New versions of Word for Mac

[nehama]

I currently am using Word vX (2001), which has served me well.
If I switch to a newer version will it alter the formating of my documents? Will there be any 'translation' problems?
Should I just stick with the version I have or are there advantages to switching?
How difficult is to adapt to the newer versions? I've heard that some of them have lots of glitches.
And, probably most important, can I even use any of them on my old G4 computer, which will now have a new external hard drive?
Thank you.

[kuwisdelu]

Well that all depends on what you use Word for.

What kinds of things do you do with it? Just general word processing? Work? Do you need to share documents often? Is your formatting complicated or generally rather simple? Etc.

There are pros and cons to upgrading, in addition to the possibilities of alternative office software, but knowing what you use it for will help. Also, what OS version are you using?

[alyssalynne]

I'm not sure about the compatibility with your computer, but I'm using Word 2008 for Mac (Home & Student Edition) and so far, it's been fine. It takes a little getting used to because for years I've only used the PC version of Word, but I haven't had any problems with the new Mac Word.