Opening PPS attachment in Outlook Express

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I apologize if I queried this subject before, but the old memory is failing. Anyway,
I’m trying to help an elderly lady with PPS email attachments. She’s running XP SP3 with Outlook Express. She get PPS attachments, and although I have the Power Point Viewer installed, it will not open a PPS attachment directly from the email. It has to be saved somewhere on her HD and then it opens with no problem. I’ve checked and the PPS extension is associated with the Power Point Viewer program. Any suggestions?

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Chuck,
have you tried right clicking the attachment?

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Yes, but it just allows me to save the file somewhere which is what I have to do to if she wants to play the PPS file.

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In Outlook Express, attachment security settings are borrowed from Internet Explorer. About half way down this article there is a discussion of this setting: Using virus protection features in Outlook Express 6.

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Thanks for the hint about virus protection. I’ll give it a try.

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This is the section I meant: “Using the Internet Explorer Unsafe File List to Filter E-mail Attachments”

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Thanks. I’ve got it printed out and will pursue it with my 98 year old friend’s computer as soon as I get the time.

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Jumping back to the OP’s original post….. PPS files are “Power Point” files and are not opened with Outlook Express, but some version of MS Power Point or a free Power Point Viewer.

Once the PP-viewer is installed on the PC, it will open any PPS file that’s clicked on, just like WORD will open .doc files, etc.
I’ve solved this problem for many of my customers by just installing the FREE Power Point Viewer, which I carry with me on my Utilities CD.

This web site may help:
http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/powerpoint-help/view-a-presentation-without-powerpoint-2010-HA102000544.aspx
and
http://www.microsoft.com/download/en/confirmation.aspx?id=13

Happy Computing,
The Doctor

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I installed the PP Viewer long ago. It works just fine with any popwer point show EXCEPT one attached to an incoming email. As a temporary fix I saved the email attachment to her desktop. Clicking on the desktop file causes PP Viewer to open and display the file. When the email attachment is clicked on it pops up a message saying it can find a program to open it with! I’ve checked file associations and PPS files are set to open with the viewer. I’ve also fiddled with the varous security settings in both OE and IE with no success. This is really a puzzlement.

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I’d be curious to see how you’ve set things up under the Security tab in O.E. Options.

I always check the first and third item and leave everything else UN-Checked.
That’s NOT the default setting, so you have to change it when you first set up O.E.

I’ve walked many a customer through that fix, over the phone.
Things like that can easily be fixed remotely using “Team Viewer”.

That may help you. I hope so.

The Doctor

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The next chance I get I’ll check out the Security settings you suggest.

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Anyway, I’m trying to help an elderly lady with PPS email attachments. She’s running XP SP3 with Outlook Express. She get PPS attachments, and although I have the Power Point Viewer installed, it will not open a PPS attachment directly from the email. It has to be saved somewhere on her HD and then it opens with no problem. I’ve checked and the PPS extension is associated with the Power Point Viewer program. Any suggestions?

You may want to view this site. http://windowsxp.mvps.org/ppsopen.htm

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I’m wondering if the PPS attachment is not really downloaded onto her PC?
If there is a choice to view or SAVE the file, I’d save it, then view it. One
extra step, but it does solve the problem. Eh?

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Yes. So far the only way to get it to work is to first save it someplace and then view the file.

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Installing SP2 or SP3 broke the file associations for PPS attachments. The link I provided earlier fixes this. It works well as I have used it many times.

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I’ll give that link a try and report back.

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The PPSFix.exe program did the trick. Thanks.

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