SDW Converter

Convert StarWriter documents (SDW) online for free


Drop or upload your .SDW file
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How to convert your SDW file

  1. Click the "Select File" button above, and choose your SDW file.
  2. You'll see a preview.
  3. Click the "Convert file to..." button to save your file in the format you want.

Convert SDW to another file type

The converter easily converts your SDW documents to various formats - free and online. No Apache OpenOffice or or other Text software needed.

  • SDW to PDF
  • SDW to PSW
  • SDW to DOTM
  • SDW to MET
  • SDW to SXD
  • SDW to FODP
  • SDW to SYLK
  • SDW to ODP
  • SDW to SXW
  • SDW to PPTX
  • SDW to UOP
  • SDW to ODB

Convert a file to SDW

To convert other file formats to the "Legacy Document Format" file type, you need software like Apache OpenOffice or a similar tool.


About SDW files

The .SDW format primarily stores legacy text documents created by StarOffice StarWriter, an outdated word processor developed by StarDivision (later acquired by Sun Microsystems). It uses the Microsoft Compound File binary container format. A secondary, but very common, use for .SDW is as a MrSID World File. In this context, it is a plain-text file containing georeferencing coordinates used by Esri GIS software or LizardTech tools to properly position a companion SID raster image on a map.

Because StarOffice is entirely obsolete, attempting to open a .SDW document today is frustrating. Modern word processors like Microsoft Word do not natively support it. Users must rely on legacy versions of Apache OpenOffice or LibreOffice, which frequently struggle with formatting quirks, broken tables, and missing fonts. For GIS users, the .SDW world file has its own limits: it is strictly a sidecar text file. It contains no image data itself, meaning if the primary SID file is missing, the .SDW file is completely useless.

Converting .SDW files is the most practical way to recover and preserve your data. For modern editing, convert .SDW documents to DOCX or ODT. For reliable long-term archiving, convert to .PDF/A to permanently freeze the layout. If you only need the raw text and do not care about formatting, convert to TXT. Drag and drop your file to analyze and convert it - free, online, and without installing obsolete software.

Use Convert.Guru to open and convert your SDW file.

Users also converted SID, SWRD, SWD, SDV, CDW, VOR, OTF, OTH and PDF files.


FAQ

If you want to convert SDW file to SHP, KML, KMZ, GPX, GEOJSON, TOPOJSON, TIF, TIFF, ECW, SID or IMG, you can use Apache OpenOffice or similar software from the "Legacy Word Processing Document" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….

To convert LAZ, KMZ, DTM, CSV, DEM, PRJ, LAS, GPX, DSM, SHP, DBF or KML files to SDW, try Apache OpenOffice or another comparable tool in the "Legacy Word Processing Document" category.



The SDW Converter Story

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 SDW converter.