Jim said:
I sometimes get the following message when I try to open some
attachments. Can anyone explain what I most do. "This file does not
have a program associated with it for performing this action. Create
an association in the file folder options control panel."
The message is very simple and very accurate. You can not open an attachment
if you don't have the appropriate program to open it installed.
If I create a file in some obscure word processor called qwertyuiop and
E-mail it you, you can't open it unless you have qwertyuiop (or some
compatible program) installed.
What must you do? It depends on what the file is. Tell us the file extension
(the three characters at the end of its name, after the dot). In general you
need to install the program it was created with, but sometimes there are
free readers available.
Over and above all the preceding, be aware that opening file attachments is
one of the *most* dangerous things you can do with your computer. Many
attachments can carry viruses or other malware, and if you open them, you
can easily get infected.
You often see advice not to open attachments from people you don't know. I
think that that's one of the most dangerous pieces of advice you see around,
because it implies that it's safe to do the opposite--open attachments from
friends and relatives. But many viruses spread by sending themselves to
everyone in the infected party's address book, so attachments received from
friends are perhaps the *most* risky to open.
Even if the attachment legitimately comes from a friend, it can contain a
virus. I'm not suggesting that a friend is likely to send you a virus on
purpose, but if the friend is infected without realizing it, any attachment
he sends you is likely to also be infected.
Personally I never open executable attachments at all, except from a *very*
few trusted sources, and then only when I'm expecting them.
