OFF97: Error Double-Clicking File in 16-bit Mail (163859)


The information in this article applies to:

  • Microsoft Word 97 for Windows
  • Microsoft Excel 97 for Windows
  • Microsoft PowerPoint 97 for Windows
  • Microsoft Access 97
  • Microsoft Mail for Windows 3.2
  • Microsoft Mail for Windows 3.5
This article was previously published under Q163859

SYMPTOMS

In a 16-bit version of Microsoft Mail for Windows, if you double-click a document that is created in any of the Office programs listed at the beginning of this article, you may receive the following error message
Microsoft Mail
The application for the attached file '<filename>' (or one of its
components) could not be found.
where <filename> is the name of the file you are double-clicking.

CAUSE

This problem occurs because 16-bit versions of Microsoft Mail cannot read long file names that are stored in the Microsoft Windows registry.

When you double-click a document that is attached to a message, Microsoft Mail searches the registry for the path to the program that created the document so that Microsoft Mail can start the program. If the path to the program contains any long file names (for example, C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office), Microsoft Mail cannot start the program, and you receive the error message described in this article.

Note that this problem may also occur when you double-click documents in other 16-bit programs, for example, Lotus cc:Mail. However, the error message you receive is different.

WORKAROUND

You can prevent this problem from occurring by removing and then reinstalling Microsoft Office 97 by using the following steps:

  1. On the Start menu, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel. Double-click Add/Remove Programs, and then click the Install/Uninstall tab.
  2. In the list of installed programs, click Microsoft Office 97, and then click Add/Remove.

    If a dialog box appears and indicates that programs are running, close the programs and click OK.
  3. When the Microsoft Office 97 Setup dialog box appears, click Remove All. When you are prompted to remove shared components, click Remove All.

    If you are prompted to restart the computer when Setup is finished, do so.
  4. Double-click My Computer. Then, double-click the drive in which you want to install Microsoft Office 97 (usually drive C).
  5. In the list of folders, right-click the Program Files folder. On the shortcut menu, click Properties. Click the General tab.
  6. Write down the value to the right of MS-DOS Name. This value is similar to the following:

    PROGRA~1

    Note that the number after the tilde may be different.
  7. Click Cancel and double-click the Program Files folder.
  8. If the folder Microsoft Office exists, skip to step 9.

    If this folder does not exist, point to New on the File menu, and click Folder. Type "Microsoft Office" (without quotation marks), and press ENTER.
  9. Right-click the Microsoft Office folder. On the shortcut menu, click Properties. Click the General tab.
  10. Write down the value to the right of MS-DOS Name. This value is similar to the following:

    MICROS~1

    Note that the number after the tilde may be different.
  11. Click Cancel and start the Microsoft Office 97 Setup program.
  12. When you are prompted to specify a destination folder for Microsoft Office 97, click Change Folder.
  13. In the Path box, type the path using the MS-DOS names you wrote down. For example, type:

    C:\PROGRA~1\MICROS~1

    Click OK and click OK again.
  14. Continue setting up Microsoft Office 97.
When Setup is finished, you can open Office documents in Microsoft Mail by double-clicking them.

MORE INFORMATION

When you double-click a document (for example, a Microsoft Excel workbook) in a 16-bit version of Microsoft Mail, Microsoft Mail searches for the path to Microsoft Excel in a registry key similar to the following: 
   HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Excel.Sheet.8\shell\Open\command
If the path in the "(Default)" key contains a long file name, you may not be able to open the document by double-clicking it in Microsoft Mail. The following is an example of a path that contains long file names:

C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\Office\excel.exe /e

If you follow the steps in this article to remove and reinstall Microsoft Office 97, the paths stored in the registry are rewritten so that they do not contain any long file names. The following is an example of a path that does not contain long file names:

C:\PROGRA~1\MICROS~1\Office\excel.exe /e

NOTE: Although the two paths appear to be different, they are the same. This process does not affect the functionality of Microsoft Office 97 programs.
Modification Type:MajorLast Reviewed:11/25/2003
Keywords:kbprb KB163859
©2003 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.