August 06

31/08/06

Cannot Copy Email Message to a New PC

Dear Rick, I have recently bought a second PC with Windows XP Home edition installed and followed your very useful guide in terms of transfer of Outlook Express data (Boot Camp 309/310). However, whilst I have managed to transfer my Address Book I am unable to do the same for messages. I copied these from the database location in my old PC and stored them on to the new C-drive as you recommended. I can see all the .dbx files are there but when I follow the OE 'Import' sequence and point it to the file location it comes up with an error message saying:

‘No messages can be found in this folder or another application is running that has the required fields open. Please select another folder or try closing applications that may have files open.’

As far as I can tell no applications are open that would use this file (other than OE), but if I close OE then obviously I can't Import! I would appreciate any help you can give

Mike Bridgman

A. There are two common causes for this particular error message and by far the most common one is that the folder or files are marked as ‘Read Only’. This can happen if, for example, you transferred the files using a recordable CD. All files copies to a CD-R/RW disc are automatically given a Read-Only attribute. To switch this off right-click on the folder in Windows Explorer, select Properties and on the General tab uncheck ‘Read Only’. Check that the files in the folder are also unchecked. The other possibility is that the file ‘folders.dbx’ is missing or corrupt. Make another copy of your email store folder and try again.

30/08/06

Switching between Audio Files

Hi Rick, I've tried to search your archives before asking a question but this time there was nothing in the first few pages of results. Have you ever/recently done an item on the various types of audio files? What I'm really trying to discover is how far, if at all, the various audio file formats can be inter-switched, like image and graphics files can be switched around in Irfanview, for example?

Ian Graham

A. I don’t recall writing anything specifically on that topic so let’s do a quick run through. Audio files come in three basic flavours, uncompressed, ‘lossless’ compressed and compressed or ‘lossy’. Examples of uncompressed file formats include .Wav (or wave), which is the standard Windows audio format and Red Book or CDDA, which is what you will find on audio CDs.

Lossless Compression is a feature of the WavePack and TTA file formats, which you probably won’t come across very often, but what basically file sizes are reduced, by up to 50 percent, but without losing any data. It’s a bit like the way program data files can be ‘zipped’ and sent over the Internet, and decompressed or reconstructed without loosing any information.

Lossy compression, on the other hand, as used in MP3, AAC, ATRAC, Ogg Vorbis codecs discards information to reduce the size of files. Psychoacoustical tricks are used to chop out sounds that either cannot be head, because they are masked by other louder sounds, or are at too high or low a pitch to be heard.

Most media player applications can play back most popular audio file formats, but switching or ‘converting’ between formats is another thing. Because of the proprietary nature of many of these formats (wav and wma are the property of Microsoft, ATRAC belongs to Sony, AAC is an Apple codec, and so on) it is difficult for developers to come up with programs that do not infringe someone or other’s patents or licensing agreements. In other words, unlike a decent photo/image editing program, which can flip files between a dozen or more formats, there is no direct equivalent in audio editing.  The only freeware program that comes close is Audacity, but in the end if you want to do anything more elaborate than switch between MP3 and Wav, for example, you will need to track down a specialist conversion program.

29/08/06

IOS Real Mode System Memory Allocation Error

Hello Rick, I have a six-year-old computer built by Dan Technology, sadly no longer in existence, running on Win98 SE. I am attempting to increase the ram memory from 128mb to 256mb. It uses PC100 322 60 SDRAM 16 bits.

I have tried several different types of PC100, the PC works with three modules (192mb), but adding the fourth returns the following message on start-up: Error: While initialising device IOS: real mode system memory allocation failed.

I received the same message previously when loading new software, and assumed I required additional memory. Any suggestions would be very welcome. I am not technical, but can follow instructions!

Brian Cooke

A. This is a particularly aggravating fault to troubleshoot as it can have a number of seemingly unrelated (to RAM memory) causes. The most common of which, and the place I would start, is your video driver. In particular drivers for VIA video adaptors or motherboard chipsets seem to be particularly troublesome in this respect. You should be able to confirm this by trying a Step-By-Step boot from Safe Mode (press F8 at Startup) and if/when you get to a driver called viagart.vxd, press ‘N’ to stop it loading. If the fault disappears then the solution is to download the latest driver, this link to the Via Support websiteshould help you on your way. Failing that it may still be video driver related, so try downloading the latest driver for your card. At a pinch it could be a dicky RAM module but I would investigate the other solutions first. 

