Computer How To's

Change File Associations

Windows uses the file extension of a file to determine what program it should open to view the file when you open it. For example, if a file has the name "letter.doc" the ".doc" portion of the name is the file extension that tells Windows to open either MS Word (if it is installed) or Word Pad to view the file. If the file association is changed, whatever program is associated with the file extension will open. Sometimes these file associations can be in error if the program associated with the extension is damaged or uninstalled. When that happens, you can change the file association to a another compatible program. By "compatible" I mean a program capable of running the particular file type. In order to view a graphic file, you need a graphic program, which is able to read the code the file is written in. This problem most generally occurs with graphic files.

 

If the file you want to associate is an AOL .art image file to be able to view the picture in Internet Explorer, I have written a page specifically for doing that.

These are the steps necessary to change a file association. Select your file by left clicking on it once. When it is highlighted, press and hold the Shift Key and right click on the file. This will open a right click menu. Select the menu option "Open With". This will open the Window, "Open With". Then select the Program you wish to use to view the file. Check the option; "Always use this program to open this type of file". Now, whenever you double click on a file of this type, the program you chose to view files of this type will open.

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Dwight Blackburn

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