|
25 Feb 03 - 11:52 AM (#898323) Subject: Tech: Opening crd files From: GUEST,Pooby I'm feeling confident my fellow 'catters can sock this query out of the park: Recently got a new PC, and bookmarked the "Harmony Central" and "Olga" web sites for access to song tabs. Problem is, the computer keeps asking me what program it should use to open files with the "*.crd" or "*.tab" extension. I remember having this happen with my old computer, and that the problem was eventually (and easily) solved. Thing is, I can't remember what program I told the computer to use, and where I found it. For some reason, the new PC is opening up crd files in "Wordpad," which puts the file on the screen in an unformatted mish-mash. So how do I change the Wordpad default, and what program should I be using? Thanks, 'cats. Pooby |
|
25 Feb 03 - 12:22 PM (#898349) Subject: RE: Tech: Opening crd files From: DMcG You can almost certainly open *.CRD and *.TAB files with Notepad quite happily. This will probably be on the Accessories list somewhere. *.CRD files have also been used - if I remember rightly - by a program called Cardbox which was nothing to do with music at all, but it unlikely you have picked up one of this files. The 'mish-mash' is probably due to the files coming from a UNIX machine somewhere which marks 'end-of-lines' differently to most windows programs. |
|
25 Feb 03 - 12:34 PM (#898360) Subject: RE: Tech: Opening crd files From: pavane You have to disassociate the .crd and .tab extensions from notepad. Easy enough to associate them, but more difficult to find out how to detach. Sorry I cant remember how just now, but I am sure someone else will post instructions. (Or maybe search Windows Explorer Help?) |
|
25 Feb 03 - 12:37 PM (#898361) Subject: RE: Tech: Opening crd files From: DMcG It is fairly straightforward to dissociate the CRD extension from Wordpad, but the exact steps vary with the specific version of Windows you are using. Can you post that? |
|
25 Feb 03 - 01:19 PM (#898404) Subject: RE: Tech: Opening crd files From: JohnInKansas In recent windows versions, open Windows Explorer - usually from Start-Programs-Accessories. Click on any Folder Select Tools from the bar at the top Select the Folder Options Tab Select the File Types Tab This will show you all the "registered" file types, and what program is set to open them. Find your .crd and select it, then use the "change" button to associate it with a different file. The .crd extension has been used for a number of different kinds of files, several of which were obsolete "mini database" things, where everything was stored in hex - so it comes out as mostly "unprintables." This doesn't sound like what you're getting, but I don't know what current file types use that extension. John |
|
25 Feb 03 - 01:26 PM (#898410) Subject: RE: Tech: Opening crd files From: JohnInKansas I had to go look at an old machine: In Win98, and I think in Win95, open Windows Explorer and select a folder, then choose View - Folder Options, and click on the File Types tab. From there, it's pretty much the same on all Windows versions. John |
|
25 Feb 03 - 01:38 PM (#898420) Subject: RE: Tech: Opening crd files From: Mark Clark Here is the .CRD entry from the File Extension Source site.I'm guessing the .CRD files in your case are guitar chord files. The .TAB files are probably tablature.- Mark |
|
25 Feb 03 - 01:50 PM (#898431) Subject: RE: Tech: Opening crd files From: JohnInKansas Mark beat me to posting the link to the handy place for info on file extensions: FileExt. They identify the .crd extensions as: 1. A Windows 3.1 "Cardfile" database file.(hex and messy - my note) 2. A Guitar Chord file [On-line Guitar Archive] (usually a plain text file) 3. A "ColdRED script file." They identify the .tab extension as: 1. Guitar Tablature File [On-line Guitar Archive] 2. MapInfo Table 3. Diabetes Mentor File 4. ArcView Lookup File 5 Insight II Table File You're probably looking at the guitar chord and guitar tab files, which should be a plain text files. If so, you can open them in Word and use the search and replace tools there to clean it up. (You can also open in notepad, but Word has much superior tools for reformatting. You should be able to get info on how to use the files from Olga, but I can't get in there now – the site seems to be "off." John |
|
25 Feb 03 - 01:57 PM (#898442) Subject: RE: Tech: Opening crd files From: JohnInKansas Late night last night, and I'm still on my first cup'a. An option you can always try is: Make a copy of the files that are giving you problems in a separate folder (recommended practice - always keep the originals 'till the problem is solved) Change the file extensions on the copies to something that does open - in this case .txt would probably be a good bet for both of your files. If that doesn't work - try a different extension. "Faking" the files into programs that are already set to open files with a particular extension can be a much quicker way of finding the "right" program than changing what program Windows tries to use. Changing the file extension doesn't change anything else in the file, and you can always "register" the .crd and .tab extensions once you find what works - and discard the copies. John |
