Solve the X Files
If you've ever received an MS Word, Excel, or PowerPoint document that just won't seem to open, odds are it's because it was created using Office 2007 or 2008 and you're still using an older version of Office. You can tell by looking at the file extension: if there's an x on the end (such as docx. xlsx, pptx) then it's Microsoft's newfangled XML-based file type. If you don't feel like ponying up a few hundies for the latest version of Office, there are a few workarounds for opening these files. The first is to ask whoever sent it to you to save it as a file that is backwards compatible. Otherwise, Windows users can go here to download a file format converter that will let older versions of Office convert new files (although there are apparently many instances where some things simply can't be converted, in which case you're SOL-X, as it were). Mac users can go here for their version. Note, however, that after installing these converters you will be required to input your valid Office serial number or you'll be locked out. If you've lost the serial number, the other option is to install Open Office, which reportedly can open most x-files.
