What is HWP?

Hancom Word (HWP) is the standard word processing format in South Korea, used extensively in government and education.

What is DOC?

DOC is the legacy binary document format used by Microsoft Word 97-2003. While widely supported, it lacks some modern features found in DOCX.

When Should You Use HWP vs DOC?

HWP vs DOC: Key Differences

• •HWP uses lossy compression while DOC uses lossy compression — both take the same approach to file size management.
• •Neither format changes compression philosophy — both are lossy compression — so any size differences are due to encoding efficiency, not a shift in quality approach.
• •Transparency: N/A - Not applicable to document formats
• •HWP files are typically 100KB to 20MB while DOC files range 50KB to 5MB
• •HWP is optimized for korean documents, hancom office while DOC is designed for legacy documents, older systems — choose based on your specific workflow needs

Advantages of HWP

• ✓HWP applies lossy compression specifically calibrated for Korean documents, Hancom Office.
• ✓HWP enjoys broad native support across operating systems, browsers, and creative tools alike.
• ✓HWP delivers impressive compression ratios, shrinking files dramatically while keeping visual quality high.
• ✓You will find HWP support built into virtually every tool that handles Korean documents, Hancom Office — no plugins or converters needed.

Advantages of DOC

• ✓DOC applies lossy compression specifically calibrated for Legacy documents, older systems.
• ✓DOC enjoys broad native support across operating systems, browsers, and creative tools alike.
• ✓DOC delivers impressive compression ratios, shrinking files dramatically while keeping visual quality high.
• ✓You will find DOC support built into virtually every tool that handles Legacy documents, older systems — no plugins or converters needed.

Common Use Cases for HWP to DOC Conversion

• Presentations and slideshows
• Technical documentation
• Email correspondence
• Forms and templates
• Compliance documentation
• Meeting minutes and notes

Industry Applications

Best Practices for HWP to DOC Conversion

• →Before converting HWP to DOC, review the document structure — multi-column layouts, text boxes, and floating images behave differently across formats
• →Export a PDF preview alongside the DOC file so you have a reference of how the document should look
• →Check that hyperlinks and cross-references survived the HWP to DOC conversion — some formats handle links differently
• →Run a spell check before conversion to avoid propagating errors into the final document
• →Keep the original editable file in case the conversion introduces layout shifts
• →Test the output on at least two different applications or devices

Troubleshooting HWP to DOC Conversion

• !HWP to DOC formatting looks off → complex layouts with tables and columns may shift between formats
• !Fonts render differently in DOC → embed fonts or use standard web-safe fonts before converting
• !Images missing from the DOC output → ensure images are embedded in HWP, not linked externally
• !Tracked changes disappeared after converting HWP to DOC → some document formats don't support revision tracking

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