Unable to Create Links to JPG File

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Kevin Trigg

When I Insert/Object/Create From File and select the Link
checkbox, I get the message "It isn't possible to create a
link to <filename>."

I am able to link other objects (and XLS file for
instance) but linking to image objects seems to have a
problem.

We have other machines in the office which are able to
link, but I've been unable to find the similarity among
the working machines and the difference between them and
the non-working machines.

The only thing I can see is that the working machines are
all running XP Pro with PP 2002. We have PP 2003 running
on XP Pro and it doesn't work. We also have PP 2002
running on W2K Pro and that does not work.

Any ideas? A search on the web and on the MS Support site
come up empty-handed.

Kevin Trigg
 
Although you should be able to do that, why are you tackling it from that angle?
Go to Insert > Picture > Picture from File and highlight the image you want.
Then click on little arrowhead on the Insert button. From the drop down
choices, select Link to File.

If that doesn't work, let us know what the file is that you are trying to link
to. What is its name and extension and where is it located?
 
When I Insert/Object/Create From File and select the Link
checkbox, I get the message "It isn't possible to create a
link to <filename>."
Click to expand...

Let me ask a non-obvious question: why do you want to link to a JPG object?

If you need a link to the original file, choose Insert, Picture, From File.
Choose the picture file you want, then instead of clicking OK, click the down
arrow next to the OK button and choose Link.

Your image will be linked and will update within PPT when you change the image
file and reopen the PPT.

And just some other PPT links, it'll probably break if you sneeze too near the
computer. ;-) Which brings up the next question: why not just embed the JPGs
using Insert, Picture, From File?


--
Steve Rindsberg, PPT MVP
PPT FAQ: www.pptfaq.com
PPTools: www.pptools.com
================================================
Featured Presenter, PowerPoint Live 2004
October 10-13, San Diego, CA www.PowerPointLive.com
================================================
 
Thanks to both Steve and Sonia. Using your proposed method
seems to work.

Why were we inserting JPGs as Objects and not using
Picture? I don't know. It's the way it's been done here
for a few years.

We want to link to the file and not embed it because the
images are updated frequently and we'd like the PP
presentation to pick up the changed image automatically.

As to why the method we were using doesn't work, I believe
it has to do with the program associated with the JPG file
type. The common point among those machines that work is
that they have MS Photo Editor associated with JPG files.
Those that don't work have a variety of programs (mostly
IE) associated with JPGs. My supposition is that the OLE
doesn't work unless the file type is associated with a
program that has an OLE server.

There are still unanswered questions and problems. First,
why does your proposed method work and ours doesn't?
Second, why can I embed JPG objects in Excel without any
problem regardless of what the file association is? Third,
when I change the JPG file type to be associated with MS
Paint I can embed JPG objects using our method as long as
the file is currently open in Paint.

In any case, thanks again for your help. I hope that this
thread will be useful to someone else in the future.

For anyone having similar problems the symptom we were
seeing was the message:
"It isn't possible to create a link to <filename>".

Kevin Trigg
 
Thanks to both Steve and Sonia. Using your proposed method
seems to work.
Click to expand...

You left off "better" ;-)
Why were we inserting JPGs as Objects and not using
Picture? I don't know. It's the way it's been done here
for a few years.
Click to expand...

And why we asked? When you insert a JPG using Insert, Picture, From File, you
add the size of the JPG to the PPT file. When you link, you add very little
overhead at all. When you Insert, Object, you add the JPG PLUS a WMF
representation of the JPG image (read: Big. Very Very BIG.)

Makes your PPT files humongous.
As to why the method we were using doesn't work, I believe
it has to do with the program associated with the JPG file
type. The common point among those machines that work is
that they have MS Photo Editor associated with JPG files.
Those that don't work have a variety of programs (mostly
IE) associated with JPGs. My supposition is that the OLE
doesn't work unless the file type is associated with a
program that has an OLE server.
Click to expand...

Nailed it in one. That's exactly correct.
There are still unanswered questions and problems. First,
why does your proposed method work and ours doesn't?
Click to expand...

You just explained that. <g> There's no registered OLE server for JPG files,
so you can't insert an Object (as in Object Linking and Embedding, as in OLE)
of that type.

If you really need to do this for other reasons, and you might, you could
change the file associations for JPGs to MS Photo Editor or some other app.
Second, why can I embed JPG objects in Excel without any
problem regardless of what the file association is? Third,
when I change the JPG file type to be associated with MS
Paint I can embed JPG objects using our method as long as
the file is currently open in Paint.
Click to expand...

I don't know the answer to either of those, I'm afraid.
In any case, thanks again for your help. I hope that this
thread will be useful to someone else in the future.

For anyone having similar problems the symptom we were
seeing was the message:
"It isn't possible to create a link to <filename>".

Kevin Trigg
Click to expand...

--
Steve Rindsberg, PPT MVP
PPT FAQ: www.pptfaq.com
PPTools: www.pptools.com
================================================
Featured Presenter, PowerPoint Live 2004
October 10-13, San Diego, CA www.PowerPointLive.com
================================================
 
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