25/08/06

Copying Multiple Files Error Message

Rick, copying large numbers of files to a memory stick (or CD for that matter) as a back-up is pretty frustrating when you get a message a fair way down the line that a certain file cannot be copied because it may be "corrupt etc".  Press "OK" and the whole copying process stops and you have to start over again assuming you manage to find the corrupt file and delete it.  Is there a way of simply skipping the offending file and continue copying?

Paul Wright

A. Windows file copying can be frustrating sometimes but there are a few things you can try. The simplest workaround is to copy files in small batches, 5 or 10 at a time, say, and in that way you can quickly identify and bypass the rogue ones that are causing problems. If most of your file copying operations are between removable memory modules and flash drives etc., then try the Microsoft USB Flash Drive Manager. It’s a useful little utility that simplifies copying files to and from flash drives. My last suggestion is another freeware utility; it's called Copy Handler and this should also help sidestep those annoying error messages. It also claims to copy files up to 7 times faster than Windows and gives you much more control over the whole process.

24/08/06

Task Scheduler Error Message

Hi Rick, attempts to utilise the Task Scheduler function on Windows XP fail because of a
persistent message,  ‘0x8007005 - Access Denied’. Despite several trawls through the Windows advice pages I am no wiser and quite unable to solve this problem.  Yet it seems a common enough difficulty, judging by the number of similar inquiries to mine yet no attempt is made to provide a solution in understandable language. Can you help please?
Peter F. Penney

A. You are right of course and anyone who has anything to do with computers (me included, I’m afraid...) falls into the jargon trap, though to be fair we are often dealing with concepts and technologies that can be difficult to explain without resorting to at least some technical language.

The short explanation for your error message is that Windows is saying, in its typically convoluted way, is that you are not allowed to use the Task Scheduler. It’s a security feature and you are being denied permission either because you haven’t set up a password and are not logged on as Administrator, or you are trying to set up a scheduled task on another user’s account. If you haven’t set up a password do so by going to User Accounts in Control Panel, click your Administrator account icon then click Create Password and follow the prompts.

23/08/06

Suspect Registry Cleaners?

Rick, whilst Registry entries are a puzzle to most people and programs that purport to fix errors have to be trusted by the users. I have been running RegSeeker, recommended by yourself, and it is interesting to see that it never does a complete job; run it again immediately and it will still find entries, which apparently need seeing to. This makes the program a little bit suspect.

I have tried another program and the same thing happens.  Both still find further entries to each other and to themselves.

I just delete every shown entry, but really, what confidence can I have that I have done the right thing.  Why don't any of these programs operating in the most delicate of areas live up to their promises?
Brian Miller

A. I understand your concern but it helps to know a little about the Registry, and what it does in order to understand how these utilities work. The Registry is the beating heart of Windows. It is a huge collection of system files containing all of the setup and configuration files for both the operating system and all of the programs on your PC.

However, that doesn’t even begin to describe what goes on inside the Registry. Data is read in and out of the Registry hundreds of times a minute -- depending how fast and busy your PC happens to be -- resulting in numerous changes, and the odd redundant entry, which a good Registry ‘cleaner’ will find, even if you only scanned it a few minutes ago. To see what I’m talking about download and run a little diagnostic program called Regmon, which opens a window on the Registry, showing the programs which are accessing the Registry, and what they are doing, in real time. It will give you a headache if you stare at it for too long!

22/08/06

AOL Runtime Error 

Hi Rick, whilst using AOL I get the message 'run time error'. What is it and how do I fix it?

Gordon Clark

A. A Runtime Error is simply a blanket and somewhat vague term for any problems that arise when a program is launched. It’s quite a common error message with AOL, so much so that Microsoft discusses it in Knowledgebase Article 316512. There are also plenty of references to it in web forums and the general consensus is that it is due to a corrupt or damaged AOL installation.

The solution is simple, uninstall all instances of AOL on your PC from Add/Remove Programs in Control Panel, clear the Windows Temp folder, reboot and reinstall the AOL software.

21/08/06

Internet Explorer 7 Beta Problems

I installed Internet Explorer 7 Beta 2 recently.  Since then I have been unable to use both IE and Firefox together.  In order to use IE I had to un-install Firefox.  Is this a known problem?

