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| The File Manager - File Extensions

Overview Searching and Filtering File Sets File Extensions

File (or folder) extensions are the part of the file or folder name following the last period.
They are used to indicate the type of file or folder and should generally be left alone.
In various circumstances the 'Get Name' dialog allows you to edit the extension separately or not at all. If the extension field is disabled, then the extension should not be changed. If you enter one as part of the file or folder name, then the fixed extension will be appended.
In some places on the phone, extensions can indicate one file type, but the actual data in the file can be a different format. This works, because file readers often determine the actual data format by special 'magic numbers' in a file's data itself.
For example, a .m4r extension signifies a ringtone, but the actual file format is usually AAC (which normally has the extension .m4a.) Similarly, system sounds (.caf) can have the AIFF file format (normal extension .aif.)
For images, the extension generally corresponds to the data format. Notable exceptions are the wallpaper (LockBackground.jpg) which can have PNG format (with transparency,) and thumbnails which are JPEG but have extension .THM.
In addition, the phone can play various movie formats, but the file extensions should be .mov.
iFuntastic changes extensions back and forth as necessary, but be aware that files on the phone may indicate one format, but actually be another. This becomes especially significant if you copy files off the phone onto disk.
As much as possible, iFuntastic does not display extensions outside file manager lists. If you see duplicate names, then there may be two files with the same name, but different extensions.