In 2007, Microsoft released the latest version of its industry-standard office software suite for Windows computers, Microsoft Office 2007, followed by the release of a Mac-compatible version in 2008. In the update from the previous versions (Office 2003/4 for PC and Mac, respectively) Microsoft changed the standard document format for Microsoft Word documents from .doc to .docx. The .docx format is based on the open source XML (extensible markup language) standard, but it is incompatible with the .doc file format and many older programs (such as earlier versions of Microsoft Word) had trouble dealing with the new file format. Luckily, Microsoft has provided a free converter plugin for older versions of Word, and .docx files can also be opened in Open Office, the free open source office suite whose development is managed by Sun Microsystems. Writer Bio
