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not sure if I should post this here

hurricane3

hurricane3

SOH-CM-2025
I don't know if this is the correct forum to post this question in ,but here goes anyway. For some reason I can no longer change file extension names , like readme files. I try to and it says if I change it ,it may no longer become usable, and will go to a file that I can't open ,the one with what looks like a rectange with a bunch of colored dots.
I looked in folder options but could find nothing that would seem to apply, anyone know what to change so I can rename folders like I used to?
 
The new Windows security systems are crazy. You must turn those off. One of the reasons I went back to WinXP from vista, (cough).

If you turn some file extensions to other formats, you do indeed ruin the files, or change them to unreadable things. A TXT cannot become a BMP or JPG, etc. You know that though. Some poeple do not. Very few formats can be changed to another without losing its readability.
 
I will often change the file extension designator to save an original version, ie, config.ini to config.inix. That does indeed make it unreadable. To make it readable again I just remove the x. You cannot change the type of file by just renaming the extension, it still remains the original file type but unusable because the computer will not know what to do with it. To do that you need some sort of conversion program, like with a graphics program, you can open a bmp and then save it as a jpg.

Beard
 
what baffles me

What I can't understand is I'am running Windows XP Home and have always in the past been able to rename files. Now all of a sudden I can't. Could it be a Windows update that caused this change?
 
Extension Changes

Hur,
I hear your pain. Bugs the heck out of me too. But, there are ways to get around this.

I rename ALL my 'aircraft.cfg' to 'aircraft.cfg.txt' so it will not get deleted when I do a system restore to a date before cfg was originally created. You can still dbl-clk to open it (it's 'txt'). But I could rename to 'aircraft.back' and still 'force' XP to open with Notepad. Read below for example. The 'trick' is to start with right-click AFTER you rename it.

For readme I have right-clicked on file, renamed it to 'readme.txt.bck' and got the warning but ignore it, and hit enter ('OK'). I then go right-click the renamed file, go to 'Open With' and un-ck 'Always Open With', yet pick Notepad then click 'OK'. When I dbl-click it opens with Notepad in spite of the extension (*.bck). This is one way to 'force it'. This can be done with any extension such as txt, diz, doc, cfg, log, ini, etc. I use XP. But a 'doc' will not look right in notepad. Or a bmp (dah). So you are only limited by what you have to open a file. Notepad, IExplorer (for xml?), Paint, Wins Fax and Image Viewer (which is that (icon) 'rectangle with colored dots').

For folders you might have system wide 'security' tagging of folders as 'read only', 'hidden' and even 'blocked'. Sometimes all 3. Right click on folder allows you to change the ATTRIBUTES for that folder only (even if it states 'for all sub folders'). Bogus.

You can do mass change of how all sub-folders LOOK (ie: how files are listed-icons or details) but not attributes. Click on folder that is showing files listing as 'details', right click folder, click on 'Folder Options' in Tools, then click on 'apply to all folders', click 'OK'. Now all folders when opened will list files in 'detail' style (as opposed to icons).

I suspect you are right about 'updates' messing this 'folder attributes', 'file protection', file 'permissions' (bad word here), 'blocked', etc. What business does MS have on going and changing things like that via updates? Just not right. And you can't undo the whole thing because you don't know which 'update' did it. It has to be done one folder / file at a time. So like I said-I hear your pain. Security holes my foot (hehe).
Chuck B
Napamule
 
wow a lot of info here

You've givin me a lot of info. Will have to print it out. Yous right, Microsoft has no right to messs things up with their update, this security thing has gone nuts.
 
hurricane3

I am seeing an inconsistency. You are not renaming the file extension. You are renaming the file. The extension is the character set after the "." Normally you would not change a file extension.

Lets break it down aircraft is the file name in aircraft.cfg. The .cfg is the file extension. Windows uses those file extensions to tell it what programs to run with and also what icon to display. This is refereed to as a file association. If you leave off the file extension or if you change the file extension windows will display this message.

"If you change a file name extension, the file might become unusable. Are you sure you want to change it?"

In Windows XP when you go to change a file name it automatically selects the whole name to be changed including the file extension. The key is to change the name and not change the extension.
 
hurricane3 said:
You've givin me a lot of info. Will have to print it out. Yous right, Microsoft has no right to messs things up with their update, this security thing has gone nuts.
Click to expand...

I should also say this is not a security issue it is user error.

This was not caused by an update of any kind.
 
now I'am confused

I don't understand why this is a user error, because ,for instance when there was and aircraft update I always put the new readme file in the aircraft folder to let me know the update had been applied. I would always rename the readme as something like readme-1 so I could put it in the aircraft folder if there was already a readme file in the folder.
Now it won't let me rename the readme ,and I didn't do anything different so how is this a user error?
 
hurricane3 said:
For some reason I can no longer change file extension names , like readme files. I try to and it says if I change it ,it may no longer become usable, and will go to a file that I can't open ,the one with what looks like a rectange with a bunch of colored dots.
I looked in folder options but could find nothing that would seem to apply, anyone know what to change so I can rename folders like I used to?
Click to expand...

From your description you are changing the name but what is happening is you are loosing the .txt at the end of the read me. When you do that the file icon changes as you described and the file although it appears to be unusable it really is OK. it just needs the .txt thrown back on the end of the name.

readme.txt is the file name do you see that full name?

