Computers Are Your Future © 2008 Prentice-Hall, Inc.

Computers Are Your Future Spotlight 4 © 2008 Prentice-Hall, Inc.Slide 2 Computers Are Your Future Spotlight 4 File Management

Computers Are Your Future Spotlight 4 © 2008 Prentice-Hall, Inc.Slide 3 File Management  Good file management skills are a hallmark of a competent computer user.  File management essentials:  The big picture of file management  The specifics of actually managing files

Computers Are Your Future Spotlight 4 © 2008 Prentice-Hall, Inc.Slide 4 The Big Picture: Files, Folders, and Paths  A file is a named unit of digital data stored in a computer system.  Files are organized in directories or folders.  Folders may have subfolders, or folders within folders.  Files and folders reside on a storage device called a drive.  The computer follows a path to find a file.

Computers Are Your Future Spotlight 4 © 2008 Prentice-Hall, Inc.Slide 5 File Naming Conventions  Each file needs a specific filename.  The filename has two parts:  The name  The extension  The extension identifies the type of data the file contains. Example filename: plant_diseases.doc NameExtension

Computers Are Your Future Spotlight 4 © 2008 Prentice-Hall, Inc.Slide 6 Commonly Used Extensions ExtensionFile Type.exeProgram Application.docMicrosoft Word.xlsMicrosoft Excel.pptMicrosoft PowerPoint.mdbMicrosoft Access.pdfAdobe.txtSimple Text.htm or.htmlWeb Pages.rtfRich Text Format.jpeg or.jpgImage Format

Computers Are Your Future Spotlight 4 © 2008 Prentice-Hall, Inc.Slide 7 Managing Files Files are managed in two ways:  Using a file management utility  From within the programs that create them

Computers Are Your Future Spotlight 4 © 2008 Prentice-Hall, Inc.Slide 8 File Management Utilities My Computer is the main file management utility. Left Pane – Displays links to system tasks Right Pane – Lists stored files and devices attached to the computer

Computers Are Your Future Spotlight 4 © 2008 Prentice-Hall, Inc.Slide 9 The window changes to enable file management tasks. File Management Mode To change My Computer to file management mode, Click the Folders button on the Standard toolbar. Left Pane – Displays the names of the drives and folders Right Pane – Displays the folders and files

Computers Are Your Future Spotlight 4 © 2008 Prentice-Hall, Inc.Slide 10 Folders View

Computers Are Your Future Spotlight 4 © 2008 Prentice-Hall, Inc.Slide 11 Thumbnail View

Computers Are Your Future Spotlight 4 © 2008 Prentice-Hall, Inc.Slide 12 Details View

Computers Are Your Future Spotlight 4 © 2008 Prentice-Hall, Inc.Slide 13 Formatting  Makes a disk functional  PC cannot read a Macintosh disk  Erases everything

Computers Are Your Future Spotlight 4 © 2008 Prentice-Hall, Inc.Slide 14 Creating Folders A folder can be created in two steps (click to view). Step 2. Choose File, New, and then Folder Step 1. Click on the drive in which you want to create a folder

Computers Are Your Future Spotlight 4 © 2008 Prentice-Hall, Inc.Slide 15 Transferring Folders and Files There are two basic ways to transfer your files and folders (click to view) Method 1  To copy or move the files and folders, right-drag them to the new location. Method 2  To move the files and folders within the same drive, left-drag them to the new location.  When left- dragging between drives, a copy is created.

Computers Are Your Future Spotlight 4 © 2008 Prentice-Hall, Inc.Slide 16 Backing Up Copy files to save data.  Create intermediate copies as you work.  File, Save As  Every 15 to 20 minutes  Append filename with a number Drag a copy of file to floppy disk or CD-R. Use backup software.

Computers Are Your Future Spotlight 4 © 2008 Prentice-Hall, Inc.Slide 17  When using the File, Open menu sequence in an application, the Open dialog box displays icons for creating new folders and deleting files.  Right-clicking on a file in the Open dialog box enables file management tasks from a pop-up menu. Managing Files from within Programs File management icons File management menu

Computers Are Your Future Spotlight 4 © 2008 Prentice-Hall, Inc.Slide 18 Save and Save As Commands  Use the Save command whenever you want to save a file that you created or modified.  The program will either create a new file or replace the file stored on a disk.  The first time a file is saved, the program defaults to the Save As dialog box because the drive, path, and filename must be designated.  After the initial save, the Save As command is used whenever you want to change the drive, path, and/or filename; it is also used to create backup files.

Computers Are Your Future Spotlight 4 © 2008 Prentice-Hall, Inc.Slide 19 Managing  Create mail folders  Use sorting features  Use find command