Getting Attached

Home Office Computing, Dec, 1998 by David Haskin

Five under-S60 solutions for sending your files through cyberspace without a scratch

For home-based workers, the ability to send and receive wordprocessing, spreadsheet, and other files via e-mail is indispensable. But unless everyone you know uses the same PC and software as you do, the word that more readily comes to mind is "incompatible." Following are five less-than-$60 solutions for common file attachment troubles. The products listed here all work with popular e-mail packages such as Qualcomm's Eudora Pro and Microsoft Outlook and Outlook Express.

Problem: I can't tell what's in an attachment.

Solution: Quick View Plus 4.5

Quick View Plus (Inso, 888-271-4676, www.inso.com; $59) displays the contents of an e-mail attachment even if you don't have the application that created it. You simply right-click on the attachment icon in the message and select Quick View Plus from the menu. The file's contents will appear in a window, from which you can print the document or copy and paste portions into other programs. Quick View Plus also lists the files stored within compressed attachments such as ZIP files. If you right-click on a specific file within that list, Quick View Plus displays its contents. The utility can also decompress files--and, besides working with e-mail attachments, Quick View Plus works with files displayed in Windows Explorer.

Problem: Somebody sent me an attachment created on a Mac--but I use Windows.

Solution: Attachment Opener 2.0

Attachment Opener (DataViz, 800-733-0030, www.dataviz.com; $50) works like Quick View Plus, enabling you to quickly view, print, copy, and decompress e-mail attachments created in applications you might not have on your PC. It doesn't display quite as many types of DOS and Windows files as Quick View Plus, but it supports more Macintosh formats, such as ClarisWorks and WordPerfect for the Macintosh.

Problem: I can't find a specific attached document.

Solution: AltaVista Discovery 1.0

Say you exchange lots of word processing attachments with a colleague and must quickly find one document in particular. Both Quick View Plus and Attachment Opener display contents of individual attachments, but neither searches through all your attachments for specific words. Compaq's AltaVista Discovery (discovery, altavista.com) lets you launch searches of the Web, of files created by applications such as your word processor, and of the contents of attachments. After you search, AltaVista Discovery displays the results of your query in your browser. From there, you can launch the application that created the file or use a product like Attachment Opener to view its contents. Remarkably, this useful tool is a free download.

Problem: Compressing and e-mailing multiple files takes way too much time.

Solution: E-MailZIP Deluxe 4.0

Ordinarily, when you need to send a dozen files to a colleague, you first create a compressed file using a utility such as Niko Mak Computing's -- WinZip. Then you open your e-mail program, find the compressed file you just created, and attach it to a message. To streamline that process, E-MailZIP Deluxe 4.0 (JE Software, 800-431-1348, www.jesoftware.com; $29.95) offers a Windows Explorer-like interface in which you simply select files to compress, add an address, and click a button to send the file. The program has a few rough edges: For instance, it doesn't have an address book, so you must type addresses manually or select them from a list of those you've previously used. But this try-before-you-buy shareware program is a real timesaver if you frequently e-mail compressed files.

Problem: I'm afraid that virus-infected attachments will destroy my system and data.

Solution: An antivirus program

Some people make it a rule not to open file attachments from anyone they don't know, but even that's not a guarantee against infection. The best protection is an antivirus program, such as McAfee VirusScan (Network Associates, 800-338-8754, www.nai.com; $40) or Norton AntiVirus (Symantec, 800-441-7234, www.symantec.com; $50), which scans e-mail attachments for hidden nasties.