Place Files and Folders

You know from previous versions of Windows that you can drag and drop folders from a window to the Desktop. Windows XP offers several other ways of bringing your work out onto the Desktop.

First, let's look at another kind of drag-and-drop called a right drag.

Open a folder containing a file or folder that you want to place on the Desktop.

Select one of the options.

Move Here is just like an ordinary drag-and-drop; the file moves out of the folder onto the Desktop.

Copy Here creates a new file on the Desktop while keeping your original file in its place.

Create Shortcuts Here is the best of both worlds: it keeps your original file in its original location, but creates a small pointer file, the shortcut, that takes up a fraction of the hard drive's space that a copy of a big graphic file might take.

You don't need the words Shortcut to in the file name. You can change the name of the original file or of the shortcut. Double-clicking the shortcut will open the original file or folder.