|
25 Feb 03 - 02:08 PM (#898452) Subject: RE: Tech: Opening crd files From: GUEST,Ed In answer to Pooby's original question: what program should I be using? The files are text files, so Notepad, Wordpad or any word-processor should be fine. My guess is that the problem in your unformatted mish-mash is either that wordpad is displaying the file with a proportionally spaced font rather that a fixed spaced font, or that the line lengths are too long. The solution to the first is to go to Edit, Select All and change the font to courier or some such such. For the second, turn off word wrap, or reduce the size of the font. Ed |
|
25 Feb 03 - 03:08 PM (#898502) Subject: RE: Tech: Opening crd files From: GUEST,Jon Assuming it is a text file, either Dave or Ed could be right. Difference in end of line markers are relatively common. Windows uses a CR LF (carriage return/ linefeed) pair but other systems may use just a CR or a LF. It may be worth trying Text Edit. It's free and I believe copes with all of those end of line systems. Jon |
|
25 Feb 03 - 04:04 PM (#898552) Subject: RE: Tech: Opening crd files From: GUEST,Ed Jon, there's no question as to whether these are text files. They are no doubt. I don't fully understand the line marker issues that you and Dave mention, but I've never found a file that doesn't 'behave' if my above advice is followed. Interested to know about any that might not. Ed |
|
25 Feb 03 - 04:19 PM (#898561) Subject: RE: Tech: Opening crd files From: DMcG An account of the many wild and wonderful ways operating systems can show where the end of a line occurs is best avoided. (VAX/VMS had at least 48 different ways of doing it, from memory!) I think the font issue is certainly a good candidate if the text 'looks' as if it might make sense if layed out differently. If you want a few examples of inconsistancies within Windows, PM me, but the response will be rather techie! |
|
25 Feb 03 - 04:37 PM (#898578) Subject: RE: Tech: Opening crd files From: GUEST Ed try this - one of the abcm2ps help files - a file in UNIX format. Clicking on the link should give you something decent looking in IE but try "save target as" and opening with Notepad. Jon |
|
25 Feb 03 - 04:48 PM (#898588) Subject: RE: Tech: Opening crd files From: GUEST,Ed Fair point, Jon! I haven't found any files that behave like that from Harmony Central or Olga mind, so my advice remains... Ed who's tech knowledge is very limited, when it comes down to it |
|
25 Feb 03 - 07:14 PM (#898694) Subject: RE: Tech: Opening crd files From: JohnInKansas I finally got into Olga, and find a Viewing Files document that may help. They say that all the .tab and .crd files are "plain text" and suggest you use any word processor and, if necessary, reformat to 10pt Courier. The few samples I downloaded open ok that way. Quality is "spotty" at best, but then these are all "volunteer" submissions. The only consistent thing I noted was quite a few extraneous/excess spaces in some. There is also an old notice on the "front page:" Archive Browser Change (3/20/01) Many users were having trouble with the format of tab files in the archive. The archive section now displays the tab in html format by default. The old text only format is still available by clicking on the "Printer Friendly" link or by choosing "Show Text Format by Default" (for this to stick you must accept a cookie, sorry). So if you were having trouble reading tab files, give it a shot now. (Update 3/29) We've made another fix to the archive browser so that non tab links can now be downloaded. Also if you having trouble accessing tab, please tell us what browser you are using. I don't think the above notice would have anything to do with your current problem, and I couldn't see any difference in viewing html and viewing plain text. If you did, perhaps, download something in html, then of course it might open better in your web browser. Try renaming one or two copies with a .txt or .htm file extension. To rename, in Windows Explorer just right click on the filename and pick Rename. Hit the End key to go to the end of the filename. Backspace 3 times to take out the old extension, and type the new one (txt or htm). When you've got it right, either hit Enter or just click the icon button on the file. [If you use the default "double-click to open," you can click once on the filename in WinExplorer to select it without opening, then click on the "text" part of the filename and it will "open for edit." The whole name will be highlighted, with a little box around it. You can then change the name, or copy the name (Ctl-C), and close the "edit" by clicking on the icon, clicking another file, or hitting Enter. Very handy for copying a filename somewhere like to a document. If you've set preferences to single-click to open, this won't work, and you have to use the right-click/rename bit.] John |
