text: software to detect file of an unknown type? what sw can be used to detect a file of an unknown type if you don't know the extension you are out of luck. you can search for extensions at many sites including http://filext.com/alphalist.php?extstart=%5ea  if you don't currently see file extensions go to control panel/folder options. under view/advanced settings remove the check mark from "hide extensions for known file types". i would recommend that everyone do this. you can download what looks like x.jpg and find out that it is really x.jpg.exe.