E D Weaving

A. I’m not aware of any serious conflicts between IE7 and Firefox. I have seen a couple of reports of Firefox stopping working after IE7 was uninstalled, and Firefox not working when it was installed after IE7, but these have all turned out to be caused by the Firewall, blocking access. I would check your Firewall’s configuration settings, or try temporarily disabling it, to see if that makes a difference.

18/08/06

Faltering Firefox

Hi Rick, about two years ago I started using Firefox as my default browser and have been well satisfied until a few days ago when it started performing badly.  It would not show pictures or even recognise its own bookmarks.  I use Windows XP and have tried system restore plus uninstalling and re-installing, all to no avail.  Can you offer a remedy?
Bill Frost.

A. Firefox, in common with many programs, doesn’t completely go disappear when you uninstall it. In addition to Registry entries there’s usually a stack of log and configuration files still lurking on the PC, and in the case of Firefox, all of your preferences and bookmarks and much more besides, that are carried across when you re-install. In amongst these files I suspect lies the root of your particular problem, so the thing to do is start from scratch.

Export your bookmarks then uninstall Firefox. Open Windows Explorer and delete the residual Mozilla Firefox folders that you will find in C:\Program Files. Next, run the Registry Cleaner in Regseeker (make sure you check the Backup option) then after a clean reboot try downloading and installing a new copy of Mozilla. Hopefully it will be a bit livelier this time and you can then import your bookmarks.

17/08/06

Printing Problems with Boot Camp Articles

Hi Rick I thought I would print off Boot Camp Articles 377 and 378 concerning back-up but I have failed miserably as only the first page of the printed article actually prints together with a blank sheet on either side and it's the same with many other articles too.  If I go to the "print preview" for the article it only shows the printed area with a blank page before and after too. Any ideas?  I don't think I'm doing anything daft.

Paul Naylor

A. Printing web pages is a perennial problem, mainly because most web pages are meant to be displayed on a monitor, rather than printed on paper. I designed BootLog Archive pages to be as clutter free and printer-friendly as possible but it’s a near impossible task given that they have to be viewable on an almost infinite number of screen sizes using a similarly wide range of resolutions -- from 2-inch LCDs on mobile phones to 60inch plasma panels -- and using any one of a score of different browses.

There is a known bug in Microsoft Internet Explorer 5 and 6 (see MS Knowledgebase article 257097) that can print out a first blank page and this is associated with table header and footer tags (<thead> and <tfoot>), though there shouldn’t be any on BootLog pages. To make sure I did some test prints using Internet Explorer and Firefox on the pages you mention and they looked fine.

It seems as though the problem is at your end, probably in the printer’s Properties or configuration menu that’s instructing it to print out a blank header page. I know the ‘watermark’ function on some printers can do this but other than that I’m stuck, so if anyone has any bright ideas, or has been having similar problems printing BootLog pages please let me know.

16/08/06

Picture Viewer and Slideshow Problem

Hi Rick, your websites and books have long been a great help in solving problems but my daughter has come up with one, which beats both of us. She is running XP Home (without SP2) on a computer, which is about 4 years old.

One of the main uses is digital photography and she stores her jpg images in folders stored in My Pictures, which she views with the standard XP software. The problem surfaced quite recently in that she can no longer view the images as a slide show, expand the thumbnails to full screen or use Move or Copy, and after a short while she gets the “computer not responding” message followed by “end now”.

Her images work normally on my computer when downloaded from her camera. Images she has on CD work normally, as do emails, Word, etc.

We have tried all we can think of including system restore, to no avail. Please can you help a psychiatric nurse regain her equilibrium, and her father too? 

Cliff Bishop

A. It sounds as though all of your daughter’s problems centre on the Windows Picture and Fax Viewer utility. I suspect it has become corrupted, unfortunately it is an integral Windows component and cannot be uninstalled or repaired but it can be disabled, which is what I would do.

Quite honestly it’s no great loss, it was flaky and as it turned out, a serious security risk, though not as great as running an XP computer without Service Pack 2 and keeping it safe with security updates. I would urge your daughter to do that as soon as possible. 

As for what to use instead of Windows Picture Viewer, try Picasa, it does everything the Windows utility can do plus a lot more besides, including some very sophisticated (but very easy to use) editing tools and it’s free.

