What type of file is this I have received and how do I view or edit it on unix or linux?
If a command is not found use slog to log into a linux computer and run the command from there. Commands marked with a "*" are only available on a limited set of computers at the moment until we get some more licenses. These are hoover, nassau and nipah.
If your file does not have an extension use the file command to let the system take a guess of what type of file it is. Syntax is file filename
If the file was created on a mac, you may need to unhex it before you can view it.
| File extension |
Type of file | What application to use to view it |
|---|---|---|
| .bz2 | Compressed | bunzip2 to uncompress it. |
| .doc | MS Word Document | openoffice or antiword or wordview |
| .exe | Windows execuatable | Run on a windows computer, watch out for a virus |
| .gz | Compressed | gunzip |
| .jpg/.jpeg | Picture | xv |
| .pcx | Picture | convert filename.pcx filename.jpg ; xv |
| PDF text document | acroread | |
| .ppt | PowerPoint Presentation | ppview32* |
| .ps | Postscript | ghostview or gv |
| .rtf | Rich Text Format | Ted (external link) or wordview* |
| .tar | Archive | tar -xf |
| .tar.gz | compressed archive | tar -xzf |
| .uu | uuencoded, need to uudecode to see its type | uudecode |
| .xls | MS spreadsheet | excel or xlview or gnumeric* |
| .Z | compressed | use gunzip or uncompress (not on RH Linux) |
| .zip | Zipped file | unzip |