5 ms·

or was it Windows hiding file extensions by default and you downloaded a .mp3.exe file?

netsharc 4mo ago
Isn't it just great how a decision made by some genius in Microsoft decades ago caused so much confusion and mess. Even on Windows 11 the default is to hide extensions, because, geez, wouldn't want to confuse people with change after decades of it being like that. Although, was the hiding something that the Mac introduced? The idea of the last part of the filename (after the period) determining what program is launched to handle the file is odd anyway... I wonder if the Windows spyware infrastructure measures what % of people turn off extension hiding..
- throwawaysoxjje 4mo ago
  Macs originally didn’t have filename extensions because the file type was stored as metadata in the file system
  - hnlmorg 4mo ago
    That really is a superior way of doing things too. Or at least it would have been if that metadata were transferred with the file itself in all protocols.
- chuckadams 4mo ago
  The mac started out without using extensions at all, the type was embedded in the metadata. That's still possible now, but it's largely derived from extensions first. I believe Finder shows all extensions by default. It certainly does in details mode.
- anal_reactor 4mo ago
  > The idea of the last part of the filename (after the period) determining what program is launched to handle the file is odd anyway... I challenge you to suggest a better solution - the best that Linux came up with is a giant database of all magic numbers known to God and praying that something matches... sometimes it does, and sometimes it even matches the correct program.
  - nofriend 4mo ago
    the linux way works tho
    - NooneAtAll3 4mo ago
      it really doesn't hiding information from user is not good by any means
      - netsharc 4mo ago
        But relying on them to tell the OS what type a file is, or allowing them to change the extension, isn't good either. lena.jpg doesn't become lena.pdf by changing the last 3 letters of the filename..
        tardedmeme 4mo ago
        It gets really complicated when you get into overlapping file types, like with ISOBMFF. An .mp4 can also, simultaneously, be a valid .3gp because those are profiles of ISOBMFF. On the other extreme, JPEG is secretly two different incompatible formats (JFIF and Exif), and a video file with a different codec in the same container, or even a different track layout, might as well be a different format.
        NooneAtAll3 4mo ago
        > allowing them to change the extension, isn't good either why not? power to the people. At worst it just breaks. At best you get filetype chamelions that are straight up cool, yet harmless
      - nofriend 4mo ago
        Am I missing something? Hiding things from users is a property of the windows approach. Did you reply to the wrong person?
        NooneAtAll3 4mo ago
felooboolooomba 4mo ago
Nope. It had been renamed from .avi. CP.
- GaryBluto 4mo ago
  You'd think it wouldn't be that hard for a client to automatically check if a file is what it claims to be after downloading.

Isn't it just great how a decision made by some genius in Microsoft decades ago caused so much confusion and mess. Even on Windows 11 the default is to hide extensions, because, geez, wouldn't want to confuse people with change after decades of it being like that. Although, was the hiding something that the Mac introduced? The idea of the last part of the filename (after the period) determining what program is launched to handle the file is odd anyway... I wonder if the Windows spyware infrastructure measures what % of people turn off extension hiding..

throwawaysoxjje 4mo ago
Macs originally didn’t have filename extensions because the file type was stored as metadata in the file system
- hnlmorg 4mo ago
  That really is a superior way of doing things too. Or at least it would have been if that metadata were transferred with the file itself in all protocols.
chuckadams 4mo ago
The mac started out without using extensions at all, the type was embedded in the metadata. That's still possible now, but it's largely derived from extensions first. I believe Finder shows all extensions by default. It certainly does in details mode.
anal_reactor 4mo ago
> The idea of the last part of the filename (after the period) determining what program is launched to handle the file is odd anyway... I challenge you to suggest a better solution - the best that Linux came up with is a giant database of all magic numbers known to God and praying that something matches... sometimes it does, and sometimes it even matches the correct program.
- nofriend 4mo ago
  the linux way works tho
  - NooneAtAll3 4mo ago
    it really doesn't hiding information from user is not good by any means
    - netsharc 4mo ago
      But relying on them to tell the OS what type a file is, or allowing them to change the extension, isn't good either. lena.jpg doesn't become lena.pdf by changing the last 3 letters of the filename..
      - tardedmeme 4mo ago
        It gets really complicated when you get into overlapping file types, like with ISOBMFF. An .mp4 can also, simultaneously, be a valid .3gp because those are profiles of ISOBMFF. On the other extreme, JPEG is secretly two different incompatible formats (JFIF and Exif), and a video file with a different codec in the same container, or even a different track layout, might as well be a different format.
      - NooneAtAll3 4mo ago
        > allowing them to change the extension, isn't good either why not? power to the people. At worst it just breaks. At best you get filetype chamelions that are straight up cool, yet harmless
    - nofriend 4mo ago
      Am I missing something? Hiding things from users is a property of the windows approach. Did you reply to the wrong person?
      - NooneAtAll3 4mo ago

felooboolooomba 4mo ago

Nope. It had been renamed from .avi. CP.

GaryBluto 4mo ago
You'd think it wouldn't be that hard for a client to automatically check if a file is what it claims to be after downloading.