4.1 The Folders of Windows XPThe top-level, all-encompassing, mother-ship window of your PC is the My Computer window. From within this window, you have access to every disk, folder, and file on your computer. Its slogan might well be: "If it's not in here, it's not on your PC." To see it, choose Start My Computer, or double-click its icon on the desktop, if you've put it there (Section 2.16). (And if it is on your desktop, remember that you can rename it something that's a little more, well, dignified, by clicking it and then pressing the F2 key.) No matter how you open the My Computer window (Figure 4-1), you generally see several categories of icons:
Figure 4-1. Top: The My Computer window, shown here on a corporate-network PC, is the starting point for any folder-digging you want to do. It shows the disk drives of your PC. If you double-click the icon of a removable-disk drive (like your CD-ROM drive, Zip drive, or Jaz drive), you receive only an error message unless there's actually a disk in the drive. Bottom: The My Computer window on a workgroup computer (that is, not part of a corporate domain network) includes all the perks included on a network computer with the added advantage of the "Files on This Computer" category.4.1.1 What's in the Local Disk (C:) WindowYou might be surprised to learn that your main hard drive window doesn't actually contain anything much that's useful to you, the PC's human companion. It's organized primarily for Windows' own benefit. If you double-click the Local Disk C: icon in My Computer ”that is, your primary hard drive's icon ”a direly worded message lets you know that these files are hidden. "This folder contains files that keep your system working properly," it says. "You should not modify its contents." (Figure 4-2 shows a similar message.) Figure 4-2. Top: The C: drive and the Program Files folder may start out looking empty. Bottom: Here's what Microsoft Word actually looks like ”75 little software crumbs in your Program Files Microsoft Office Office10 folder. Only one of these icons (the one called WINWORD) is the actual program. But don't try to move it, or any of its support files, out of this folder. (It's OK, however, and even encouraged, to drag this icon onto your Start menu or Quick Launch toolbar.)All of this important-sounding prose is aimed at the kind of person who, before the invention of this warning message, fearlessly or na vely cruised through the important system files of their PCs, deleting and moving files until the computer was inoperable (and then calling Microsoft for tech support). Truth is, the C: drive also contains a lot of stuff that doesn't belong to Windows ”including your files. So when you're just looking (but not touching) the Windows system files, or when you want to burrow around in your own folders, it's perfectly OK to click the "Show the contents of this folder" link. Suddenly the C: drive's formerly invisible contents appear. They include these standard folders: 4.1.1.1 Documents and SettingsWindows XP has been designed from the ground up for computer sharing. It's ideal for any situation where different family members , students, or workers share the same machine. In fact, in Windows XP, each person who uses the computer will turn on the machine to find his own secure set of files, folders, desktop pictures, Web bookmarks, font collections, and preference settings. (Secure, at least, from other people who don't have administrative accounts. Much more about this feature in Chapter 17.) Like it or not, Windows considers you one of these people. If you're the only one who uses this PC, fine ”you can simply ignore the sharing features. But in its little software head, Windows XP still considers you an account holder, and stands ready to accommodate any others who should come along. In any case, now you should see the importance of the Documents and Settings folder. Inside are folders named for the different people who use this PC. In general, Limited account holders (Limited Unlimited) aren't allowed to open anybody else's folder. If you're the sole proprietor of the machine, there's only one account folder here ”and it's named for you, of course. If not, there's a folder here for each person who has an account on this PC. (As noted above, if your PC isn't part of a corporate domain network, icons for these folders also appear in the My Computer window. Those are only pointers to the real folders, which are here in Documents and Settings.) This is only the first of many examples in which Windows imposes a fairly rigid folder structure, but this approach has its advantages. By keeping such tight control over which files go where, Windows XP keeps itself pure ”and very stable. Furthermore, keeping all of your stuff in a single folder will make it very easy to back up your work. 4.1.1.2 Program FilesThis folder contains all of your applications ”Word, Excel, Internet Explorer, your games , and so on. But that isn't the impression you get when you first open the folder (Figure 4-2). Fortunately, making them appear on your screen is easy enough: Simply click the words "Show the contents of this folder." They appear just below the "These files are hidden" message, and also in the task pane. (The Local Disk (C:) drive window works the same way.) This peculiar behavior requires some explanation. A Windows program isn't a single, self-contained icon. Instead, each is accompanied by a phalanx of support files and folders like the ones shown in Figure 4-2. Nestled among all of these auxiliary files is the actual application icon, which can't even run if it's separated from its support group . As mentioned previously, Microsoft and other software companies grew weary of taking tech-support calls from people whose programs stopped working after being moved around. Finally, as a preemptive strike, Microsoft simply made them invisible. The "These files are hidden" message is meant to say: "Nothing to see here, folks. Move along." So how are you supposed to launch your programs if you can't see them in the Program Files folder? Just take your pick of a half- dozen ways, all of which are described in the beginning of Chapter 6. 4.1.1.3 Windows or WINNTHere's another folder that Microsoft wishes its customers would simply ignore. This most hallowed folder contains Windows itself, the thousands of little files that make Windows, well, Windows. Most of these folders and files have cryptic names that appeal to cryptic people. NOTE This folder is usually called Windows; however, it's called WINNT if you upgraded your operating system from Windows 2000. In the remaining pages of this book, let the term "Windows folder" refer to "the folder called Windows or WINNT, depending on whether or not you upgraded your machine from Windows 2000." In general, the healthiest PC is one whose Windows folder has been left alone. (One exception: The Fonts folder contains the icons that represent the various typefaces installed on your machine. You're free to add or remove icons from this folder.) 4.1.2 Your Account FolderEverything that makes your Windows XP experience your own sits inside the Local Disk (C:) Documents and Settings [Your Name] folder. This is where Windows stores your preferences, documents, pictures and music, Web favorites and cookies (described below), and so on. In general, you won't have much business interacting directly with this folder, except perhaps to back it up. But understanding how Windows works ”and how it keeps your stuff separate from that of everybody else who uses the machine ”is much easier once you've had a tour of your own account folder.
