Laptop cannot open downloaded microsoft word files

[Crussie_M]

My laptop is very seletive in what microsoft word files it downloads properly. More often than not however, I am able to download the document but when I click to open it, i receive the prompt that I do not have the app to open it, which is odd as I have Microsoft Office installed and have used the software seamlessly in the past. I am however able to properly download and open the same document on another computer. Would appreciate some help in resolving this issue.

[Riddle_Decipher]

@Crussie_M

Welcome to the HP Forums 🙂 

I would like to take a moment and thank you for using this forum, it is a great place to find answers. 

As I understand you are unable to open the downloaded word files,

Don't worry as I'll be glad to help, however, to provide an accurate resolution, I need a few more details: 

Have you assigned or set a default app for all your .docx format files?

If you haven't, that's the reason you have this issue, as it's not able to auto-detect the program created to open the file and here's what you need to do:

In Settings, click on the “System” icon, and scroll down to “Default Apps” in the left-hand side menu.
 

 

Choose Default Apps by File Type

Overall, how you choose to organize your app commands is a matter of personal preference, but certain options such as “Default Apps by File Type” can usually tend to be a bit easier to manage for the average everyday user.
 

To choose which apps launch which types of media or link by the type of file, select the “Choose Default Apps by File Type” option. Here you’ll be greeted by a two-tiered menu, the first containing every file type that Windows 10 is designed to handle, and the second with the list of apps you currently have installed on the machine.
 

Say for example you want to launch .doc, .docx, etc... files in Windows Media Player rather than the in-house Movies app. To change this, just scroll down to “.docx” on the left, and once selected, choose the corresponding application on the right that you’d like to set as the default.

Keep me posted,

If I have helped you resolve the issue, feel free to give me a virtual high-five by clicking the 'Thumbs Up' icon below, 

Followed by clicking on "Accept as solution" button,

Have a great day!

[Crussie_M]

Thank you for responding. Sorry as I had not been informed via email that someone had responded to my query.

As for your suggestion, Microsoft Word has already been set as my default for .docx files, so it did not help in my case. I think i have fixed the issue though. As per the suggestion from the microsoft site, I repaired the Microsoft Office program through the Control Panel and restarted. This seems to have corrected the issue. Fingers crossed that it does not resurface.

Thank you for your assistance regardless

[Riddle_Decipher]

@Crussie_M

Thank you for the responding,

I appreciate your time and efforts, 

I'm glad you found a suitable solution for your concern,

Thanks for taking the time to let the community know about the update,

You've been great to work with and it has been a genuine pleasure interacting with you.

I hope both you and your product works great and remain healthy for a long time 😉 

To simply say thanks for my efforts to assist you, please click the "Thumbs Up" button to give me a Kudos.

And select Accepted as solution to help others find the same solution as you have.

Take care now and do have a fabulous week ahead. 🙂