docXConverter

Although Microsoft introduced Office 2007 with promises of more powerful features, it seems that for the average user--and especially the user who has to share files with other people--the new docx and xlsx formats have been nothing but trouble. DocXConverter is a simple utility that allows users to convert documents created by the 2007 versions of Word and Excel, as well as ClarisWorks documents, into formats that can be read by other programs. With a simple interface and intuitive operation, docXConverter is a commonsense solution to the problem of incompatible files.

The program's interface is simple, consisting merely of a small box into which users drag the files they want to convert. The program converts the files and places them in a destination folder selected by the user. Word and ClarisWorks documents can be converted to RTF, text, or Unicode, and Excel files can be converted to CSV, text, or Unicode. Although there is no Help file per se, a Readme file provides basic instructions. Overall, we found docXConverter to be extremely easy to use; the drag-and-drop interface couldn't be simpler, and the program worked quickly and without problems. We did run into trouble trying to convert a Word document that was heavy on tables, but this is a problem with the two versions of Word and not anything docXConverter could have prevented.

DocXConverter is free to try, but the trial version converts only a portion of the original documents. The program installs desktop icons without asking but uninstalls without issues. We recommend this program to all users.