|
25 Feb 03 - 08:20 PM (#898741) Subject: RE: Tech: Opening crd files From: John in Brisbane Hi Guys, will all due respect I believe you may have overlooked the obvious. ChordPro is a particular format which allows specialised software to manipulate the chords and lyrics in some quite wonderful ways. You can transpose key signatures, change the way the chords line up with the lyrics or call up lottle chord fingering images from a library. I haven't played with the software for some time, but there's a mix of freeware and shareware out there and from memory works really well. Not sure whether I've posted on this subject in the past, but the chord within lyrics convention is one that I'd recommend for Mudcat Forum use. I know lots of folks here are touchy about the subject of chords, but in my opinion are an essential ingredient for many newbies to play folk songs - a passion of mine as some people will know. My Mum's health is pretty grim so I'll be in Melbourne for a while, but you Finfo techies will easily find a range of software to play with. Regards, John |
|
25 Feb 03 - 09:19 PM (#898777) Subject: RE: Tech: Opening crd files From: JohnInKansas Guest Ed and Guest Jon (25 Feb 03 - 02:08 & 03:08 PM As you've figured out, you're both right, but there's a little additional subtlety to it. The carriage return used in most Windows programs, especially Word, will translate to some ASCII value, often to two characters, when imported into a 'nix or other system program, but it's really like a "bucky-bit" character - outside the ASCII (and ANSI) range. If you use VB to "call" the ANSI value in Word it will tell you that it's just ANSI/ASCII 13, but if you try to search for it by that "name" (Find ^013) you won't find it. You find, or insert, it in Word by "coding" it as ^p. If you copy something from the screen in IE (displayed html) that is "line-wrapped" to fit the screen you happen to be using, and paste it into Word, it will paste with the same linewrap as what you copied it from - even though the "wraps" are not in the original html. It usually inserts a single ASCII 31 for these "extra" breaks, although occasionally you'll find ASCII 11 values. As you guys have figured out, this has nothing to do with the thread problem, but for reference purposes - One of the reasons for reading plain text files in Word rather than in Notepad or Wordpad is that you have very powerful search and replace tools in Word that aren't in the simpler programs. IF you can identify (perhaps by guessing) extraneous characters, you can FIND ^031 and REPLACE WITH " " (a blank space) etc to clean up something that's been "distorted" somewhere along the way. John |
|
26 Feb 03 - 06:24 AM (#898976) Subject: RE: Tech: Opening crd files From: GUEST Thanks John in K, always handy to know what other characters may get in there in addition to CR(13) and LF(10) and how to deal with them. If I'm copying/pasting HTML, I'm probably using one of my HTML editors. I use 2. MS Interdev, particularly if I'm also dealing with ASP and this zend product, I think it a great free tool for working with PHP. It's a Java program and I've had it running well on both Windows and Linux. John in B, best wishes from me re your mum. Jon |
|
26 Feb 03 - 10:43 AM (#899129) Subject: RE: Tech: Opening crd files From: Pooby Score one for the dummies! I didn't understand a lot of the heavy-duty techie stuff in some of the reply postings, but I knew you all would come through. I played around with a few of the more user-friendly suggestions, and all's well (it seems) between me and Olga. Thanks, one and all. Pooby (Member with cookie restored) |
|
26 Oct 18 - 01:13 PM (#3958529) Subject: RE: Tech: Opening crd files From: SuperDave The original question seems to imply that the user wants to open a .crd file *automatically* with some form of ChordPro software. Yes, you can set the default values for various filetypes, but you run the risk of screwing up some other application that uses the .crd file extension. The easiest solution is to open the ChordPro app first, and then use it to open the various .crd files. Personally, although I love Word and its editing capabilities, I would never use it to edit/print lyrics and/or chords - too many opportunities for things to go wrong with font changes, etc. |