File Management

File management

Computer systems store data and programs on a variety of storage devices (see Basic overview of computers (basic_overview_of_computer.doc) in Section 7, ‘Technical know-how’ for further details on storage space). for further details on storage devices). Most computers have a hard disk, but if you are sharing a computer or working at different locations, you will probably be using some form of removable storage device to keep your data on. Wherever you store your data, however, it is important learn a little about file management to help you maintain some form of order to your data files.

Note: this section deals with the typical style of file management using a system running the Windows® operating system. You may want to re-purpose these materials to suit your own computer environment.

Path

A term used to describe where a file is located either on the computer’s hard drive or on a removable storage device – for example c:/niace/do_not_lose/important.doc. There are four elements to a path:

Drive – C:/ – signified by a letter. Most computers use c: to represent the hard drive, A: to represent the floppy drive, and D: to Z: to represent all other drives.
Folder(s) – niace/do_not_lose/ – used to store a collection of files and/or other folders, and sometimes referred to as ‘directories’. A drive or removable storage device may contain hundreds of folders, and each one may be sub-divided into more folders, as in this example where ‘niace’ is the main folder and ‘do_not_lose’ is a sub-folder within the ‘niace’ folder.
File name – important.doc – the unique name given to each data file stored. Each name can contain up to 255 characters, although some words are reserved for system files. It is good practice to try to keep the file names short but meaningful, otherwise a lot of your storage space will be used for storing the file names (remember, it takes 1 bit of storage space per character – see Basic overview of computers (basic_overview_of_computer.doc) in Section 7, ‘Technical know-how’ for further details on storage space).
Extension – .doc – denotes the type of data file you are storing, and determines which software application program can be used to open and manipulate the file. Common file extensions are:
Software application program: .exe
Graphics: .bmp, .gif, .tif, .jpg
Microsoft® Word document: .doc
Rich text format document: .rtf
Unformatted text document: .txt
Microsoft spreadsheet: .xls
Microsoft database: .dbs
Sound file: .wav, .mp3
Video file: .avi, .mpeg
Adobe Acrobat file: .pdf
Web page: .htm, .html, .asp, .php
Temporary file: .tmp
Zipped file: .zip
In the path, / is used to separate the elements.

You can organise your files in any order that suits you – for example you may want to have a separate folder for all your lesson plans, and another one for all your activities, or you may want to keep all files to do with one class or location in one folder regardless of whether they are lesson plans or activities. If you are sharing a computer, you may want to create a folder of your own so that you know exactly where to find your data. There is no set rule for how you file, but it is important that you do file!

Viewing your file structure

There are two ways to do this:

Windows Explorer:an application created to manage and organise your files and folders. There are two independently scrollable panels:
Folders pane: showing the entire file structure of the computer and removable storage devices in a hierarchy view. Any drive or folder with a + next to it means that there are other folders (sub-folders) in the hierarchy. Click on the + to expand the list, and on the – to collapse the list.
Contents pane: showing the contents of the folder selected in the folders pane.

The quickest way to start Windows Explorer is to hold down the Windows key () on the keyboard, and press the E key. Alternatively, open My Computer, click once on a drive letter to select that drive, then go to File Explore. Once Windows Explorer is open, go to Tools Folder Options to see if you want to create your own custom view.

My Computer:displays only the contents of the selected folder, not the file structure as displayed with Windows Explorer.

The contents of both Windows Explorer and My Computer can be viewed in a variety of ways – click on the Views button to see the options available.

Selecting files or folders

To open a file or folder, double-click on it.
To select a file or folder, click on it once.
If you want to select a group of files or folders within a range, hold down the shift key () while you click on the first and last file in the range.
To select a group of files or folders that are not in a range, hold down the control key (Ctrl) while you click on each of the files or folders that you require.
To select all the files or folders in a list, either go to Edit Select All, or hold down the Ctrlkey and press the A key.

Formatting disks

Most floppy disks are pre-formatted, but occasionally you may need to reformat a floppy disk if there are errors on it. Formatting a disk will:

erase the current contents
establish the tracks and sectors of the disk: a disk is divided up into tracks and sectors and data is saved to the sectors of the disk
scan the disk surface for errors
create a file allocation table: this establishes which sectors are already being used to store a file, which sectors are available to store a file, and which sectors are ‘bad’ and therefore unusable.

To format a disk, right-click on the A: drive, select Format, change the default options if necessary, then click Start.

Creating new folders

To create a new folder, click once on the folder within which you want the new folder, then select File New Folder. Alternatively, open the folder within which you want the new folder, then right-click in an open area in the contents pane and select New Folder. Type a name for the folder – remember not to make it too long.

