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When downloading a TXT file, the data shifts (wrap around mode). How do I fix this?

iramos
iramos
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From time to time I have to download files from different websites (IBM.COM, CA.COM). These files are in txt with the normal character length of 80. If I do the save using Internet Explorer, the file formats correctly. In Firefox, the data shifts and gets wrap around like there is no end to each statement (CR/LF). I tried different ways of saving it, but always end up with shifted data. Also, If I choose to open file with IE (within Firefox), the data looks correct but does not saves the format shown. How do I overcome this?

From time to time I have to download files from different websites (IBM.COM, CA.COM). These files are in txt with the normal character length of 80. If I do the save using Internet Explorer, the file formats correctly. In Firefox, the data shifts and gets wrap around like there is no end to each statement (CR/LF). I tried different ways of saving it, but always end up with shifted data. Also, If I choose to open file with IE (within Firefox), the data looks correct but does not saves the format shown. How do I overcome this?

All Replies (2)

cor-el
cor-el
  • Moderator
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What is the file extension of that file?

It sounds from your description that the file is rendered as an html file and not as a text file. You can check that in "Tools > Page Info > General".

What are the first 100 bytes of the file if you check that in a hex viewer in case there are unrecognized characters at the start of the file?

jscher2000 - Support Volunteer
jscher2000 - Support Volunteer
  • Top 10 Contributor
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Some sites may use Unix-style line breaks and Firefox doesn't convert those to DOS-style line breaks. The Windows Notepad application ignores Unix-style line breaks but Wordpad and other text editors such as Notepad++ deal with them properly.