If not the issue is you have a windows option turned on.

From inside any folder go to the navigation bar on the top of the folder and select tools.

In the tools menue select Folder Options

In the folder options go to the view tab

Scroll down the list and look for Hide extensions for known file types

If there is a check beside it remove the check.

now when you look at the read me files you should see the full name and the extension. readme.txt

Now when you change the name only change what comes before the .txt.

So you can make it readme-1.txt and it should work fine. If you change readme.txt to readme-1 you will get the problem you are describing. Windows because you removed the .txt off the end of the name no longer knows what to do with the file.
 
no check

I looked at the folder options and there was no check beside Hide extensions for known file types, the problem is I've had this computer for ten years and for ten years I've been renameing files with no trouble, now all of a sudden I can't rename certain files, Like readme's that have txt with them and also files within the aircraft folders that might require renameing.
There is always one type of plane that is supposed to have gun sounds, in FS9 and your supposed to rename a file in the effects file from (I think) FS9_gun-sounds to FX_gun sounds,or something like that, I tried renaming it the last time I installed one of those planes,(the gun sounds never worked anyway) and it woldn't let me.
So somthing has changed and it wasn't something I did to change it.( at least I don't think so).
 
OK Bear with me here.

I put together some screenshots to explain what I am hearing you say the issue is. Some of them you will need to follow the links.

This is my folder with two files in it. One is named Readme.txt and the other is Readme-1

Notice that the file with the .txt extension has a different icon than the file that has no extension.

fn1.jpg


Both of them can be opened as text.

Readme.txt you open by simply double clicking it.

http://www.sim-outhouse.net/images/filenames/fn2.jpg

The Readme-1 you must right click it and select notepad

http://www.sim-outhouse.net/images/filenames/fn3.jpg

As seen in this shot.

http://www.sim-outhouse.net/images/filenames/fn4.jpg

When I go to rename a file notice that Windows selects the whole file name including the extension .txt. This is how XP has always treated renaming files. Windows 7 does not follow this format. In W7 when you go to rename a file it only highlights the name of the file not the extension. (you can still change the extension by selecting it but that is another topic)

fn5.jpg


If I just start typing I will over write all of the text. I renamed this file to readme-2 and I did not put the .txt on the end.

http://www.sim-outhouse.net/images/filenames/fn6.jpg

When I press enter Windows tries to stop me from making a mistake by asking me if I really want to change the file extension. It is not talking about the name of the file just the .txt that was on the end.

http://www.sim-outhouse.net/images/filenames/fn7.jpg

This is what happens when I tell Windows Yes.

The file name has been changed but since it no longer has the extension Windows does not know what program works with it. It therefore changes the icon to an unknown file type. If you select it Windows will prompt you to select a program to open the file with.

fn8.jpg


You can very simply fix it by selecting rename and adding the .txt back to the end of the file name.

Now if you are still having an issue provide screen shots of what you are seeing when you try and change a name.
 
First thankyou

Thankyou for all the trouble you went to ,to help ,I understand what your saying and the pics help a lot, but what about files that don't have txt in the name like the one I mentioned about changing gun sounds?
And again why now am I having this problem when I've changed the names of files literally hundreds of times in the past. As I said somthing has changed.
 
Lets change a sound name and see what happens.

Find c172_rpm1.wav

It is a default sound and should be in C:\Program Files\Microsoft Games\Flight Simulator 9\Aircraft\c172\sound c172_rpm1.wav

Change the name to anything you want and let us know what happens.

Providing screen shots always help make the issue clearer so provide as many as you can.
 
ok I changed it

I changed the wav file and got the same message that it might not be usable. I changed it to c 172 rpm and it went to the icon with the dots, I don't know how to send screenshots so all I can do is describe it,but it looks like the one in your pics. Now how do I change it back? I tried opening it with note pad ,but it was unreadable ,same with word. So now what?
 
ok changed it back

I changed it back by renameing it the same as it was in the beginng. You making me nervious changeing files in the defalut planes.
 
No need to worry that is why I choose a default sound. We can replace it very easily. :icon_lol:

Here is my almost final thought on the subject and it is probably the key to what is going on.

You know and I believe you that you used to change file names without a problem before.

I believe it and here is why.

At default Windows XP and Windows 7 hide the file extensions of known files. What that means is if Windows has an association with the file extension it will not show that extension in the file name. So a readme.txt file will look just like this readme. There will be no .txt on the end because windows knows that Notepad is the program that opens .txt files.

This means that you can right click any text file and change the name with out any hassles.

The issue is in this hobby at some point in time we have to be able to change the file extension. So we always hit a point where we have to change the that Windows option.

That option is the one I showed you earlier that you confirmed the check was not there. If you want to turn it back on put the check back in the box. I would caution you not to though as that is also a security risk to you and ultimately will cause confusion when you try and change a file extension and it does not change.

The better thing to do is recognize what the file extension is before you rename it and make sure you put the proper extension back into the name.


This statement here confirms to me that you are indeed omitting the file extension when you rename the file. It was only after you renamed it back to c172_rpm1.wav that it was fixed. That happened because .wav is the proper file extension

I changed it back by renameing it the same as it was in the beginng. You making me nervious changeing files in the defalut planes.
Click to expand...
 
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