How to associated DAT files as text files?

[NewsGroup]

How do I tell XP to treat .DAT files as .TXT files and go to the text
editor?

 

[Mike Williams]

How do I tell XP to treat .DAT files as .TXT files and go to the text
editor?

Right-click on one in Explorer. Choose "Open With...". Navigate to
Notepad, ad set it as the default program for that extension.

 

[Don MI]

Right-click on one in Explorer. Choose "Open With...". Navigate to
Notepad, ad set it as the default program for that extension.

Does not work that way for *.dat files.

Don

 

[Don MI]

How do I tell XP to treat .DAT files as .TXT files and go to the text
editor?

They are not text files.

Don

 

[Talahasee]

How do I tell XP to treat .DAT files as .TXT files and go to the text
editor?

Right click on one of the .dat files, click "Open With", and
when the menu opens, select the Notepad or Wordpad program
from the menu, if it appears.

If the program you want isn't in the menu, go to the bottom
of the menu and select "choose program.'

IF you want the association to be permanent (so that XP
uses Notepad / Wordpad automatically the next time and all
subsequent times until you change it)

also be sure you tick the "always use the selected program
to open this type of file." at the bottom of the menu.


Good luck!


Tallahassee

 

[Bob I]

The OP seems to think they are, and they may be ASCII files for all we
know, and then all is good!

 

[Mike Williams]

Does not work that way for *.dat files.

Worked fine for me just now.

 

[Wesley Vogel]

I have had .dat files associated with Notepad for a long time.

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\dat_auto_file\shell\edit\command]
@="C:\\WINDOWS\\notepad.exe %1"

--
Hope this helps. Let us know.

Wes
MS-MVP Windows Shell/User

In