Buzz
DAT files are unlike most other file types as they do not have a clear program to open them. So, if you want to open a DAT file, you need to find out what format they belong to, text, video, attachments, or some other common formats. Below are some ways to determine the format of a DAT file, from which we use appropriate programs to open .DAT files.
COMPILATION OF PROGRAMS TO READ DAT FILES ON COMPUTERS
Method 1: Opening DAT files with Notepad
The best way to open a .DAT file is by using a program to create it. However, if you know the program that created this .DAT file, then we wouldn't have to spend much time figuring it out. So, you can try opening it using Notepad. You should know that Notepad can open anything, even images or videos, and display them as text. Most files opened this way will display a jumble of characters, but in some cases, you may find some useful information. This is because even videos, images... will have some parts of the file as text containing information about the files. For example, I opened a video using Notepad.
Procedure: Open Notepad and click on the File menu then select Open
In the file type selection section, choose All file and navigate to the directory containing the file you want to open, then press the Open button
As you see in the Notepad image, it only displays a string of characters and doesn't tell you what type of file it is. However, if you notice the top line of the text, we can understand and guess right away that this is a video file, so we will use specialized music player software to open it.
Method 2: Opening .DAT files with Hex Editor XVI32
In essence, Hex Editor is just a type of Notepad, an application that can display any file in hexadecimal format. To use it, you need to download Hex Editor XVI32 to your computer and install it. After successful installation, open the .DAT file in the application. And you will easily identify the locations of the main programs. In the example below are PDF files, the application will show you that it is a PDF document.
Once you know the program that creates the .dat files, you can choose the program and then open the .dat file in that program. For example, if the .dat is created from a PDF file, you can open the file in Adobe Reader application.
Method 3: Opening Email-Attached DAT files
For some reasons, some Email programs automatically change the extension of attached files. It's very likely that the sender of the email has sent you an image, video, or text file... So you can contact them again, and surely you will know the accurate information of the file you received.
Method 4: Opening .DAT files with Open With
If you still can't identify the type of .DAT file using Notepad or Hex Editor applications, you can try opening it by right-clicking on the file and selecting Open With.
Windows will display a list of applications to open the file, however, we don't know exactly which application can open it. So, we can use the method of checking the file size to make a guess: Right-click on the file and select Properties to check the file size.
- If the file size is large (like hundreds of MB), it's likely to be a video file, so you can try opening it with music player applications.
- If the file size is around 5 - 15MB, it could be an audio file. You can also try opening it with music player applications like Windows Media Player or VLC Player...
- If you have received .DAT files from a VCD, it's likely that the files will be opened in a video player application.
Depending on specific cases, you can apply the methods mentioned above to open DAT files. Additionally, PDF is one of the most widely used text file formats today. There are numerous software programs that support users in reading PDF files. However, finding the software that provides the best efficiency is not known to everyone, especially those who are not computer savvy. Therefore, compiling a list of the top PDF reader software in 2017 will be an extremely helpful suggestion for you. Hopefully, the article has brought you valuable insights. Wishing you success.
