OFF95: Can't Open Version 7.0 PowerPoint Document on Macintosh

ID: Q140699

The information in this article applies to:

Microsoft Office for Windows 95, version 7.0
Microsoft Office Resource Kit for Windows 95
Microsoft Office for the Macintosh, versions 4.2, 4.2.1, 4.2.1a
Microsoft PowerPoint for Macintosh, version 4.0

SYMPTOMS

If you open a presentation created in Microsoft PowerPoint for Windows 95 version 7.0 in Microsoft PowerPoint for the Macintosh or for the Power Macintosh, you may receive the following error message

Sorry, this file is not a PowerPoint presentation

and you will not be able to open your file.

CAUSE

You may receive this error message if you do not have the appropriate translators installed on your Macintosh. Because the file format for PowerPoint version 7.0 is different from the format for version 4.0 for the Macintosh, you will need a translator to open a presentation created in a version later than what you may have on your computer.

RESOLUTION

PowerPoint for the Macintosh version 4.0

The Microsoft Office Resource Kit for Windows 95 (ORK) contains several translators and converters that allow you to use files that were created in Microsoft Office for Windows 95 programs on your Macintosh. One of these translators allows you to open presentations created in Microsoft PowerPoint for Windows 95 version 7.0 in Microsoft PowerPoint for the Macintosh version 4.0. To use the translator from the ORK on your Macintosh, do the following:

Copy the Pp7trans.hqx file from the Convert\Mac\PowerPnt folder on the ORK to a floppy disk.

Insert the floppy disk into the Macintosh disk drive.

Note, you must have PC Exchange, or similar product installed on your Macintosh in order to successfully read this MS-DOS-formatted disk on your Macintosh.

On your Macintosh, start BinHex version 4.0 or 5.0.

When BinHex is started, click once on the introduction screen to go to the next step.

On the File menu, click "Upload -> Application" (BinHex 4.0) or "Download -> Application" (BinHex 5.0).

In the dialog box that appears, select the Pp7trans.hqx file located on the floppy disk, and then click Open.

In the next dialog box, click the Desktop button and save the document to the desktop with the name "Pp7trans."

NOTE: If you don't change to the desktop, BinHex tries to save the file to the floppy disk; you want to have this file on your hard disk.

Click the Save button.

NOTE: This file conversion process can take several minutes to complete. When it has completed, you should end up with a file called Pp7trans on your desktop.

Move the Pp7trans file to your PowerPoint folder on your Macintosh hard disk.

You should now be able to open a presentation created in PowerPoint for Windows 95 version 7.0 either by double-clicking the icon for your file or by opening it from within PowerPoint.

PowerPoint for the Power Macintosh version 4.0

You will not be able to use the Pp7trans translator version that comes with the Office Resource Kit to open presentations created in Microsoft PowerPoint version 7.0 for Windows 95 if you are using Microsoft PowerPoint for the Power Macintosh version 4.0. In this case, you need to do the following:

Obtain the PowerPoint version 7.0 for Windows 95 Pp7trans.hqx file.

The following file are available for download from the Microsoft Software Library:
~ Pp7trans.hqx
For more information about downloading files from the Microsoft Software Library, please see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
Q119591 How to Obtain Microsoft Support Files from Online Services

-or-

Open the presentation in version 7.0 and save the file as a version 4.0 presentation.
1. Note, in order to save the file as a version 4.0 presentation, you must have PowerPoint Viewer installed on your computer, because it is the Viewer that actually saves the file out in the version 4.0 format.
2. Bring the version 4.0 presentation to your Power Macintosh and open the file.
NOTE: This presentation will be opened as a read-only file because it was created on a platform other than a Macintosh. To be able remove the read-only status for this file, do the following:
1. On the File Menu, click Save As.
2. In the Save Presentation as box, type a new name.
3. Click Save.

MORE INFORMATION

For additional information about opening presentations created in different versions and on different platforms, please see the following article(s)in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

Q133803 PowerPoint for Windows 95 Translators for PowerPoint for Mac

Q88082 PowerPoint: Error When Opening Untranslated File

Q139151 PowerPoint 7.0 Translator Requires Correct Type and Creator

Q140619 OFF95: Contents of the MS Office for Windows 95 Resource Kit

REFERENCES

"Microsoft Office for Windows 95 Resource Kit," Chapter 14, "Coexistence with MS Office for the Macintosh"

Additional query words: 4.21 4.21a ORK


Keywords          : kbinterop 
Version           : MACINTOSH:4,2,4.2.1,4.2.1a;WINDOWS:7.0
Platform          : 
Issue type        :

Last Reviewed: May 21, 1999