Copying files or folders

Files and folders can be copied from one drive to another or from one folder to another on the same drive. You may want to reorganise your files and folders, for example to keep copies of your students’ work all in one place, or you may want to create a backup of important data. There are several ways to copy a file (or group of files):

Drag and drop:locate the file or folder (the source) you wish to copy in the contents pane, and locate the folder or drive (the destination) you wish to copy the file into in the folder pane (you may find it helpful to have two Windows Explorer windows open at the same time – one showing the source and one showing the destination). Click and hold down the mouse button and drag the source file to its destination then release the mouse button. Note:if the destination is on the same drive as the source, then the file will be moved (see below), and not copied, but by holding down the Ctrl key, a copy of the file will be made.
Toolbar buttons:locate the file and folder or drive as above, then click once on the file to select it. Click the Copy button on the toolbar, then click once on the destination to select it and click on the Paste button on the toolbar. If these buttons are not present on your toolbar, select View Toolbars Standard. Alternatively, select Edit Copy followed by Edit Paste.

Keyboard shortcuts: use the same method as the toolbar buttons above, but instead of using the buttons, use Ctrl C to copy and Ctrl V to paste.

If you are copying a large file or folder, or a batch of files or folders, you will sometimes see a copying progress monitor screen while the copying takes place.

Moving files or folders

Files and folders can be moved from one drive to another or from one folder to another on the same drive. Use the same method as detailed above for copying files using the toolbar buttons or keyboard shortcuts, but instead of clicking the Copy button or Ctrl C, click the Cut button or Ctrl X.

Renaming files or folders

From time to time you may want to rename an existing file or folder. The two main methods to achieve this are:

Locate the file or folder you want to rename and right-click on it, then select Rename and enter the new name.
Locate the file or folder you wish to rename, and click on it twice – once to select it, and once to select the name element, then enter the new name. Note: click twice with a slight pause between clicks – this is not the same as double-clicking.

When you rename files, be careful not to change the file extension. If you do, then the software applications may not recognise what type of file it is, and will be unable to open it.

Deleting files or folders

If you keep every single file or folder that you create, you will eventually run out of space on your hard disk. If you are working at different locations and relying on removable storage devices to transport your data, you are likely to run out of space very quickly. You may also start to confuse old data with up-to-date data.

To delete a file or folder, locate and select it in the normal way, and press the Delete key on the toolbar (or the Delete key on the keyboard, or right-click and select Delete).

You will be asked to confirm that you wish to delete the files or folders. Again, if you are deleting a large file or folder, or a batch of files or folders, you will sometimes see a progress monitor screen displayed while the deletion takes place. If you are deleting from the hard disk, then the selection will be moved to the recycle bin (see below), but if you are deleting from a removable storage device or a network drive, then the selection will be permanently removed. So be sure that you really do want to delete data from these locations.

The recycle bin

This is basically a folder on your hard disk where all data deleted from the hard drive are stored until the bin is emptied. It is normally represented by an icon on your desktop.

To restore a file from the recycle bin:you may occasionally delete a file or folder by accident. Provided it was originally located on the hard disk, you should be able to restore it to its original location by opening up the recycle bin, clicking on the file or folder to select it, and then going to File Restore. Or right-click the file or folder and select Restore. You can do this with multiple files or folders too.
If the file or folder you deleted was on a network drive, it is worth contacting your IT services department straight away, giving them as much information as possible – such as the name of the file or folder, the location of the network computer you were using, the area of the network drive you deleted it from, and when you deleted it. They may be able to restore the file or folder for you, depending on their network setup.
To empty the recycle bin:keeping files or folders in the recycle bin indefinitely will take up space on your hard drive, so it is a good idea to empty it regularly. If the recycle bin is open, go to File Empty Recycle Bin, or click on the Empty Recycle Bin button if there is one displayed. You can also empty the bin without opening it by right-clicking the desktop icon and selecting Empty Recycle Bin. You will be asked to confirm your intention, and again, if there is a lot of data to be removed, you will also see a progress monitor.

Searching for files and folders

Even if you have a well organised filing system for your data, occasionally you may forget where a file or folder is located. Data can be found easily using the Windows search facility. Select Start Search (or Start Find Files or Folders on older versions of Windows). You can then enter your search criteria including the file or folder name – or part of the name if you are not sure of the exact name – and the location you wish to search. The Search Results pane will display all possible matches to your criteria that are found. The Advanced Search options let you search for all files or folders of a certain type, or for any which have been created or modified between specified dates.