Q & A: Are there any Office 2007 viewers available?

Q: The knowledge base article How to view Word 2007 and Excel 2007 files by using Word Viewer 2003 and Excel Viewer 2003 describes how to make the current Word 2003 and Excel 2003 viewers capable of viewing Word 2007 and Word 2003 documents by installing a Compatibility Pack. I was looking for Office 2007 viewers so we do not need to install the Office 2007 Compatibility Pack.

A: The following viewers are available:

• Excel Viewer. Does not require the Compatibility Pack.
• PowerPoint Viewer. Does not require the Compatibility Pack.
• Word Viewer. Requires download of the Compatibility Pack (Microsoft Office Compatibility Pack for Word, Excel, and PowerPoint 2007 File Formats).
• Access Snapshot Viewer. Enables you to view a report snapshot without having the standard or run-time versions of Microsoft Access 97 through Access 2007.

[Updated 1/23/09 to include Access Snapshot Viewer--thanks, Blake!] 

- Andrea Weiss