Windows cannot open .CHM files with Russian titles

[Goodcoin]

Windows (namely, Windows XP Professional) cannot open .CHM files with Russian titles. It gives an error message like this:

Cannot open the file: C:\New Folder\????????.chm.

Although the Russian title is perfectly readable in Explorer.

Interestingly, Total Commander opens the same file with no problem. Any idea what gives?

[gopher]

Windows (namely, Windows XP Professional) cannot open .CHM files with Russian titles. It gives an error message like this:

Cannot open the file: C:\New Folder\????????.chm.

Although the Russian title is perfectly readable in Explorer.

Interestingly, Total Commander opens the same file with no problem. Any idea what gives?

What's the default app used to open the file? Anyway, have you tried switching default language for non-unicode apps to Russian under Regional Settings -> Advanced? Normally, whenever I have problems with Japanese apps changing this to Japanese fixes the problems

[ɹəuəllıʍ ʇɐb]

Is that after you changed 'Language for non-Unicode programs' to English? If so, that means that some parts of Windows are also not Unicode enabled - in this case the HTML Help Executable.

I will do some tests with Japanese Help files.

[ɹəuəllıʍ ʇɐb]

I do not have any Japanese CHM files - all Help files on Japanese Windows have English names.

[Goodcoin]

Windows (namely, Windows XP Professional) cannot open .CHM files with Russian titles. It gives an error message like this:

Cannot open the file: C:\New Folder\????????.chm.

Although the Russian title is perfectly readable in Explorer.

Interestingly, Total Commander opens the same file with no problem. Any idea what gives?

What's the default app used to open the file? Anyway, have you tried switching default language for non-unicode apps to Russian under Regional Settings -> Advanced? Normally, whenever I have problems with Japanese apps changing this to Japanese fixes the problems

Sure, it was the first thing that came to my mind. I switched the default language for non-Unicode programs to Russian, but it didn't help. The same error message, only this time with proper Russian letters instead of question marks.

Weird thing is, now Total Commander also gives the same message.

The default app associated with .CHM files is Microsoft HTML Help Executable.

[Goodcoin]

I forgot to mention earlier: It cannot be a general problem with .CHM files, because when I rename them to something English they are opening with no problem.

[Goodcoin]

I do not have any Japanese CHM files - all Help files on Japanese Windows have English names.

Can you test with Russian files? Or just copy any of them and rename to Russian or Japanese to see if they open?

[Goodcoin]

Another probably useful bit of info: I renamed some normal help files (blue icons with white question marks) to Russian and they open as they should. Only Compiled HTML help files (.CHM) stop opening after renaming them into Russian.