Unable to set Word 2010 as default program

I have tried everything I know to get this to work but nothing seems to work.

I have Windows 7, and installed Office 2010 but when I try to open a file.docx file it opens in the old Word 2002 and not Word 2010.

I have right cliked the file and many other files and looked for Word 2010 but it is not there to select. Only the old Word 2002.

I have looked in control panel and looked at the file associations and there too I can not find Word 2010 when I try to alter the association of docx.

The only way I can open the file in Word 2010 is the long way and scrolling through each folder until I find the file I want to print or alter.

Any ideas anyone ?

Have you made the setting in your Word Options? If not, click on the Office logo at the top-left corner of the Word page, and click on Word Options at the very bottom. Click on Save, Save Documents, and in the "Save documents in this format" box, select: "Word 2010." When you're done, at the very bottom of the screen, IF you have this box, don't forget to check it: "Apply to all future documents." (This option appears on some Word Options pages but not all.)

I have opened Word 2010, all good so far, I create a dummy letter and use the 'save as' and select docx as the file type. the file saves ok in docx format as far as i can see. but when I double click the file on my desktop it opens in Word 2002 not Word 2010 !!

I right click the file and go to properties and click 'Change' in the General tab but can not find Word 2010, I navigate to 'C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Office' and see

Clipart
MEDIA
Office10
Office12
Office14
Stationary
Templates

Looking in all of these I do not see Word 2010.

The only way I can start Word 2010 is via the shortcut link in my task bar.
the properties show this...

Target: "C:\Program Files (x86)\Common Files\microsoft shared\Virtualization Handler\CVH.EXE" "Microsoft Word 2010 9014006104090000"

Start in: C:\PROGRA~2\COMMON~1\MICROS~1\VIRTUA~1

Jason, the one thing you didn't say was that you changed the setting in
"Word Options." Did you click on the Office logo at the top-left corner of the Word page, click on Word Options at the very bottom, click on Save, Save Documents, and in the "Save documents in this format" box, select:
"Word 2010" ??????

Imperfect1 said:

Jason, the one thing you didn't say was that you changed the setting in
"Word Options." Did you click on the Office logo at the top-left corner of the Word page, click on Word Options at the very bottom, click on Save, Save Documents, and in the "Save documents in this format" box, select:
"Word 2010" ??????

See attached image for screen shot of the Word 2010 options available to me.

There is no option in this for Word 2010....

thats just it i can not find the Word 2010 programe to associate with the doc file...

these are the files inside the folder Office14

OneNote (a folder)
NPSPWRAP.DLL
OSPP.HTM
OSPP.VBS
SLERROR.XML