Saved Calc file won't load

[Trenoweth]

A file that I use each month and which has loaded happily for years will not load today! It is saved as a Microsoft 97/2000/XP .xls file.

When I try to load it I have a Filter/selection window open. I select Microsoft Excel 97/2000/XP which is followed by an "Unknown graphics format" error message!

No graphics are involved, just a bog standard spreadsheet with calculations but no macros etc.

Clicking "OK" on that error message produces a General Error message: "General input/output error".

Is there something I can do to restore this file? It is the same whether I'm trying to access the saved file or the backed-up file.

[RusselB]

Welcome to the Forums.
The Microsoft 97/2000/XP .xls file is, probably, just your .ods file (presuming you were saving it in the default OpenDocument Format).
Usually that happens when Windows changes the file associations. To change it back follow this tutorial
As to the "General input/output error" message, this is more concerning.
You might be able to get your file or a previous version of your file. See How to find and un-delete AOO temporary files
Please do these steps as soon as you can as the more you use your system the lower the chances of a successful recovery.

[Trenoweth]

Thank you for your suggestions. Unfortunately nothing worked! I feel if only I could resolve the "Filter selection" problem all might be well - but I can't (so far) and it isn't!

[Zizi64]

A file that I use each month and which has loaded happily for years will not load today! It is saved as a Microsoft 97/2000/XP .xls file.

When I try to load it I have a Filter/selection window open. I select Microsoft Excel 97/2000/XP which is followed by an "Unknown graphics format" error message!

How you tried to load (open) it?
- by a double click on the file name in a file explorer?
- by the File - Open menu item from the Apache OpenOffice?
- has the filename any extension? (.xls or other?)

[Trenoweth]

Both by double clicking and using File/Open. The extension is .xls

[Zizi64]

Have you tried to open it with LibreOffice or with MS Office?

Can you upload or share the problematic file here?
Note: the file size limit is 128 KiB in this forum. You can share the larger files on a free file sharing service like the Google drive.

[Trenoweth]

I don't have MS Office and did try, but failed, with Free Office. Not sure I want to upload the file as it contains personal details.

I suppose it's a case of having to start all over again.... Maybe I should save in two different formats just in case this should happen again.

I recently had the same problem with another file, but I was able to open that from my back-up drive. This time I fear I am not so lucky.

As far as I have checked all my other files seem to open correctly so maybe it is down to an unfortunate event on a day when just these two files were open.

[Zizi64]

I don't have MS Office

Then why you saved your important documents into an obsolete, never standardized file format like the binary MS .xls format?

Always use the international (ISO) standard ODF file formats.
Have you any saved backups of the file? Try to open one of them.


And you can try the LibreOffice: I never lost any file with it since the date of forking from the OpenOffice.

[Trenoweth]

Historic reasons really, plus I do share a number of files and it was simpler to just use the one format.

Only the one saved back-up and that doesn't load, no doubt overwritten by the corrupted one. It's /xlx rather than .xlsx as OO doesn't save in that format. At least, mine doesn't, and I think it is the latest version - 4.1.7.

I had Libre Office on a Linux machine a good number of years ago and found it a bit 'çlunky', but that may just have been the Ubuntu OS! I'll give it another go and do as you suggest, save in native format and only use MS ones when sharing files.

[Zizi64]

It's /xlx rather than .xlsx as OO doesn't save in that format.

The LibreOffice can save into the Strict version of the OOXML file format. Unfortunately the OOXML file formats of the MS have two subversion: the Strict one and the Transitional one. Not an easy thing to follow the undocumented changes of the Transitional version.

Therefore always better to store your documents in the native ODF file formats. Create (export) a copy into the foreign file formats at end of the editing - if it is necessary.

[Trenoweth]

Thanks for your suggestions. I'll bear them in mind for the future - and convert all the existing .xls files.