Microsoft KB Archive/59665

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Loss of Colors in Paintbrush File

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Q59665

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The information in this article applies to:


 * Microsoft Windows versions 3.0, 3.0a

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SYMPTOMS
Microsoft Windows Paintbrush can save files only up to the number of simultaneous colors the current display allows. For example, if you are using the standard Windows 16-color VGA video driver, Paintbrush can save files with 16 colors or less. If you are using a 256-color video driver, Paintbrush can save 256 color files. Even if you select a specific number of colors when saving a file, the file is saved only with the maximum number of colors that the current display supports.

Applications such as Microsoft Word for MS-DOS version 5.0 don't recognize pictures in the 256-color format and are unable to use pictures in that format.

WORKAROUND
To convert these pictures to a 16-color format, do the following:


 * 1) Run Windows Setup and install the standard VGA driver.
 * 2) Restart Windows and run the Windows Paintbrush.
 * 3) Load the 256-color files and then save them in the .PCX format. This will save them in a format Word 5.0 can read.
 * 4) Run Windows Setup again and reinstall the original 256-color video driver.

Paintbrush can load files with any number of colors. However, if you load a 256-color file on a 16-color VGA and immediately save it, the file is irrevocably converted to 16 colors.

STATUS
Microsoft has confirmed this to be a problem in Windows Paintbrush versions 3.0 and 3.0a. This problem was corrected in later versions of Paintbrush.

Additional query words: 3.0 3.00 3.0a 3.00a 5 5.0 5.00

Keywords :

Issue type :

Technology : kbWin3xSearch kbWin300 kbWin300a