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When attempting to load screenplay downloaded from Contour for iOS, Contour for Windows returns an error message that the file could not be opened due to a malformed tag. How can I resolve this? - Knowledgebase / Contour for iOS - Mariner Software

When attempting to load screenplay downloaded from Contour for iOS, Contour for Windows returns an error message that the file could not be opened due to a malformed tag. How can I resolve this?

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If you download a screenplay from Contour to iOS and attempt to open it in Contour for Windows, the following error message may display in Contour for Windows:

==== Dialog ===============

The Contour File "[Name of project].contour" could not load. The error is Invalid XML Element: malformed tag found (no valid name)

[ OK ]

This message will display if a specific section of the screenplay file you've downloaded from Contour contains an error. You can resolve this issue by following the steps below.

To resolve this issue, follow these steps:

  1. Open Notepad. Notepad is accessible through the Start menu. In Windows Vista and Windows 7, it is typically possible to locate Notepad by searching for it in the search bar provided at the bottom of the Start menu.
  2. Locate the screenplay file you downloaded from Contour. If you downloaded the screenplay file through a Web browser, the file should be available in the folder (like your user's Downloads folder or the Desktop) that the Web browser is set to download to.
  3. Drag the file into the Notepad Window. You should be able to drag the file directly from Windows Explorer and drop it into the Notepad window--this will cause the file to open in Notepad.
  4. Change the first line as directed below.

The first line of the screenplay file should look like this:

<?contour version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>

Change ?contour to ?xml, so that the first line looks like this:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>

Once you have done this, save changes to the file and close Notepad.

You should now be able to open the screenplay file in Contour for Windows.

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