Another Excel Question

[ɹəuəllıʍ ʇɐb]

I generate dozens of Excel docs every day, which then must be saved on a specific disk location.

When clicking 'Save As', Excel (2003) will always want to save it as a .htm / .html document, and I have every time to change it to .xls

Is there a way that I can tell Excel to use .xls as the default? Some users have already erroneously saved as .html

[Irene]

I think it is a file association issue, Pat.

Your profile says that you are using Windows XP, so this should help:

Set File Associations in Windows XP

[ɹəuəllıʍ ʇɐb]

Thank you for your reply, Irene.

I will check it on Monday, but I don't think it's a file association issue, as an .xls file opens with Excel when I double-click it, and a .htm or .html file opens with Firefox.

Nevertheless, it's worth checking it.

But now that I am writing this, I think I may know why Excel behaves that way: I create that Excel doc with the browser, so maybe because of this Excel "thinks" that it may be a HTML doc. Same way that the default save location is the Temp folder instead of My Documents.

Maybe there is no solution for this...

[Digerati]

In 2007 under Excel options, if you click on the Save options, the first item listed is "Safe files in this format:" and there are a couple dozen formats listed in the drop down menu. I don't have access to Excel 2003 but I seem to remember something similar.

[D4\/!d]

Digerati, you beat me to it, ha ha.

Like you I no longer use 2003.

Pat, you need to get into the Excel Options and dictate what you want the program to do.

In the past I have managed to Specify the Folder to Save To.

At one time I had three icons each opening Excel yet saving to different folders - it was for the kids and their homework.

Hope it works for you.

[ɹəuəllıʍ ʇɐb]

thank you for your suggestions. Unfortunately Excel 2003 does not seem to have that option:

[D4\/!d]

Pat, its got to be there somewhere.

I have been specifying the Save To folder since year dot.

Cannot remember how I did it in previous versions of Excel.

I always did have my data on a separate drive and I had to "instruct" Excel to place all my xls files to that data folder (not the default).

Sorry but 2003 was a long tine ago.

[late edit] Try making a short-cut to open Excel and specifying your chosen folder in the shortcut.

[Irene]

Just found this, Pat:

HERE

Go to tools ~ options ~ transition ~ choose the save excel file as ( Microsoft office excel workbook) ~ ok

Close the excel file and reopen and try save as...

[ɹəuəllıʍ ʇɐb]

Ah - it is already set this way:

However, even if saved as .htm, it is somewhat saved as a Excel doc:

Note that the icon is an Excel icon, although slightly different for .xls and .htm files.

But anyway, I found that both actually work for the subsequent processing (importing into an Excel application for submission).

So even though we couldn't change Excel's ways, the problem is actually resolved for me.

Thank you to all who responded