Open old Mac files on my new Mac

You will need to append the proper filename extensions to them. OS X does not read the file Type and Creator codes that are embedded in your old files created under Mac OS 6, 7, 8, or 9; it relies on filename extensions such as .jpg, .tif, and .pict to determine how to handle them.

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Pict and TIFF should open directly from Preview.
EPS is another beast entirely. You may need a software known as Ghostscript to open it.

Message was edited by: a brody

You say the files have been stored on CDs. Have you copied them to your MBP's hard drive before trying to rename and open them, or are you trying to rename them on the CDs? The latter won't work, because the CDs are read-only.

There are scores of applications that can open .jpg and .tif files, but if Preview won't open them, it's not very likely that anything else will either, until the problem with the files themselves is identified and solved.

Is it possible that what you stored on the CDs is aliases to the files, rather than the files themselves? Do the files' icons have little curved arrows in their lower left corners?

Message was edited by: eww

Click on the individual files in question once and do a Get Info from the File menu. That should tell you if it is an alias, or a document.