Have you ever tried to open a PowerPoint file that someone has sent you only to receive an error message? If this sounds familiar, this is a common occurrence with users who do not have PowerPoint installed on their PC or they have an older version of Microsoft Office.
PPT file extensions refer to PowerPoint presentations created in older versions of Microsoft Office where PPTX files are PowerPoint presentations created with newer versions of PowerPoint. If you are frustrated by these extensions, you have several options without having to shell out a lot of money to open PowerPoint files.
PowerPoint Viewer 2007
If you have an older version of Microsoft Office installed on your PC, PowerPoint Viewer 2007 is a free download which will help you open PowerPoint presentations created by PowerPoint 2007 and later. PowerPoint Viewer 2007 allows you to view and print PPT and PPTX files but does not allow you to edit them.
PowerPoint Viewer 2007 works with Windows 2000 and higher and will allow you to open presentations that date as far back as PowerPoint 1997 in addition to 2000, 2002, 2003, 2007, and 2010. The program is available for download from the Microsoft website.
OpenOffice
OpenOffice offers a full suite of office applications which have been developed by a community of programmers at openoffice.org. OpenOffice is free to download and contains basically the same applications as Microsoft Office including a PowerPoint program. If you download the latest version, you will be able to open PPT file extensions as well as PPTX.
OpenOffice is compatible with a broad range of operating systems and platforms and is a full-featured application which offers many options for functionality without the price tag to go with it. You can download it by accessing the OpenOffice website.
Opening PPT Files in a Browser
If you are trying to open a PPT or PPTX file that is embedded in a website, the problem may not necessarily be on the website author’s side. Instead, the issue is related to control over whether or not the file opens in the browser, in the PowerPoint program itself, or the PowerPoint Viewer. Additionally, there are other factors that may come into play, such as the version of PowerPoint used to create the file, the website MIME settings, the version of PowerPoint you have on your computer, or the type of browser you are using to view the file.
In order to open PPT files from a website, there are a few factors to open them successfully. First, if the PowerPoint presentation was created in a newer version and the file is PPTX, you may be prompted to save the file or if you try to open it, you will receive a message about your PC being unable to open the file.
In this case you must have PowerPoint 2007 Viewer installed as mentioned earlier, PowerPoint 2007 installed, or a program such as OpenOffice set to default when you click on the presentation. You can also use Folder Options to configure the PPT or PPTX files to open in PowerPoint or a designated program instead of the browser.
To use Folder Options, simply click on My Computer and then choose the Tools tab in the My Computer window. On the drop-down menu click on Folder Options and then choose File Types. Wait for the list to load and then click on PPT Microsoft PowerPoint Presentation and then click the Advanced button. Tick the box next to Confirm open after download and then click OK and close the window. When you click on a PPT file on a website, you should now be given the option to choose whether to open the file, save it to a designated location, or cancel file access.
Hopefully, some of the tips described here will help to alleviate any past frustrations you may have had with opening PPT and PPTX file extensions.
