Convert a Compatibility Mode Document in Word 2016

Word 2010 For Dummies

When you work with an older Word document file, or perhaps load up a word processing document from another source, you may see the text [Compatibility Mode] on the document window's title bar. That text reminds you that, although you can edit the document, certain features are disabled. These features include the capability to update a document's formats in real time, document themes, content controls, SmartArt objects, and more.

To update a document for the current version of Word, 2016, follow these steps:

Click the File tab.
On the Info screen, click the Convert button. A dialog box may appear, explaining the conversion process. If you click the Do Not Ask Me Again box, you don't see the dialog box again.
If prompted, click OK in the dialog box. The document is updated; the text [Compatibility Mode] vanishes from the title bar.

You still have to save the document. For some older documents, you may see the Save As dialog box again. If so, choose the Word Document (*.docx) file format.

About This Article

About the book author:

Dan Gookin has been writing about technology for 20 years. He has contributed articles to numerous high-tech magazines and written more than 90 books about personal computing technology, many of them accurate.
He combines his love of writing with his interest in technology to create books that are informative and entertaining, but not boring. Having sold more than 14 million titles translated into more than 30 languages, Dan can attest that his method of crafting computer tomes does seem to work.
Perhaps Dan’s most famous title is the original DOS For Dummies, published in 1991. It became the world’s fastest-selling computer book, at one time moving more copies per week than the New York Times number-one best seller (although, because it’s a reference book, it could not be listed on the NYT best seller list). That book spawned the entire line of For Dummies books, which remains a publishing phenomenon to this day.
Dan’s most recent titles include PCs For Dummies, 9th Edition; Buying a Computer For Dummies, 2005 Edition; Troubleshooting Your PC For Dummies; Dan Gookin’s Naked Windows XP; and Dan Gookin’s Naked Office. He publishes a free weekly computer newsletter, “Weekly Wambooli Salad,” and also maintains the vast and helpful Web site www.wambooli.com.