The file you are attempting to preview could harm your computer word

Warren Smith cant preview Word or Excel files in Windows Explorer. He asked theforum for help.

The Windows 7 version of Windows Explorer can preview .jpgs, .pdfs, and other popular formats. Select Organize>Layout>Preview pane to see a files contents.

But it cant always preview .docx, .xls, and other Microsoft Office file formats. I know of three possible reasons.

You dont have Microsoft Office

Explorer needs Microsoft Office installed to read the popular suites various formats. Ill leave you to guess at Microsofts motivations for that shortcoming.

The files youre trying to preview are very old

The age of the files could be causing the problem. As a security precaution, Word 2010 wont open .doc files created in a version of Word earlier than 97 [the format was more susceptible to macro viruses, back then]. And if Word wont open them, it wont help Windows Explorer preview them, either.

Excel behaves similarly.

Heres how to fix the problem in Word 2010:

1. Click the File tab [dark blue and immediately to the left of Home].
2. Click Options in the left pane.
3. In the Word Options dialog box, click Trust Center, again in the left pane.
4. Click the Trust Center Settings button.
5. In the Trust Centers left pane, click File Block Settings.

The resulting options may confuse you. If the Open option for a file type is checked, that means you cant open those files. So I recommend unchecking everything.

After you make these changes, be careful about any old files you openalthough I suspect that there arent many pre-1997 viruses floating around that your antivirus program doesnt know about.

The same instructions work for Excel.

You have the wrong edition of Microsoft Office

If youre using Microsoft Office Starter edition [a very limited, advertiser-supported version that comes bundled with some PCs], you wont be able to preview these files. It appears that Office Starter doesnt support Windows Explorer preview, and the only fix is to upgrade to another version.

I say It appears because I havent been able to test it myself, and Microsoft has refused to confirm or deny this shortcoming.

My thanks to ElfBane for bringing up the age issue, and to LiveBrianD for suggesting the Starter problem, both in the original

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