The default extension for Open Office documents is proprietary and usually cannot be opened by other programs. There are two simple solutions to this problem: a) change the extension each time you save something or b) modify your settings so that your work is always saved as a Microsoft extension.

You do not have to worry about keeping several different copies, each with its own extension. No matter what extension you use, Open Office will be able to open and work with them all.

If you would like to modify your settings, here’s how:

1. Open one of the Open Office programs and go to “Tools”

2. Select “Options”

3. Open the “Load/Save” options (click on the + sign)

4. Go to “General”

5. On the bottom of the box that opened, there are two dropdown menus labeled “Document type” and “Always save as”

6. Use those to change the defaults for all the Open Office programs. For example:

- Under “Document type”, select “Text document” then under “Always save as”, select “Microsoft Word 97/2000/XP”

- Under “Document type”, select “Spreadsheet” then under “Always save as”, select “Microsoft Excel 97/2000/XP”

Now, you can continue to modify Open Office as desired or simply accept the changes and close the menu box.