Don't want zip files as attachments

Question

Level 1

6 points

Don't want zip files as attachments

Sometimes a document such as Word or Excel will appear as a zip in my message when I attach it. I do not want to send a zip file. How can I stop Apple from converting it? I have an iBook G4 with Tiger. Yahoo says they are not doing it, problem is caused by Apple. Note: I have the Apple Microsoft conversion program so my documents are fully workable. Usually I can fix the Word or PDF attaching problem by exporting and saving as a different type of file, but this is not an option for Excel.

iBook G4, Mac OS X (10.4.11), Internet is via Qwest

Posted on Apr 4, 2011 6:14 PM

Reply

Answer 1

Klaus1

Level 9

52,749 points

Feb 6, 2017 1:53 AM in response to Jed Fish Gould

Your problem, hardware or software, may not be exactly the same as that of the original poster of this older thread, and it can be very confusing for everybody if we try to answer more than one question in each thread, which can also result in you applying the wrong advice to your particular problem.

In order for us to give your problem our proper attention to try to solve it, would you kindly start your own thread, describing the trouble you are having in the fullest detail, including completing your details to show what Mac or iDevice you are using, what operating system, and what version of the application in question. Please remember to post in the forum relevant to your hardware or version of OS X. A full list of all the support forums is here:

http://discussions.apple.com/index.jspa

Reply

Answer 2

BDAqua

Level 10

238,991 points

Apr 4, 2011 6:19 PM in response to douginrrnm

Hi there,

I've never had Mail zip a file by itself, is there any possibility Excel is saving a compressed file automatically, or any Mail Add-ons???

Reply

Answer 3

Apr 5, 2011 11:48 AM in response to douginrrnm

Hi Doug,

Mail never zips files, but it does zip folders. So either you attached a folder or a document from an early version of Pages or Keynote. Older versions of programs from the iWork suite saved documents in so-called bundles that appear as files, but are actually folders with a special structure--these are zipped by Mail too. In that case, you need to resave them as Word documents or export them to some other format (PDF is usually a good choice).

Reply

Answer 4

BDAqua

Level 10

238,991 points

Apr 5, 2011 1:03 PM in response to Adam Nohejl

Great info Adam, thanks! 🙂

Reply

Answer 5

douginrrnm Author

Level 1

6 points

Apr 8, 2011 4:55 PM in response to BDAqua

I don't know. I am using the 6-year-old program with all updates done and zero outstanding updates. The only additional thing other than the original Tiger program is the Apple-supplied Microsoft conversion software. So far as I know when I go through the process to attach an Excel file it is a pure Excel product.

Reply

Answer 6

douginrrnm Author

Level 1

6 points

Apr 8, 2011 5:01 PM in response to Adam Nohejl

Adam, in addition to my reply to BDAQUA, I don't think I have whatever would be required to do that folder conversion. Everything I see operates just like a single document. The suggestion of converting to PDF would help, but in the work I do, primarily financial and membership management, plus resume editing, I need to be able to send the resulting document, as revised, to others who will then want to open and use the documents. So, PDF will not work, as it is read-only.

I do have some success in exporting problem files to other formats, but in the case of Excel you have no other format that I know of. In the case of Word I do export to RTF which sometimes helps. This is driving me nuts!

Reply

Answer 7

douginrrnm Author

Level 1

6 points

Apr 8, 2011 5:05 PM in response to Adam Nohejl

Adam, about the "older versions" comment. I don't know - my Tiger is about 6 years old, but has been continually supported by updates from Apple. The age of the Microsoft conversion software is about 5 years, but so far as I know it is operating just fine. Nowhere in my work is there any hint of a folder that I can see.

Reply

Answer 8

BDAqua

Level 10

238,991 points

Apr 8, 2011 5:44 PM in response to douginrrnm

In the Finder, Right click or Control+click on one of those Excel files that zips in Mail, see if it say "Show Package Contents", if so Adam is right & it's a special kind of folder that looks like a single file.

Reply

Answer 9

Apr 9, 2011 3:33 PM in response to douginrrnm

Sorry for not being clear: I meant the native format of the (older) iWorks suite apps, not the format used when exporting to Word, PowerPoint, or Excel. If you have already exported the document into one of the Microsoft Office formats, it's a plain file, not a folder, and Mail will not zip it. If you still have the compressed attachment, you can check the format of the compressed file (its filename extension and whether it's a folder/bundle/package).

Mail does not zip attachments except folders. I can vouch for that.

Reply

Answer 10

douginrrnm Author

Level 1

6 points

Apr 11, 2011 7:33 AM in response to BDAqua

I don't think so. I really don't even know how to check that.

Reply

Answer 11

douginrrnm Author

Level 1

6 points

Apr 11, 2011 7:46 AM in response to BDAqua

I clicked on the Excel file in question, but Finder just opens up the normal list of options. No choice is "Show Package Contents". I then went to more info on the file, and it showed just the normal short file name, 2010 Taxes. The extension field is blank, indicating there is no extension to the name. I don't know where to go from here.

Reply

Answer 12

douginrrnm Author

Level 1

6 points

Apr 11, 2011 7:48 AM in response to Adam Nohejl

Adam, I don't know what to do next.

Reply

Answer 13

Apr 11, 2011 7:51 AM in response to douginrrnm

I really don't even know how to check that.

As BDAqua has said:

In the Finder, Right click or Control+click on one of those Excel files that zips in Mail, see if it say "Show Package Contents"

That is: Check whether the contextual menu that shows up contains an item labelled "Show Package Contents". If it does, then the file is a package (bundle), and not a MS Office file.

Reply

Answer 14

Apr 11, 2011 8:30 AM in response to douginrrnm

(Disregard my previous post. I sent it before your two most recent replies appeared.)

When sending files via email (or sharing them on internet via other means) always ensure that they have a valid file name extension. The extension may be hidden, but it must be there.

Files without extensions work to some extent on Mac OS X, but even if you send them to another Mac via email, their association with an application may be lost. That's the most likely reason why it appears as a zip file to the recipient.

So if that particular file is an Excel file, you should add ".xls" to its name.

Reply

Answer 15

douginrrnm Author

Level 1

6 points

Apr 19, 2011 7:16 AM in response to Adam Nohejl

Adam, it does have Show Package Contents.

As far as I know, it is an Excel file. It is a stand-alone document, consisting of several sheets containing various information - the whole file is a listing of various Scouting organizations, such as packs, troops and posts. But, it is one single file, just with various pages.

To me, this is not a package.

But, and this relates to another member's suggestion, the file name does not have a xls suffix. When I try to save it as the file name with xls, I am told it cannot be saved as an Excel file because it is a Numbers file. All I know is when the Scout Office sent it to me, they sent it as an Excel file, and I am able to open, read and edit it because of my Apple-supplied Microsoft converter software.

I don't know where to go now with this. The only way I can send it back with my changes is to convert it to a PDF file.

Thanks for any help you and the others can give me.

Reply