A probably dumb question:

[stopspam@thesource.gs (Bart)]

Speaking as an old mainframer who followed the PC path before conversion to 
the TRUE RELIGION of Apple II I have a question on file type and associations:

In the PC world, the 3 letters after the period denote the file "type".  This 
can be misleading in that a say gif or exe (picture or runable binary in PC 
land) might be given a "type" of txt (ASCII text file) for example.  Attempt 
to open it in a  ASCII reader like Notepad and gibberish is the reward. 
This brings me (almost) to the question:  If a file is created in say 
Coolwriter, and is a standard ASCII file, it may, or may not open in say 
AppleworksGS.  In like manner a jpg may or may not open in a picture viewer 
(name one here) 

In the Mac World (note I still have not got to the question?), if you click a 
file and the system doesn't know what it is, you get a nice dialoge asking: 
"Hey human!  where the heck is the app that you use on this?"  On the GS 
mostly I get a not so nice dialoge that says "An Application can't be found 
for this document". 
 
FINALLY A QUESTION! 

Is there any product that will allow you to  use Application "B" to open a 
file created in Application "A" by just "associating it WITHOUT HAVING A COPY 
OF APPLICATION A?  What I mean is;  I see a file with a nice pleasant icon 
denoting:  "Wow!  sone really cool app. must have created this file (at least 
the icon is pretty)"  but when I click I get the nastygram above, no file as 
pretty as its icon.  If I go the other way around: "Humm...I THINK this is an 
ASCII file, launch Coolwriter and see if it can open it,  now, what folder was 
that sucker in again?"... I can usually open it, but that system is based on a 
very uncertain utility:  my memory of files and file type openers (and from 
the app's file/open navigator, remembering where I left that dang file!). 

I want something as easy as in PC land "humm,  excel wont open this puppy, 
let's change the extension to "doc" and see what happens!" or a quickie thing 
that asks "Now human, I am smart, but I am not THAT smart!  Where exactly did 
you leave that copy of Appleworks?" Is there anything like that in the Apple 
II world?

Thank'ee for reading and for any subsequent answers to this dumb question

-Bart 
Keeper of the Network from Heck