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how to open unknown file
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Fresh-Faced Recruit
Join Date: Apr 2011
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Hi everyone. Can anybody tell me how I can open unknown files as well as repair file extensions? Thanks in advance. 
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Study Hard to reach your Goals
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Moderator Emeritus
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: Copenhagen
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Do you mean opening a file of an unknown type? ’Cause opening a file you don’t know would be … well, not really possible.
What’s the file name? Does it have any extension at all?
There’s no such thing as ‘repairing’ file extensions. You can change a file’s extension into anything you want, but if you don’t know what the contents of the file are, then you can’t really know what extension to give the file either. You could always try just adding .txt and opening the file in TextEdit—if you’re lucky, that’ll give you a hint.
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Moderator  Join Date: May 2001
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You have to know what kind of file it is: is it an image, a video, a text document? Does it already have a file extension (such as .jpg, .cab, .iso, .txt, .mov)?
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I don't suffer from insanity, I enjoy every minute of it.
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Mac Elite
Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: Washington state
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Originally Posted by kirrbs50 
Hi everyone. Can anybody tell me how I can open unknown files as well as repair file extensions? Thanks in advance.
Allow me to disagree with the previous responders. There used to be a utility called "File View" that could open any file and view it in ASCII. One could copy text from its window and paste it into a word processor. It came with a file translation software program. I do not know if it or a similar package still exists.
sam
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Clinically Insane
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: planning a comeback !
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Moderator  Join Date: Apr 2000
Location: Gothenburg, Sweden
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"File View" sounds a lot like the very old program CanOpener.
Many files can be identified with the first few characters of the text, if you open it in a text editor such as the excellent TextWrangler (above).
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The new Mac Pro has up to 30 MB of cache inside the processor itself. That's more than the HD in my first Mac. Somehow I'm still running out of space.
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Mac Elite
Join Date: Apr 2000
Location: Los Angeles, CA
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The venerable "file" utility within the Terminal is rather good at identifying a lot of file types.
1. Open Terminal (inside Applications > Utilities)
2. Type "file" (without the quotes) and a space
3. Drag the file to the Terminal and it should put the path
4. Hit Enter
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Moderator Emeritus
Join Date: Mar 2004
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Originally Posted by SVass
Allow me to disagree with the previous responders. There used to be a utility called "File View" that could open any file and view it in ASCII. One could copy text from its window and paste it into a word processor. It came with a file translation software program. I do not know if it or a similar package still exists.
sam
That’s still only relevant for unknown file types. An unknown file would be a file you don’t know, a file that may or may not exist. How would you open a file whose existence or location you aren’t sure of?
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Clinically Insane
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: planning a comeback !
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Originally Posted by Oisín
That’s still only relevant for unknown file types. An unknown file would be a file you don’t know, a file that may or may not exist. How would you open a file whose existence or location you aren’t sure of?
I doubt that's what the OP is talking about.
-t
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