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OpenXML Converter localization problems preventing launch

<p>We received a couple of questions regarding the recently updated OpenXML converter from Microsoft that is used to read the new Office document formats with older versions of Office and other Office suites. For some people, this updater will not open ev

CNET staff
3 min read

Written by Topher Kessler

We received a couple of questions regarding the recently updated OpenXML converter from Microsoft that is used to read the new Office document formats with older versions of Office and other Office suites. For some people, this updater will not open even on a fully updated Mac and gives an error regarding some missing user interface components for the application.

MacFixIt reader "Sven" writes:

"After downloading and installing the new version of the converter, I noticed that it wouldn't launch any more on my 10.5.7 Intel Mac mini (with the Console essentially saying that it couldn't find MainMenu.nib): so, I looked into the application package and into the installer package (with Pacifist), and found that in version 1.1 all languages except English and Japanese had missing items; in particular, InfoPlist.strings, Localizable.strings and MainMenu.nib were missing from all languages, except en.lproj and ja.lproj, inside the Resources folder in the Contents folder of the application package (and the same, of course, in the installer package)."

This problem is because Microsoft did not fully implement localization in the updater, and its occurrence will dependon your system's localization setup. Sven found that while the localization folders for multiple languages exist in the application package, only the ones for Japanese and English are intact--the others are missing some necessary files. As such, if your default language is anything but English or Japanese, and you have disabled those languages in your system preferences, you may not be able to launch the program unless you have English installed for your system and you disable all but the English or Japanese languages for the program.

To manage the localization of the converter (or any application), right-click and get information on the program, and then expand the "Languages" section of the information window. From here, you can enable or disable languages for the program, and the program should launch if you uncheck all but English or Japanese.

A second option is to copy the localization data from a previous version of the program to the new version. For the most part, the program's layout is the same as previous versions, so localization for previous versions should carry over to the newer version. The process to do this is as follows:

With all the languages checked in the information window for the program, right-click the old version of the program and choose "Show Package Contents." Then go to the /Contents/Resources/ folder and check the contents of the respective language folder (ie: en.lproj for "English," or de.lproj for "German"). Do the same for the new version of the program, and copy the missing files from the old folder to the new one. In this case, the missing files are "InfoPlist.strings", "Localizable.strings," and the "MainMenu.nib" folder. With these resources now present, the program should launch properly.

For more information on application localization in OS X, see our previous article on the topic.

UPDATE: Correction...German, not Dutch. ;)

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Topher has been an avid Mac user for the past 10-15 years, and has been a contributing author to MacFixIt for just over a year now. One of his diehard passions has been troubleshooting Mac problems and making the best use of Macs and Apple hardware both for family and friends, as well as in the workplace. He and the newly formed MacFixIt team are hoping to bring enhanced and more personable content to our readers, and keep the MacFixIt community going here at CNET. If you have questions or comments for Topher or the other MacFixIt editors, feel free to contact us at http://www.macfixit.com/contact

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