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You are here: MacNN Forums > Software - Troubleshooting and Discussion > Mac OS X > Why would someone having problems opening PNGs?

Why would someone having problems opening PNGs?
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Jul 11, 2006, 02:25 PM
 
I send these sceenshots out to clients and they have problems with them, why? thanks.
     
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Jul 11, 2006, 02:38 PM
 
kevs strikes again with his "zero-information" policy.

How could we possibly answer your question when we don't know anything about what your clients are running?
     
Clinically Insane
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Jul 11, 2006, 02:41 PM
 
Because they're trying to open them with Excel? Could be pretty much anything…
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Jul 11, 2006, 05:18 PM
 
PNG is a relatively new graphics format. Some Windows users appear to have problems using PNG files still because they do not know what application to open them with, or because Windows doesn't know what application to open them with. Internet Explorer (apart from the very latest versions) doesn't handle them well at all.
     
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Jul 11, 2006, 05:47 PM
 
Are you sending them with Mail.app? Do you have the 'Windows friendly' attachments option switched on? Maybe they are trying to open up the resource fork?
     
kevs  (op)
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Jul 11, 2006, 07:30 PM
 
Thanks Brass, that answers it pretty well. why would Mac create such a non cross platform file for such an important function??

Philm: I'm sending with Entourage.

Wataru, again, could you please wait at least two weeks before complain. (let other people breathe...) wait two weeks then complain. or even better: just ignore my posts. I mean you never have anything positive or informative to say anyway really. anyway, if I ignore your answers in future, I'm not trying to be rude, just waiting for others to pipe in -- just so you know.
     
Clinically Insane
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Jul 11, 2006, 07:39 PM
 
PNGs are cross-platform — Mac, Linux and Windows can all read them. Just not freakin' Windows 95.
Chuck
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Jul 11, 2006, 08:38 PM
 
Indeed, Windows should have no problem reading them. Maybe they ARE using Windows 95?!
Mac OS X 10.5.0, Mac Pro 2.66GHz/2 GB RAM/X1900 XT, 23" ACD
esdesign
     
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Jul 11, 2006, 09:26 PM
 
Windows' Internet Explorer often has trouble with PNG's.

It's NOT Apple's fault, it's Microsoft's. PNG is a well-established cross-platform format. I've found that ANY version of Windows pre-WinXP SP2 has serious PNG issues unless you use a good graphics program like Photoshop, ErfanView, etc.
     
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Jul 11, 2006, 09:29 PM
 
Originally Posted by kevs
Thanks Brass, that answers it pretty well. why would Mac create such a non cross platform file for such an important function??
Oh, and the name of the company is, "Apple Computer, Inc." not, "Mac."

And Kevs, even with Entourage, you still need to make sure that you're not sending emails out with Mac-only compression.
     
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Jul 11, 2006, 09:43 PM
 
Originally Posted by kevs
Thanks Brass, that answers it pretty well. why would Mac create such a non cross platform file for such an important function??

Philm: I'm sending with Entourage.

Wataru, again, could you please wait at least two weeks before complain. (let other people breathe...) wait two weeks then complain. or even better: just ignore my posts. I mean you never have anything positive or informative to say anyway really. anyway, if I ignore your answers in future, I'm not trying to be rude, just waiting for others to pipe in -- just so you know.
Apple (Mac) did not create the PNG format.

PNG is a widely accepted open format (designed to replace GIFF, which is proprietary, to some degree). Apple and most other developers have embraced it as being an excellent format for many uses. Microsoft and Windows (and escpecially IE) have been exceptionally slow in working with PNGs. PNGs have been widely used for a few years now, but IE has only just become fully compatible with them.

MS have even been accused by some of deliberately trying to slow down the adoption of PNG so that their own graphics format (I forgot the name, and don't even know if it's available yet) would become more popular. Of course, MS would never really abuse it's dominant desktop OS position to damage a competing product like that, but you could understand how some people might see it that way.
     
kevs  (op)
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Jul 11, 2006, 10:49 PM
 
thanks guys for great info, appreciate it.
Anyway, I'm making these quick screenshots and sending them to a major photo stock agency in UK, and lady says she can't open them. and this occurred also, recently with someone else. So, I know she is on windows, did not ask yet what version, just made jpegs for her. but damn, what a hassle. Also, I assume these people are on outlook -- no? my best guess. Isn't this ridiculous though? at what point in time will I not have to convert for jpeg -- Longhorn? oh, it wont matter, folks like her will have older windows versions. Hence , for me, I wish apple had stayed with jpegs for screenshots really.

what is the best app for quickly converting to jpeg.
     
Clinically Insane
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Jul 11, 2006, 10:57 PM
 
If you don't have an obscene number of photos, Preview can convert to JPEG and doesn't require any downloading or anything. Otherwise, I've heard good things about DropJPEG.

And Tinkertool (or one of those similar free apps) can change the default screenshot format, I think.
Chuck
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Jul 12, 2006, 02:08 AM
 
You can take the screenshots using Preview itself, look in File -> Grab. Then save them as a file of your choice.

J
     
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Jul 12, 2006, 07:05 AM
 
In Terminal

defaults write com.apple.screencapture type jpg
Log out and log back in. Your screenshots should be in jpeg format now.

Also not sure why you're coming down on wataru. Your first post contained no useful information.
     
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Jul 12, 2006, 07:14 AM
 
i believe with tinkertool or perhaps OnyX you can change the screenshot format, into something friendly like JPEG.
     
   
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