Convert Microsoft Works Spreadsheets to Excel

By Ted French, About.com Guide

Convert Microsoft Works Spreadsheets to Excel

1. Open a Microsoft Works Spreadsheet that you want to convert to Excel
   
   
2. Choose File > Save As from the menus to open the Save As dialog box.
   
   
3. Click on the Save as type box at the bottom of the dialog box to open the drop down list.
   
   
4. Choose Excel 97-2000 (*.xls) from the list. This option will work for Excel 2003.
   
   
5. If you have an older version of Excel, choose the appropriate option from the drop down list instead of Excel 97-2000 (*.xls).

Note: This tip works for Microsoft Works version 6.0 to version 2006.

When converting files from Microsoft Works to Excel I have found that some formatting features, such as color and shading, do not always convert properly to the Excel file. This seems to happen if you use a formatting feature in the Works spreadsheet that is not present in Excel.