Disabling the Picture and Fax viewer involves tinkering with the Registry so only try this if you know what you are doing and have made a backup or set a System Restore point.  Go to Run on the Start menu and type regedit then make your way to HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\ SystemFileAssociations\ image\ ShellEx\ ContextMenuHandlers and delete the ShellImagePreview key. If, for any reason you want to re-instate it then return to the same location, Create the ShellImagePreview key and assign it the String Value {e84fda7c-1d6a-45f6-b725-cb260c236066}.

15/08/06

Hello Rick, what would you advise as the best (safest) way to clean an LCD Monitor?

Alan Kenny

A. I would avoid commercial glass or window cleaning fluids in spray bottles. Far too much ends up on the screen and the excess runs down behind the plastic fascia, where it accumulates. I can always tell when a screen has been cleaned with this stuff, when you open it up there’s a nasty sticky residue, around the edge of the screen and in a couple of instances this gunge has started to corrode the metal which surrounds the panel. My guess is that if left long enough it could cause the screen or any contacts in the area to fail.

My preferred method is to use a ‘microfibre’ cleaning cloth, they’re brilliant for glass and plastics and they’re not expensive, I get mine from my local ‘Pound Shop’. They can be used dry and remove all but the most stubborn marks. The best way to clean a really grubby screen is with a soft lint-free cloth lightly moistened and with just the smallest dab of washing up liquid. Whatever cleaning method you use the most important thing to remember is not to press too hard, and whatever you do don’t use paper towels as they can scratch the plastic surface.

14/08/06

Recovering Lost Contacts in OE

Hi Rick, after a recent crash I re-installed Windows XP. I had not made any backups, however I had earlier made a copy of Knoppix as suggested in one of your Boot Camp articles. This enabled me to recover files, Address Book and OE Folders and all is now re-installed on the computer.

Everything seems OK except my Contacts list in OE. The contacts are not shown although clicking on  ‘Addresses’ on the toolbar shows all of the names. Can you explain how I can get my "hidden" contacts to show properly?

Pam

A. That’s an odd one, but at least the data appears to be intact so it should be possible to sort out the problem. I would first try exporting the OE Address Book (Export on the File menu) and save it somewhere on your PC as a CSV (Comma Separated Value) text file, then rename the old WAB file and try Importing the CSV back into OE. Hopefully this time it will be correctly displayed. Failing that you could try installing Thunderbird, import the address Book from OE, then re-export it from there back into OE.

11/08/06

Rogue Recycle Bin

Dear Rick, I went to the Recycle Bin on my Windows XP Home PC to restore a file that I had deleted about a month ago. It was not in the bin, but other files that were very much older were still there. The Windows help section says that when the bin is full it will make enough space for newly deleted files.  It does not say which files will be permanently deleted for this.  I assumed it would be the oldest ones but evidently it is not.  Is there any way to format the bin so that the oldest files are removed first when the bin is full?

David Fitzpatrick

A. Not a lot of people know this but not all deleted files go into the Recycle Bin. Common exceptions include files that have been ‘zipped’ or deleted from compressed folders, files on removable media, such as external disc drives, flash drives and so on, files deleted from a DOS or Command prompt and files deleted from non ‘compliant’ programs, though the latter is quite rare. You can also manually bypass the Recycle bin either permanently, from the bin’s right-click Properties dialogue box, or on a per case basis by holding down the Shift key when you delete a file.

When the bin is full the oldest files are normally deleted first, which suggests that your missing deleted file either never went into the bin in the first place, or the bin itself is damaged. If so the file may still be there and it’s just the bin’s ‘Info’ file that is not listing the contents properly.

You can try deleting the Info file and when you reboot a new one will be created that should correctly list the contents. To do that you need to open a DOS prompt  (type cmd in Run on the Start menu) then type:

cd \recycler [Enter]

attrib -h inf*.* [Enter]

del info [Enter]

exit.

10/08/06

Go Faster Cables?

Hello Rick, I have 1Mb broadband, however, I use a long cable from the BT socket to the modem. Would I see any improvements in speed if I installed an ADSL modem/router instead of the long cable and the modem supplied by my ISP?.

Bill Booth

A. Sadly not, and you can swap cables and modems around until you are blue in the face but it won’t make any appreciable difference to your download and upload speeds. These are governed by your broadband connection and the only way to make it go noticeably quicker is to upgrade to a faster service.

