How to open DOC/X files in older version of Word

Hello

For the past few years, my Windows opened a DOC/DOCX/RTF file in Word 2003 instead of e.g. Word 2016 (when I double-clicked a DOC/DOCX/RTF file). Every 2-3 weeks Windows would change the file association of DOC/DOCX/RTF files to Word 2016, but when I run Word 2003 manually (or use Detect and Repair), the file associations would change to Word 2003 again.

Today, however, this no longer works. When I run Word 2003, it runs fine (and appears to work fine) but I get an error message "Microsoft Office Word 11.0 - An error occurred and this feature is no longer functioning properly. Please run Setup and select "Repair..." to restore this application.".

The same applied to Excel 2003 until now. Now, Excel 2003 still works, but gives an error message when I run it, "Microsoft Excel - One of your object libraries (stdole32.tlb) is missing or damaged. Please run Setup to install it." and it actually runs the installer each time I start Excel, but the installer simply exits when the progress bar gets halfway.

Repairing (and reinstalling) Office 2003 doesn't progress past about the halfway mark and then the repair/reinstall dialog mysteriously exits. Also, when I try to use Detect and Repair in Word, Malwarebytes tells me there's malware in the TEMP folder (but disabling Malwarebytes doesn't make the repair process work). I also tried disabling the Office Source Engine service. Please note, this has nothing to do with the "Compatibility Pack" -- reinstalling it doesn't affect the file associations.

There is a registry hack for disabling the error message, but what I really want is for DOC/DOCX/RTF files to open in Word 2003 by default.

This brings me to ask a question that I have had for over a decade: how to convince Windows that I want to open DOC/DOCX/RTF files in Word 2003 when I double-click it.

(By the way, I recall having a similar problem with Adobe Acrobat Reader many years ago -- I had both version 5 and version 6 installed, and try as I might I was unable to get Windows to use version 5 for PDF files, and I always had to run version 5 manually and open files using drag-an-drop (as I'm now forced to do with DOC/DOCX/RTF files).)

Do you know what causes this error message (and how to fix it)? or
Do you know of surefire way to make DOC/DOCX/RTF files open in Word 2003 by default?

Thanks
Samuel


(Using Windows 10 Home)

For the 'new' format of .docx, .xlsx and others that changed with Office 2007 there was a Compatibility Pack to be used on Office 2000 through Office 2003. It may still be available on the 'net, didn't see it on Microsoft last time I looked. If wanting something different from Office and free I install LibreOffice.

I checked again for the Pack and Microsoft has it, got a spare copy. Must have been a bad day for their Server. I don't recall the SP1 part on the one I got last time [couple three years ago].
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/down...n.aspx?id=1285

I used this recently:

Microsoft Compatibility Pack

Right-click on each extension [doc, docx, rtf] you want to set,
1 Select Open with,
2 Select Choose another app,
3 Set the checkbox for Always use this app ...,
4 Click on More apps,
5 Scroll down to the bottom of the list,
6 Click on Look for another app on this PC,
7 Browse to your chosen executable

- [For 64 bit Windows - mine would be C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Office\Office12\WinWord.exe but I think you need Office11 instead of Office12 - or maybe it's Office10, just find the lowest number within C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Office that contains a WinWord.exe file],
- [For 32 bit Windows - mine would be C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office12\WinWord.exe but I think you need Office11 instead of Office12 - or maybe it's Office10, just find the lowest number within C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office that contains a WinWord.exe file],

8 Click on Open,
9 The file opens in the chosen application but the key point is that this application has now been set as the one to use,

So you can now test the setting by closing the file then double-clicking on it or another of the same type and you will open Word.

Denis

Can I ask why you want to use 2003 when you have 2016?

Just to satisfy my curiosity.