2007
  
• Excel 2003 to Excel 2007
  
• PowerPoint 2003 to Excel 2007
  
• Access 2003 to Access 2007

Other Microsoft Office 2007 tutorials are available in the Training
Self-paced listings. To access these tutorials, go to the VCU Home
Page, select Technology Services then click on Training. Type Word
2007 or Excel 2007 for the keyword then click the Search button.

• Click on the Office Button then click Word or Excel Options button at the bottom-left of the screen

• Click on the Insert tab to see the Tables and Illustrations areas on the ribbon along with numerous other objects to insert  
• Headers, Footers, and Charts can also be found here

• Click on the Review tab then select Spelling and Grammar from the Proofing area of the ribbon
• You can right-click and add this tool to the Quick Access Toolbar, which is on the top-right of the screen

• To display the Function Library on the ribbon, click the Formulas tab
• Then click a formula or function, and then select a tool from the menu 

The new design of Microsoft Office Excel 2007 provides an easier, faster and more efficient interface to use. The redesign organizes the most popular commands on the Ribbon and places them in the forefront. To learn more about the changes and new features of Excel 2007, click on the titles listed below to access the Microsoft online product tutorials and help pages. Those who are familiar with Excel 2003 may want to try the Interactive Command Quick Reference Guide, which cross references common commands found in Excel 2003 to Excel 2007.

Excel 2007 – Help and How-to

Excel 2007 – Other Microsoft Online Courses

Microsoft Office Word 2007 has a new and different look. The redesign organizes the most popular commands on the Ribbon and places them in the forefront. To learn more about the changes and new features of Word 2007, click on the titles listed below to access the Microsoft online product tutorials and help pages. Those who are familiar with Word 2003 may want to try the Interactive Command Quick Reference Guide, which cross references common commands found in Word 2003 to Word 2007.

Word 2007 – Other Microsoft Courses