8mm Forum: General PC help needed

This is topic General PC help needed in forum General Yak at 8mm Forum.

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Posted by Michael O'Regan (Member # 938) on May 31, 2009, 05:36 AM:

When I try to open files attached to Emails or downloaded from websites I am constantly getting an intensely irritating "windows cannot open this file" message.
This happens with every single file.
Anyone got any idea how I can fix this/what has caused it?
Would really appreciate any help.

-Mike

Posted by Martin Jones (Member # 1163) on May 31, 2009, 09:00 AM:

Michael,
I'm not a computer expert, so I'm not able to enter into an analysis of your problem but that message indicates that the program needed to open the file is for some reason not acessible on your computer.
Beecause you are talking about files downloaded with emails and from websites, would they be all the same type of file...say .PDF files? If all the files are the same type then you need to re-install the program that they need; for example .PDF files need Adobe Acrobat Reader, which practically everyone has installed on their machine, and which is a free download if you need to reinstall. Re-installing the correct program should repair the existing installation if it has become corrupt. Are all the files you are having trouble with the same type?

Depending on your computer literacy and understanding, you can Google .. "windows cannot open this file" for a whole list of possible helpful articles. If everything fails, I usually fall back on asking the 10 year old next door!

Martin

[ May 31, 2009, 11:00 AM: Message edited by: Martin Jones ]

Posted by Claus Harding (Member # 702) on May 31, 2009, 09:04 AM:

Michael,

The only two things I can think of is that a virus may have disabled something in Windows, or some extension has gotten corrupted from, say, a PC crash.
Have you tried to download a separate graphics/file viewer (IrfanView)? It is simple and free.

OpenOffice is free too, and should open any text docs for you.
I know it is a pain, but if you find that Windows needs to be re-installed, and this is the only thing wrong, these might be a workaround for you instead of re-installing.
These are my initial thoughts; maybe others can add more.

Best of luck,
Claus.

Posted by Michael O'Regan (Member # 938) on May 31, 2009, 12:51 PM:

Thanks chaps.
pdf files are not a problem. The ones that won't open include .doc and .rtf files.

I've tried Irfan - no good I'm afraid.

Posted by Martin Jones (Member # 1163) on May 31, 2009, 01:50 PM:

Michael,

.doc and .rtf; I presume you use Word or Wordpad for these.
Check the "associations" as follows...

Open "My Computer" - Tool Menu - Folder Options - File Types -
Under "Registered File Types" scroll down to "DOC" and click on it. In the lower pane it should say "Opens with Microsoft Word"(or Wordpad). If it DOESN'T,
Click Change, select WORD or WORDPAD from the list of recommended programs, and make sure that the "Always use...." check box is ticked. Click OK.
If it DOES,
click Change and make sure the "always use.... " box is ticked. Click OK.

Then close the File windows and My Computer.
Then repeat the above for .RTF
If .DOC and RTF files still don't open, then re-install Microsoft Word (or Wordpad, if that's what you use) by going to Settings - Control Panel - Add or Remove programs - Microsoft Office9 or Wordpad) - and select the "Change" option. Follow the instructions.
None of that will hurt your computer.
If it still doesn't work, you may have to re-install Windows.
If you're unsure about how to do tha seek professional help.

Best of luck,
Martin

Posted by Michael O'Regan (Member # 938) on May 31, 2009, 02:45 PM:

Thanks, Martin. Tried all of that - still no luck.
Ah, I give up.....give me a letter with an attachment paper-clipped on anyday [Smile]

....I might consider your last suggestion of getting proffesional help though - the wife's been suggesting that for some time now!!! [Smile]

-Mike

Posted by Martin Jones (Member # 1163) on June 01, 2009, 06:05 AM:

Michael,
Just another thought...
Can you open already created and saved documents by directly clicking on a DOC or RTF file in a Folder Window when the Office Word program is not already open? In other words, does such an action result in the program being started and the file loaded and displayed?
If you can, the problem is then one of starting the program from the Web Browser; try re-installing the Browser itself or using another one... Firefox, Opera etc.
If not, this post won't help!
Martin

Posted by Michael O'Regan (Member # 938) on June 01, 2009, 07:05 AM:

Hi Martin,

I finally got it to work by following your previous instructions - but instead of directly opening the file I tried saving it to my PC first, after which I was able to open them.

Thanks for all your help.

I'm really grateful.

-Mike

Posted by Martin Jones (Member # 1163) on June 01, 2009, 07:53 AM:

That confirms what I suspected in my previous post; once you had saved them to a PC folder, you can open from that folder directly without first starting the Word program. There is therefore some strange quirk with your Web Browser not linking with Word. If you're happy to save first, then open, fine

Martin

[ June 01, 2009, 10:06 AM: Message edited by: Martin Jones ]

Posted by Martin Jones (Member # 1163) on June 01, 2009, 10:17 AM:

I found this, which relates directly to opening Word from Internet Explorer usig the advanced functions... http://www.shaunakelly.com/word/sharing/OpenDocInIE.html

That's it...I'm like a dog with a bone... must persuade myself to stop there!
Martin

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