NOTE Prior to Windows 95, filenames were limited to eight main characters plus a three-character extension. Windows no longer has this "8+3" limitation. Filenames can now include up to 255 characters, and can use spaces and special characters. Before I get into Windows XP's new method of file management, let's spend a little space on a files-and-folder refresher course. (Just in case you forgot, of course.) The files and folders on your computer are like the files and folders in a typical filing cabinet. Your computer is the filing cabinet, and it contains folders that contain individual files. On your computer, every file and folder has a unique name and occupies a distinct location. A filename consists of a main name and a three character "extension," separated by a period. A typical filename looks something like this: main name of this file.ext. Extensions are typically identified with specific types of files. For example, Microsoft Word documents have a .doc extension. Whenever you see a file ending in .doc, you know it's a Word document. NOTE What current versions of Windows call "folders," Windows 3.x and MS-DOS called "directories." Some older computer users like me occasionally slip and refer to folders as directories. Don't get confused. A folder and a directory are the same thing. Files are stored on your disk in folders. A folder can contain both files and additional folders. (A folder within a folder is called a subfolder.) The exact location of a file is called its path and contains all the folders leading to the file. For example, a file named filename.doc that exists in the system folder that is contained in the windows folder on your c: drive has a path that looks like this: c:\windows\system\filename.doc. Learning how to use files and folders is a necessary skill for all computer users. You may need to copy files from one folder to another, or from your hard disk to a floppy disk. You certainly need to delete files every now and then. Any time you have to work directly with files or folders, you use one of Windows XP's file-management tools or upper-level Windows folders. I show you how to use each of these tools in the next section. |