Your account folder actually holds much more than this, but the rest of the folders are hidden, reserved for use by Windows itself. The hidden folders include: Application Data (which your programs may use to store user -specific settings and files), Local Settings (Internet Explorer's history list and cache file, for example), NetHood (shortcuts for the icons in your My Network Places window), My Recent Documents (document shortcuts, the ones that show up in the optional My Recent Documents submenu of the Start menu), and SendTo, which is described later in this chapter. 4.1.3 Navigating My ComputerMost of the time, you can get where you're going on your computer using the commands, programs, and folders listed in the Start menu. But when you need to find something that isn't listed there ”when you need to burrow manually through the labyrinth of folders on the machine ”Windows offers two key methods of undertaking a folder quest. First, you can open the My Computer window, as described at the beginning of this chapter. From there, you double-click one folder after another, burrowing ever deeper into the folders-within-folders.
NOTE As you navigate your folders, keep in mind the power of the Backspace key. Each time you press it, you jump to the parent window of the one you're now looking at ”the one that contains the previous folder. For example, if you're perusing the My Pictures folder inside My Documents, pressing Backspace opens the My Documents window. Likewise, the Alt key, pressed with the right and left arrow keys, serves as a Back and Forward button. Use this powerful shortcut (instead of clicking the corresponding buttons on the Standard toolbar) to "walk" backward or forward through the list of windows most recently opened. 4.1.4 Navigating with Windows ExplorerThe second method of navigating the folders on your PC is called Windows Explorer ”for long-time Windows veterans , a familiar sight. (Note that some people use the term "Windows Explorer" to refer to everyday folder windows. In this book, the term refers exclusively to the split-window view shown in Figure 4-3.) Using this method, you work in a single window that shows every folder on the machine at once. As a result, you're less likely to lose your bearings using Windows Explorer than burrowing through folder after folder, as described above. You can jump into Explorer view using any of these methods:
No matter which method you use, the result is a window like the one shown in Figure 4-3. As you can see, this hierarchical display splits the window into two panes. The left pane displays only disks and folders. The right pane displays the contents (folders and files) of any disk or folder you click. You can manipulate the icons on either side much as you would any other icons. For example, double-click one to open it, drag it to the Recycle Bin to delete it, or drag it into another folder in the folder list to move it elsewhere on your machine. This arrangement makes it very easy to move files and folders around on your hard drive. First, make the right pane display the icon you want to move. Then, set up the left pane so that you can see the destination folder or disk ”and drag the right-side icon from one side to the other. 4.1.4.1 When the panel is too narrowAs shown in Figure 4-3, expanding a folder provides a new indented list of folders inside it. If you expand folders within folders to a sufficient level, the indentation may push the folder names so far to the right that you can't read them. You can remedy this problem with any of the following actions:
4.1.4.2 Viewing folder contentsTo see what's in one of the disks or folders listed at the left side of the Explorer window, you can use any of these techniques. (See the box on Turning Off Simple Folder View for details on simple folder view.)
The right-side pane of the Explorer window behaves exactly like any folder window. Don't forget that you can change it to an icon view or list view, for example, using the View menu as usual. 4.1.4.3 Keyboard shortcutsIf you arrive home one day to discover that your mouse has been stolen, or if you just like using the keyboard, you'll enjoy the shortcuts that work in the Windows Explorer window:
You can also press the letter keys to highlight a folder or file that begins with that letter, or the up and down arrow keys to "walk" up and down the list. |