mpf File What is it? Where did it go? How do I get it back?

Question

As you can tell, I am a bit confused at this point.

I needed some simple clip art graphics so I went to Microsoft.com, picked out a few and when I tried to load them onto my Dell Dimension 3000, I kept getting messages about something missing. From what I can see, this is the File information:

File Type: MosASCII Project File

File Extension: .mpf

Description: This file contains project information for MosASCII, such as image, custom text, and settings.

Software or information available at:
MosASCII

Now I tried that MosASCII and that was a complete waste of time as it did not solve anything.

Can anyone tell me why my computer is missing something, and how do I get whatever it is I need to be able to download these graphics from Microsoft (their site was no help).

overthemoon · Answer

Thanks for the info but the support link for Microsoft was no help at all I am afraid--it deals with cil files and not mpf. I am beginning to get the impression though that this has something to do with XP? I used the Microsoft clipart program years ago on my old Dell and never had a problem. Hmmm....if I were to network into that old computer, download the files to it, could I retrieve them on my new one? Either I am even more confused than before or I have a possible solution! LOL!

txtchr · Answer

Found an informative site just by searching for '.mpf file' on Google.  This is a zipped file format.  Take a look at Design Gallery Live Clip Art Site for some information.  There is a link here to the Microsoft web site for instructions, too.

overthemoon · Answer

I had a ray of hope but alas no such luck--drat! The files are the wmf when I right click them and it does not matter which ones I choose, they all have the same issue..darn!

Here is the first page I see when I try to download images:

Media ApplicationMedia Application

Import into Clip Organizer version 2002 or newer
Media files will be stored in your My Pictures\Microsoft Clip Organizer folder.

if document.write Media files will be stored in your Application Data\\Microsoft\\Media Catalog\\Downloaded Clips folder.") else document.write

Import into Clip Gallery version 5.0 or older
Media files will be stored in your Application Data\Microsoft\Media Catalog\Downloaded Clips folder.

Please select the application you want to use.

We have determined that both Clip Gallery and Clip Organizer are installed on your computer. Please select the application you want to use.

We have determined that neither Clip Gallery nor Clip Organizer are installed on your computer. Please select the application you want to use.

The ActiveX control needed to determine which media application to use is not installed. Please select the application you want to use. Or try installing the Microsoft Office Template and Media ActiveX control again.

Import into Clip Organizer version 2002 or newer
Media files will be stored in your My Pictures\Microsoft Clip Organizer folder.

Import into Clip Gallery version 5.0 or older

Media files will be stored in your Application Data\Microsoft\Media Catalog\Downloaded Clips folder.

I do greatly appreciate your help in fixing this pain in the problem. I have only used the Microsoft clipart once in a while over the years on my old computer and I only need it now for a school holiday project.

txtchr · Answer

Here's a maybe off the wall question -- what are you going to do with this clip art? These file types seem a bit complex, and I work with clip art quite a bit. There are basic types of clip art: .jpg's and .gif's (which are raster files) and the good-old stand-by .wmf files (vector files) that you can resize without losing any clarity. Is this for a document presentation (do you want motion?) or is this for a print presentation (do you want fine point clarity?)

No matter what clip art you pick from the Microsoft Office Clip Site, before you download it, you can always before you add it to you "selection basket" do a right click on the image and look at the Properties of the clip art. Under Alternate Text will be a listing of the file name. Look at the extenstion after the name. Look for .jpg (which will usually be a photograph) or .gif (which will usually be a drawing of some sort) or .wmf (which will be a drawing but in higher quality). Those will be your easiest ones to work with if you want motionless clip art. Animated clip art will be saved as .gif files as well, or other file types, but it will always be viewable on the site as moving.

If this file type is giving you a headache, move on and forget about it! There is so much more to choose from!

And, no, I don't think this has anything to do with XP.

Just MHO.

Message Edited by txtchr on 10-18-2006 09:13 PM

Message Edited by txtchr on 10-18-2006 09:15 PM

txtchr · Answer

What software are you trying to use this clip art in? Word? Publisher?

There are other sites that have clip art that you can pull from that are wonderful. I teach software at a high school and have learned that the Microsoft ClipArt server is not always the easiest one to rely on. I have other clip art sites that are bookmarked on my school computer. Let me know if you want these. I'll e-mail the links to myself at home then post them here for you (great holiday clip art, sports clip art, school-related clip art, all royalty-free). I cannot access the forums from my school (blocked due to web filtering). You can then visit these sites, right click on an image you like, save the file into a folder on your computer, and then simply do an Insert, Picture From File command.

I'll check back here later today.

Mary :)

txtchr · Answer

overthemoon,   You haven't posted back, so I'll go ahead and give you the sites that I have found over the years.  Some of these are animated clip art sites (they work in PowerPoint and web presentations), others are for non-animated clip art (great for print publication).    I always instruct my students to start by creating a folder on their hard drive titled Clip Art.  Save it in a location that you can find easily.  When you find an image you like, point you mouse cursor to it, right click, then choose save image as and save it to the Clip Art folder that you created.  When you're ready to use the image, open your application (Word, PowerPoint, Excel, Publisher), choose Insert, Picture From File, then navigate to your Clip Art folder and choose your image.  Keep in mind that lower resolution (small number sized files) cannot be resized larger without losing clarity if they are .gif's or .jpg's.  If they are .wmf's, they can be resized larger and look great.   Here are the sites:   Internet 4 Classroom Graphics   Free Educational Clip Art   Barry's Clip Art Server   Clip Art Review (this is an assortment of different sites -- you'll have to sift through them)   Bells N Whistles (mostly animated, but a great site)   I have others, but I figured that this was a start.  Most of the sites I have are for animated graphics since I primarily teach web design.  But my students do some print work and have been frustrated by the quality available and their connection to the Microsoft ClipArt Gallery server.   Hope this helps.   Mary :)

Sophiebubbles · Answer

I have the exact same problem on my computer.  Did you ever resolve this matter?

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mpf File What is it? Where did it go? How do I get it back?

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