prn file?

[Jack Black]

I went to the page that lists "My Computer Information - Software" in
the Help section of WinXP. I found a huge list of items I have never
heard of. I decided to print this list to a file so that I could start
looking them up on Google. I ended up with a f file that is a *.prn.
It won't come up in either Word or Excel. What program can I use to
open this list?

Thanks

 

[Ron Martell]

I went to the page that lists "My Computer Information - Software" in
the Help section of WinXP. I found a huge list of items I have never
heard of. I decided to print this list to a file so that I could start
looking them up on Google. I ended up with a f file that is a *.prn.
It won't come up in either Word or Excel. What program can I use to
open this list?

Thanks

A .prn file is a printer data file and the only thing you can do with
it is to send it to the printer that it was intended for with a
command such as:

type myfile.prn > lpt1

Assuming that the correct printer is connected to the LPT1 port.

If you want to capture printer output as readable file then you will
need to:

1. Use the Add Printer function to install a new printer manufacturer
= Generic and model = Text only. Set the port as File.

2. Choose that printer when you want to capture printer information
as a file. Note that this will be the text content only, no graphics
or other enhancements, and it will be in a monospaced courier font.
Not very exiting output, but useful for some purposes.

Good luck

Ron Martell Duncan B.C. Canada
--
Microsoft MVP (1997 - 2006)
On-Line Help Computer Service
http://onlinehelp.bc.ca

"Anyone who thinks that they are too small to make a difference
has never been in bed with a mosquito."

 

[RobertVA]

I went to the page that lists "My Computer Information - Software" in
the Help section of WinXP. I found a huge list of items I have never
heard of. I decided to print this list to a file so that I could start
looking them up on Google. I ended up with a f file that is a *.prn.
It won't come up in either Word or Excel. What program can I use to
open this list?

Thanks

It's supposed to be a raw image of the data your computer would transmit
to the printer that you can send to the printer later. Not really
readable on your display unless you installed a generic text to file
"printer" (drivers come standard with windows) or certain postscript
printers.

There are also downloads like CutePDF that allow you to "print" to a PDF
file you can view with Adobe's free reader.

To make a readable file:

Add a generic text to file "printer" from the "Printers and Faxes"
folder (Look within "My Computer" and then "Control Panel").

When you print to the Generic Text printer from an application and the
pop-up prompts for the file name, pick the directory and change the file
extension to "txt".

You should be able to open the resulting file with Wordpad, Word or
OpenOffice.org Write.