This file is not in a recognizable format

Excel files are the most commomly used in day-to-day office works.. 
There are so many complex functions, Daily/Monthly Reports, Graphs,pie diagrams etc..that can be easily managed by Excel.. But what you will do if this excel stopped functioning ?? Big Question-RIGHT !! 


While working on the excel, I have encountered some messages which took some time to resolve but finally heaved a sighed of Relief :-)

When you start Microsoft Excel, Excel attempts to open multiple documents and you may receive one or more of the following error messages. 
OR

If the computer is not updated and you did not install the Office Compatibility Pack, you will receive one of the following error messages when you try to open the file, depending on the program that you are using.

This file is not in a recognizable format /


Windows cannot open this file/ 


PowerPoint can't open the type of file represented by filename

What you have 2 do? Don't Worry here are the steps to resolve this above mentioned error messages.

Resolution:

To resolve this issue, install the Office Compatibility Pack and each update for your version of the Office program.

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/en/details.aspx?FamilyID=941b3470-3ae9-4aee-8f43-c6bb74cd1466&displaylang=en

One more thing that i would like to mention some differences that i found out while researching on this issue..

If you are using office 2003 and using SharePoint Server 2007 then some functionalities will not going to work.

Now the questions arises which are going 2 work and which are not !!

Please refer the following information regarding the same:

Application / Feature	Office 2003	Office 2007
Saving and editing Office 2003 files from SharePoint sites	supported	supported
Viewing Office 2007 files from SharePoint site	supported	supported
Editing Office 2007 files from SharePoint sites	not supported	supported
Check-out/in, version history	supported	supported
Start a workflow	not supported	supported
Publishing Excel files as web pages	not supported	supported
Working with Slide Library	not supported	supported
Synchronize document libraries to Outlook	not supported	supported
Inserting document properties for (DOC/DOCX)	not supported	supported
Updating properties	supported	supported
Write a blog post	not supported	supported
Synchronize tasks/discussion boards to Outlook	not supported	supported
Synchronizing calendars to Outlook	Onw Way Sync Only	supported
Synchronizing contacts to Outlook	Onw Way Sync Only	supported
Compare versions of a SharePoint document	not supported	supported

Please let me know in case of any queries/questions/confusion regarding the above mentioned steps.. 
I would be more than happy to help you as well as resolves your issues..

A DDE error has occurred, and a description of the error cannot be displayed because it is too long. If the filename or path is long, try renaming the file or copying it to a different folder.

When you try to open a Microsoft Office 2003 file in Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.5 or Microsoft Internet Explorer 6.0, the document does not open, and you receive the following error message:

A DDE error has occurred, and a description of the error cannot be displayed because it is too long. If the filename or path is long, try renaming the file or copying it to a different folder.

This issue occurs because of a 259-character limitation on creating and saving files in the Office products. Also, you receive an error message when you save or open a file if the path of the file meets the following condition for the appropriate program.

Microsoft Word: The total length of the path and the file name, including file name extension, exceeds 259 characters.

Microsoft PowerPoint: The total length of the path and the file name, including file name extension, exceeds 259 characters.

Microsoft Access: The total length of the path and the file name, including file name extension exceeds 259 characters.

Microsoft Excel: The total length of the path and the file name, including file name extension, exceeds 218 characters.

This limitation includes the three characters that represent the drive, the characters in folder names, the backslash character between folders, and the characters in the file name.

Workaround:

Make sure that the path of the file contains no more than the maximum number of characters. To do this, use one of the following methods.

1.   Rename the file so that it has a shorter name.

2.   Rename one or more folders that contain the file so that they have shorter names.

3.   Move the file to a folder that has a shorter path name.

If you have any queries/questions regarding the above mentioned information then please let me know. I would be more than happy to help you as well as resolves your issues, Thank you.