2006-07-03 00:06:11 · 7 answers · asked by Scripo 1 in Computers & Internet ➔ Programming & Design
In short: there's no way to tell.
The problem is that many applications use the file extension ".dat" to indicate a file that contains data.
But that's exactly all it tells us, and that's not enough.
The problem is that so many different programs use ".dat" that it really doesn't tell you anything about the file, what it contains, or what program it belongs to. There is no standard format, there is no standard way to interpret the contents. ".dat" is only a name and nothing more.
So I'll be clear: there is no way to know how to open a .dat file unless you know what program created it. Period.
A good example is that Yahoo Instant Messenger (YIM) apparently keeps it's message history in a file that ends in ".dat". The way Yahoo works, you can only open that .dat file using Yahoo Instant Messenger, and only of you are logged in to the account that created the file in the first place.
But if you don't know what application created the file, there's no way to know how to open it.
If you do know what application created the file, then it's likely only that application can be used to open it.
2006-07-03 00:09:31 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
Well I don't know if it'll really help you or not.
I've tried this and it was 50/50 successful.
First get yourself connected to the Net, then right click on the file. Select "open with" option. Then choose the option for "looking for the appropriate program from the Web". Then download the program that you think is appropriate from the page that opens. Just try it.
2006-07-03 14:22:54 · answer #2 · answered by Party Animal 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Usually a dat file can be more than one type , sometimes it's a text archive., other times it's a system file , and sometimes it's a movie ... try to open it with windows media player ..
2006-07-03 07:08:51 · answer #3 · answered by Luay14 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
See if the .dat file is any movie file you can rename the file with .mpg or .mpeg eg part1.dat to part1.mpg and then double click it to open with winamp or any supporting mpg media player.
2006-07-04 17:59:18 · answer #4 · answered by Icon 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
try to open with Window Media player...if u couldn't open don try to open..coz.....if it's not a movie..then it contains some critical data
2006-07-03 07:15:46 · answer #5 · answered by Nasmi 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
there's no erason to open this type of file, unless you wish to corupt sys O/S
go to Microsoft.com
2006-07-03 07:08:47 · answer #6 · answered by timestamps 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
try opening in wordpad or notepad
2006-07-03 07:10:00 · answer #7 · answered by bow4bass 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