The length of the cables isn’t relevant. Don’t forget the signals coming down the phone line have already made it all the way from your local exchange to your home and the last metres or two from the phone socket to the modem isn’t going to make much difference to its journey. Nevertheless this is where the data is most likely to encounter intermittent or noisy contacts so if you are using old cables or your phone sockets are looking a bit iffy then it may be a good idea to replace them as they could make your connection unreliable.

09/08/06

Faulty Floppy or Dodgy Drive?

Hi Rick, I have recently upgraded my computer from Windows ME to XP. Everything seems to be OK except I'm having problems with my 3.5 inch floppy drive. Windows has trouble reading the data on my disks. With one in particular it listed the files on it, but when I tried to copy a file on to my hard drive, it took ages and then eventually I got the message "insert a disk into drive A"(!)  Later, trying to copy a file again I was told the floppy was not formatted and would I like to format it now! Of course I clicked No. Before installing XP, I had never had problems with floppies. I would welcome your comments.

Geoff Lawn

A. Floppy drives have all but disappeared from PCs in the last couple of years and it’s not hard to see why. 1.4Mb is a miserably small amount of storage space and not much use for anything so quite understandably very few companies are making blank discs anymore, which means the ones that you see in the shops may be quite old.

There’s also no telling how they’ve been stored, so there’s a fair chance that your troublesome floppy, if it was purchased recently, is faulty. Even if the disc is from a reputable source, or one you’ve been using for years then the data on it may still have become corrupted if it has been incorrectly stored, or close to a magnetic field. In any event floppies were always unreliable and couldn’t be relied upon to safely store data for more than three or four years.

Another possibility is a dirty drive. Cooling air drawn in through the slot on the front of the drive carries with it dust and airborne contaminants, which can end up on the pickup head. If the drive isn’t used very often the contamination can become quite serious and may be difficult to shift. If it is still reading most discs then my money’s on a faulty floppy but it certainly wouldn’t hurt to treat it to a session with a cleaning disc, if you can find one. If you use a ‘wet’ type cleaner make sure you allow plenty of time for the solvent-based cleaning fluid to evaporate, before inserting a disc.

08/08/06

Lost Epson Inkjet Printer Utility

Hi Rick, some time ago you recommended a small program to keep track of ink remaining in an Epson printer. I found this very useful, but having had to repair my XP system recently it has disappeared from my PC. Could you please mention it again?

Vic Harris

A. No problem, it’s called the SSC Service Utility and it works with more than 100 different models, including the ones that use ‘chipped’ ink cartridges, which you can reset or freeze from the program. Other facilities include separate colour and black cleaning modes, resetting the printer’s internal counter and a better looking ink level display. The program is freeware and you should heed all of the warnings about using it (and non-Epson or refilled ink cartridges) on printers that are still under warranty.

07/08/06

What’s up with these PJPEGs?

Rick, I have a pommie friend who is currently travelling somewhere in Northern Australia.  He sends irregular emails re his adventures, usually with inserted pictures. Now I and many of his UK contacts are having trouble as these pics are being received as code instead of being translated into viewable pictures. It would seem that JPEGs are being converted into PJPEGs and my OE cannot open these. Please do you have any suggestions as to what I and the UK contacts, or the "Travelling Man" can do about this?

Jeff Chambers, Australia

A. Lets begin with a quick explanation of PJPEG. The P stands for ‘progressive’ the JPEG bit is your common or garden Joint Photographic Entertainment Group compressed image file. The progressive bit at the front is a way to speed up delivery of image files over the Internet; basically it means the image is divided up into a series of scans and sent in stages so you see a fuzzy low-res image straight off and then over the course of the next few seconds, as more data comes down the pipe, the image gets steadily sharper. You’ve probably seen it on websites that have a lot of images and there’s a good demo on the Netscape website.

Now here’s odd bit, PJPEG compatibility has been more or less standard on browsers since the late 1990s and it shouldn’t affect OE either. Given the fact that other recipients can’t see the images either it’s starting to sound as if the ‘Travelling Mans’ images are being corrupted prior to them being sent. If you can get in touch ask him to check whatever software he’s using to process his pictures and if possible try another email or webmail client.

04/08/06

Windows Time Machine

Hi Rick, for the last two months every time I switch on my computer the date says either Dec. 2001 or Jan. 2002 so I have to remember to go to the Control Panel and change it to the current date. Also I am unable to do anything to change back to an earlier Restore Point - my computer now says that my only restore point is the one on my computer! As I didn't even have this computer until Nov.24 03 maybe I should change the date on the computer to some later time - say sometime in 2005 - and then see if that will enable me to use a restore point? Any other suggestions will be gratefully received.

