Answer Line: What Apps Should I Use to Open Mystery Files?

I use Microsoft Works. When I send a spreadsheet or word processing file via e-mail, the recipients sometimes complain that they are unable to open the attached file. What should I do?

Sonia Delmundo, Brooklyn

I'll answer your specific question first, and then I'll address the general issue of dealing with file formats your system doesn't automatically support.

The best way to share files created in Works is to save the files in a non-Works format. Current versions of Works come with Microsoft Word, the most popular word processor used today. If you use Word rather than the Works word processor, your documents will have the standard .doc extension by default, and just about everyone will be able to read them.

Take care not to send out files in the program's default .wps format, which few other programs support. Before you send a file, select File, Save As, and in the Save As dialog box's 'Save as type' pull-down menu, select Rich Text Format (*.rtf). Save the file, and then e-mail the RTF version.

The drill is pretty much the same with anything you create in the Works spreadsheet program. In the 'Save as type' pull-down menu, select Excel 97-2000.

But how do you open an e-mail attachment that's in a file format your system can't handle automatically?

First, make an educated guess about the kind of file you're dealing with. If the e-mail message refers to a letter or résumé, the attachment is likely from a word processor. If it refers to a budget, chances are that the attachment is a spreadsheet. Launch the appropriate program and drag the file into it, but drop it on the menus at the top of the app's screen, not the blank work area. If it loads, you guessed right and your PC supports those types of files.

If you have trouble with odd file types, you may need to get a file-viewing program. Ontrack's $30 PowerDesk Pro 5 shows contents of files created in many formats, and it lets you copy data out of the files and paste them into one of your own programs.