Reasons Why Save Worksheet As Is Displayed in Excel

ID: Q71520

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SUMMARY

In Microsoft Excel, after you make changes to a document, you may get the following message when you attempt to close the file: 


   Save Changes in 'name.xls'?


After you choose Yes, the Save Worksheet As dialog box may appear and prompt you to enter a new filename.


MORE INFORMATION

The second dialog box may appear for the following are reasons:

  1. The file was imported into Microsoft Excel in another file format (such as text). You may have saved the file with an .XLS extension. For example, if you change the filename NAME.TXT to NAME.XLS in the Save Worksheet As dialog box, the underlying format is not changed and Microsoft Excel still considers it to be a text file.

    To correctly save to a Normal format:

    a. From the File menu, choose Save As.
    b. Type the name of your document, excluding the .XLS extension.
    c. Choose Options.
    d. Select Normal from the File Format list box and choose OK.


  2. The file was originally saved in a format other than Normal. Microsoft Excel will prompt you with the Save Worksheet As dialog box each time you make changes and close your worksheet, giving you the chance to save it in a Normal format. File formats other than Normal will not save changes to the worksheet if that format does not support the changes you made. Microsoft Excel feels it is important that you are aware your file is not in the Normal format.


  3. The file was saved as a template (with the extension .XLT). The purpose of a template is to retain the original template file, so that when changes are made to it, Microsoft Excel will prompt you for a new filename to prevent you from overwriting your template.


  4. The file is marked with a read-only attribute. If the file is read-only, Excel will display "[Read-Only]" next to the filename at the top of the open document.

    To change the attribute so that changes can be made to the file without giving it another name:

    a. Start File Manager in Windows 3.0.
    b. Highlight the read-only file.
    c. From the File menu, choose Change Attributes.
    d. Cancel the selection of Read Only.


Additional query words: 3.0 4.0 5.0 


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Last Reviewed: March 21, 1999