Marlene Wyatt

A. This problem is a real old chestnut but since we haven’t covered it for a while here’s the solution. It’s caused by a dead or dying battery on the PC motherboard. Amongst other things it’s responsible for keeping the computer’s ‘hardware’ clock ticking over, this is basically a module the motherboard containing a clock chip, not dissimilar to the type used in a digital watch.

This clock runs all the time, even when the PC is switched off and disconnected from the mains and it provides a time reference for the Windows ‘software’ clock during boot up. Incidentally, Windows XP has a facility for checking the time online; see this Top Tip. When the battery expires the hardware clock resets, usually to a date of manufacture, which explains why it thinks its 2001. The battery needs to be replaced; on some PCs this is a simple job taking only a couple of minutes, on others the battery can be a swine to get at.

If you fancy having a go at it yourself unplug the PC, whip off the side panel to expose the motherboard and if you can see the battery (usually around the size of a ten pence piece), you’re halfway there. They’re normally held in by a small clip and a torch or desk lamp will come in handy so you can see what you are doing. If you can remove it easily do so and get a replacement at your local PC store. If it’s obscured by cables or components and you don’t feel able to extract it then you friendly local PC fixer should be able to do it for a small fee. Once the battery has been replaced and you’ve reset the clock things should return to normal, and remember to set a new System Restore point as the ones created when the clock was off bonk will probably be no use to you. 

03/08/06

Podcasting Primer

Hi Rick, have you done an article on Podcasting?  I find the whole subject very confusing!

Alan Newberry

A. I’ve written about Podcasting a few times, though only briefly since there’s really not a lot to say. The trouble is the name, which makes it sound a lot more technical and gadgety (is that a word…?) than it really is.

In fact a Podcast is usually nothing more than a common or garden MP3 audio file, which you download from a website onto your PC. You can play it back there and then using Windows Media Player and just about every other media players, or copy it to your personal digital stereo player so you can listen to it on the move.

The ‘pod’ bit obviously comes from the ubiquitous Apple iPod but the association is fairly tenuous since the MP3 format is a near universal standard and compatible with pretty well everything these days, including mobile phones, organisers, and even some CD players.  

02/08/06

Links in Emails No Longer Open Browser

Hello Rick, I have been an avid reader of Boot Camp for four years and am delighted to see that I can still access it online. I have XP with Outlook Express on a Sony computer bought in 2002. Recently it will not open links in messages my Inbox. The address appears on the taskbar when I move the cursor onto it but nothing happens when I click onto it. Can you help, please?

Tony Watkins.

A. I hope you’re also a BootLog regular but if not it’s worth knowing that there’s solutions to thousands of PC problems in the Archive, so it’s always worth tapping in a few keywords into the Search Box, to see what comes up. In this case you would have found several references to this particular annoyance, which is tied in to our old friend File Associations.

To get OE back on track go to the Tools menu in either My Computer or Windows Explorer and select Folder Options then the File Types tab. Scroll down the list and select URL:Hypertext Transfer Protocol then click the Advanced button. In the Edit File Types box that appears click the Edit button and in the Applications Used to Perform Action’ box you should see:

C:\Program Files\Internet Explorer\iexplore.exe” -nohome

If you don’t, put it in. Incidentally, if you use Firefox as your main browser then entry should be thus: "C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox\firefox.exe" %1

Click OK then OK. To finish off repeat the above steps for the entry: URL:Hypertext Transfer Protocol with Privacy.

01/08/06

Converting WordPerfect to Word

Hello Rick, I assiduously read and collect relevant articles from F!F!F! and Boot Camp, however, I now have MS and am unable to do all of the things I once did. My problem is converting floppy discs with WordPerfect 5 files into Word documents. I have tried Googling but it is tiresome and time consuming, then I remembered you… Can you help me?

Toni Skinner

A. You’re in luck; Word has a built-in facility to read WordPerfect files. All you have to do is pop in your disc, click on Word’s file Open icon, or go to Open on the File menu, now here’s the trick. In the ‘Files of Type’ box at the bottom of the Open dialogue box click the drop-down arrow and from the list that appears select ‘WordPerfect 5.x’, choose the document you want to open and click OK. To convert the file to a Word document simply use SaveAs on the File menu and select Word Document on the ‘Save as Type’ list.