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CHAPTER NO 13
MANAGING FILES AND
FOLDERS IN WINDOWS
WHAT ARE FILES?
Our computer network is like a huge filing cabinet that stores all our compute information. Each
drive is like a separate drawer in the cabinet. A file is a single “document” that is saved to a drawer that means in diskette, USB, hard drive or any other storage device.
Each letter, slide show, spreadsheet, or database you create is stored as a file. Every file saved
has a filename. You can use multiple words for the filename; for example, Letter to Sam. Do
NOT use special characters, \ / : *? " < > |.
Every file also has a three-letter extension, assigned by the Windows system that associates it with a specific program. For example, a WordPerfect complete file name would be "Letter to Sam.wpd" and a Word file name would be "Letter to Sam.doc".
WHAT ARE FOLDERS?
"Folders," also known as "directories," on your computer work in much the same way that file
folders in the real world work. Folders are used to organize the data stored on your drives. The
files that make up a program are stored together in their own set of folders.
FILE STRUCTURE
The file structure is best described and understood in a tree structure format. A tree structure is one way of representing any hierarchical structure in a graphical form.
It is called a "tree structure" because the graph looks like an upside down tree meaning that the root of the tree is on the top and the leaves at the bottom.
Microsoft Windows uses the same structure and we all use it everyday at work, even though it may not look like the figure above. Our shared drive data structure looks like the following:
HOW TO CREATE A FOLDER
Here are the two most common ways of creating folders:
- In My Computer, double click on the folder where you would like to create a new folder.
- You can then create a new folder by selecting “Make a new folder” in the File and Folder
- Tasks drop-down menu. In the following example, a new folder will be created inside a previously created folder named “officework”.
- A folder icon will appear. Please rename the folder with a descriptive name:
All file systems follow the same general conventions: a base file name and an optional extension,
separated by a period e.g. abc.doc.
MAXIMUM LENGTH
In Windows, the maximum length for a path is 255 characters including spaces, hyphens, underscore and any other character you use (no periods allowed). A path is structured in the following order: drive letter, colon, backslash, components separated by backslashes, for
Example:
H:\my documents\personal\trips-I-have-taken-in-the-past-few-years\I-have-onlytaken-
one-trip\i_need_to_go_travel_some-more\my-pictures\year- 2006\May\first_week\hiking-in-the- mountains\this-is-the-maximum-length-of-a-filename\ including-the-folders\LK.html.
Note : As you may have noticed above the actual file name is only two characters (not including the .html extension) but remember the maximum length for a file path is 255 characters, so depending on how many folders you have inside a folder where you are storing the file, the length of the actual file name will be restricted.
NAMING CONVENTIONS
Do not assume case sensitivity. Consider names such as OFFICE, office, and office to be the same.
Use a consistent method for file and folder naming.
Avoid too many folders inside a folder (remember the path length limit).
BROWSING FILES
Even when you know where a file is stored, sometimes there are so many files in the folder that
it is difficult to find the file you want. The best way to search through a large folder is to use the “Details” view. The “Details” view allows you to quickly sort your files and view different types of information about all the files in a folder.
To use the Details view
- (^) Open the folder you want to browse. In the example, I am in my “Pictures” folder.
- Click the “ Views” button, and then click “ Details ”.
- Click the column heading that you want to sort by. For example, to sort files from oldest
to newest, click the “ Date Modified” heading. To reverse the sort order (for example, to sort from newest to oldest), click the column heading twice.
- By default, the “ Details” view shows the file name, date, size, and type. You can add other information as well. To add or remove columns, right-click a column heading, and then click “ More ”.
- In the Choose Details dialog box, select the columns you want to see in the Details view.
For pictures and videos, you can add Dimensions to sort by size. For music, you can add Artist, Album Title , and Genre to make it easier to find the songs you want.
- Click “ OK” to add the columns to your Details view.
- When you modify the columns in the Details view, it affects only the folder you are
viewing.
METHOD 2
- In “My Computer”, locate and select the file or folder you need to move using the tips above.
- Click “Edit” “Cut” or press Ctrl + x on the keyboard to cut the file.
- Open the destination folder.
- Click “Edit” “Paste” or press Ctrl + v on the keyboard to paste the file.
OPENING FILES
Sometimes you open up Microsoft Word and click “File” “Open” and pick the file you want
to open and you get the following error message:
This happens because you are trying to open a file in Microsoft Word that is not a “Word” file
- Find the file or program you want to create a shortcut for.
- Right click on the file, then click on “Send to” and then click “Desktop (create shortcut)”
- You should now see a shortcut icon on your desktop.
NOTE: A black arrow on the icon means that it is a shortcut. Otherwise, it may be a copy of the
file.
