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User profile for user: Steve Hadeen
Steve Hadeen Author
User level: Level 1
15 points

tif files

I can't figure out why Preview will not open .tif files. I get a window saying that files may be damaged or Preview doesn't recognize the extension. However, these files open in my wife's pc, so there is no damage. From what I am understanding, Preview does open those files. I take it iPhoto cannot open .tif files?

Thanks for any help.

Message was edited by: Steve Hadeen

iMac, Mac OS X (10.6.2)

Posted on Jan 5, 2010 1:07 PM

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12 replies
User profile for user: Steve Hadeen
Steve Hadeen Author
User level: Level 1
15 points

Jan 9, 2010 10:59 PM in response to Tom Gewecke

It says open with Preview, which is what it should say since I haven't made any changes to what program opens up the file. However, if I either double-click the file icon or try to drag it into Preview, a window comes up saying "The file ("name of file".TIF) could not be opened. It may be damaged or use a file format that Preview doesn't recognize." The only possible thing I can think of, and it makes no sense to me that it wouldn't work, is that the extension is *.TIF, not *.TIFF. Under General in the Get Info, the kind of file listed says "TIFF image". But again, just because the file is TIF and not TIFF just shouldn't make any difference in my mind. By the way, these same files read perfectly fine on my wife's, dare I say it, windows laptop. Hope maybe this might give you some ideas...
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User profile for user: Francine Schwieder
Francine Schwieder
User level: Level 6
19,070 points

Jan 12, 2010 9:34 AM in response to F Shippey

I also saw a thread where tif files wouldn't open, all of them came from FAX and had different resolutions for the dimensions, so that is still another possible problem. See here:

http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=10760139

If all the files are from the same source it makes it more likely that there may be something "different" about them that Preview won't handle. If the tif files are from a variety of sources then there may be some other problem.
Francine

User uploaded file
Francine
Schwieder
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User profile for user: F Shippey
F Shippey
User level: Level 7
21,500 points

Jan 12, 2010 9:52 AM in response to Francine Schwieder

One of our fellow L4 users has problems with TIF files generated by an older version of a music scoring program because the TIF files are compressed with a form of fax compression (which gives a very small file size). This form of TIF compression seems to be no longer supported under Snow Leopard.

The OP hasn't replied as to what kind of TIF files he is having problems with - image files or graphics files.
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User profile for user: Steve Hadeen
Steve Hadeen Author
User level: Level 1
15 points

Jan 12, 2010 8:19 PM in response to Francine Schwieder

I'll have to take a look at the thread when I have more time. The files are all from the same camera, an older point and shoot digital camera my wife uses when she does decorative paint jobs to document finished jobs. The camera is an Olympus Camedia D-40 Zoom. Any idea if maybe this camera's tif files are not compatible with Snow Leopard? All the jpegs from this camera show up fine....

Steve
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tif files

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