Symptom
When you try to open a file from the desktop, an alert box appears with this message:
"The document could not be opened, because the application program that created it could not be found. Could not find a translation extension with appropriate translators."
However, you know that the necessary application program is installed on the computer.
Solution
Re-create the preference file(s) that store the associations between files and their applications/translators and then rebuild the Desktop file.
Step One: Re-Creating Preferences
Follow these steps to re-create the preference file(s):
- Mac OS 8.5 through Mac OS 9.x
1. Locate the File Exchange Preferences file in the Preferences folder of the startup disk.
2. Drag it to the Trash.
- Mac OS 8.1 and earlier
1. Locate the PC Exchange Preferences file and the Mac OS Easy Open Preferences file in the Preferences folder of the startup disk.
2. Drag them to the Trash.
Step Two: Rebuild the Desktop file
For complete information on rebuilding the Desktop file, refer to article 10182: "
Mac OS: Rebuilding Desktop File and Icon Recovery"
Note: Even after following these steps, double-clicking on certain files will result in the symptom described above. These include files that do not contain type or creator information, or files whose filename extension is ".exe". Files with a filename extension of ".exe" are executables for MS-DOS, and require MS-DOS or Windows emulation software to work with Mac OS-based computers.
For more information on File Exchange, refer to article 58098: "
Mac OS: File Exchange Control Panel Features"