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As I moved from one Mac to the next over the years and therefore from one OS to the next, I kept copies of various files. But now that I want to look at those old files under OSX 11, I cannot even figure out under what OS they were made. Most are probably Microsoft For Mac files. Is there a way, like a site where to send a file, or is it hopeless?

Belated Post Scriptum: I am barely, and less and less, conversant with Mac, no more than you are likely to be with your car, even tough I have used it since the Mac 256. I am also pushing 87 and puttin some order in my hard drive and here is a sample of the kind of document I am curious about: enter image description here I apologize for not being able to be more precise.

schremmer
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    Can you be more specific about the typo of file/the application used to create them? – nohillside Nov 01 '23 at 21:25
  • In the Finder, select the file and then File / Get Info (or ⌘I) – that's an uppercase i, not a lowercase L – lhf Nov 01 '23 at 22:06
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    Are the icons generic, i.e., blank with a folded corner? – IconDaemon Nov 01 '23 at 23:17
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    "What OS they were made for. Most probably Microsoft". Do you mean what application they were made in, or what version of macOS they were made in? Microsoft is a company that makes an app called Word (amongst others). – benwiggy Nov 02 '23 at 07:54

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MacOS uses file extensions to determine the type of data in a file. This type is then linked in your particular computer to a given application.

For example, a Microsoft Word file might be named My Document.docx. Every file with the .docx ending will be described as a Microsoft Word document, and have an icon generated by that application. (If you have it.)

enter image description here

Normally, file extensions are hidden by default, and you don't have to add them to filenames yourself. You can reveal them by checking an option in Finder Preferences > Advanced.

enter image description here

If your files do not have any file type or application associated with them, they may show up as a TextEdit file, or look something like this:

enter image description here

You can try to force an application to open a document. In the app's File > Open dialog, there is usually an option to show "Recommended", or "All" documents. If not, you can add the extension yourself in the Finder (when set to show them), and see if the file will open when double-clicked.

Very old files from "Classic Mac OS" days (e.g. Beige Macs from the 80s and 90s) used a different method of assigning file type and associated app. Modern Macs may be able to still read this data, but it's not recommended, and you need to make sure that every file has the correct extension in the name.

benwiggy
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  • Thank you for an answer which, if it doesn't really solve my problem, is really to the point and at least explains it in terms I do understand. – schremmer Nov 03 '23 at 19:33
  • @schremmer It should solve your problem, as you can 'force' open these files in Word, and see if they come out ok. – benwiggy Nov 04 '23 at 12:29