Extract text from AW files
To convert your AW file to another format, you need Applixware or other Text software.
To convert other file formats to the "Word Processor Document" file type, you need software like Applixware or a similar tool.
The .AW file extension represents a specific challenge in digital preservation, primarily functioning as a legacy word processing document created by Applix Words. This software was the centerpiece of the Applixware suite, a dominant force on Linux and Unix workstations in the late 1990s. While robust for its time, the format is now effectively obsolete.
The core issue users face is strict proprietary lock-in. Modern heavyweights like Microsoft Word and even the versatile LibreOffice have largely dropped support for the .aw import filters. This means attempting to open these files results in gibberish or error messages, trapping your formatted text, layout, and historical data inside an unreadable binary shell.
For practical recovery, the recommended target is DOCX (Office Open XML) if you intend to edit the document, as it preserves the structure closest to the original word processor intent. For strictly viewing or legal archiving, converting to PDF is preferable to ensure the layout remains fixed across devices.
Note: You may also encounter this extension as a Microsoft Answer Wizard file. These are system files found in older Microsoft Office directories (like Office 2003) containing binary search indexes. These cannot be converted to text and serve only internal system functions.
Convert.Guru analyzes your AW file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.
Users also converted 24, 75, TEMPLATETENANT, PA and W files.
If you want to convert AW file to PA, W, CSV, JSON, XML, YAML, YML, TOML, INI, CFG, CONF or DAT, you can use Applixware or similar software from the "Legacy Word Processing Document" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….
To convert DBF, XML, SQLITE, XLSX, SQL, TSV, ACCDB, YAML, MDB, CSV, ODS or JSON files to AW, try Applixware or another comparable tool in the "Legacy Word Processing Document" category.
The history of Convert.Guru began over 25 years ago in California with Tom Simondi’s file-format database. A former contributor to Space Shuttle development and a software pioneer of the 1980s, Simondi established a trusted resource for file type analysis that was even referenced by Microsoft Windows XP. Today, we use modern technology to process and convert thousands of file formats while continually improving our AW converter.