Open a File

• 1). Start WordPad and click the "File" drop-down menu on the left-side of the toolbar. Click "Open" and click the "Files of Type" drop-down menu in the Open dialog box.
  
  
• 2). Select "Word for Windows (*.doc)" as the type of file you want to open. Navigate to the file folder where the file is located. Select the file and click "Open" or double-click the filename.
  
  
• 3). View the file. You can modify the DOC file, but you may or may not be able to save it in the original DOC file format. If WordPad cannot save the file as the DOC format, you will get a prompt. WordPad then saves the file as a RTF file. RTF documents can be re-opened in Word.
  
  

Opening a Damaged Word File

• 1). Open WordPad and click "File" on the toolbar. Click "Open" and click the "Files of Type" drop-down menu.
  
  
• 2). Select "All Document" from the Files of Type list. Navigate to the file folder and select the document. Click "Open." If the file prompts you to convert the file, click "No Conversion."
  
  
• 3). Delete any machine language from the file and click "File" and then "Save As." In the "File Name" field, give the file a new name. Click "Save." Click "File" and "Exit" to leave WordPad.
  
  
• 4). Start Word and try to open the damaged file with the new name. If the file opens, re-save the file as a Word file.