Managing Files

Using My Computer to View Files and Folders

Changing the Display of File/Folder Information

Open a File from a Local or Network Hard Drive

Create a New Folder on the Local Hard Drive

Using Windows Explorer to Open or Manipulate Files from a Local or Network Hard Drive

File Options in Windows Explorer

Managing Files and Folders

Using My Computer to View Files and Folders:

Double-click My Computer to view disk files. The icons represent the drives on your computer.
To display a folder's contents, double-click on the folder.

Changing the Display of File/Folder Information:

Options Defined:
- View Menu>Select Small icons-Items will be displayed as small icons.
- View Menu>Select List-Items will be displayed as small icons in a list.
- View Menu>Select Details-Items will be displayed with information such as the name, size, date created, and type of item.
- View Menu>Select Small icons-Items will be displayed as small icons.
- View Menu>Select List-Items will be displayed as small icons in a list.
- View Menu>Select Details-Items will be displayed with information such as the name, size, date created, and type of item.
These views were covered in the last tutorial.
Arranging Icons-You can arrange cons by Name, Size, Date, Time, Drive Letter, or Description depending upon what type of window you have open.
- View Menu>Select Arrange Icons>Select by Name-Items will be arranged in alphabetical order by name.
- View Menu>Select Arrange Icons>Select by Type-Items will be arranged by type of files (Word documents, Excel documents, etc.)
- View Menu>Select Arrange Icons>Select by Size-Items will be arranged by size form the smallest to the largest.
- View Menu>Select Arrange Icons>Select by Date-Items will be arranged by date from the earliest date to the latest date.
Auto Arrange feature - keeps icons/files/folders automatically arranged at all times.

Line Up Icons feature - keeps icons horizontally and vertically aligned.

Note: The My computer window allows you to arrange icons/files/folders by drive letter and the Control Panel window allows you to arrange icons/files/folders by description.

To open a file from a local or network hard drive, complete the following steps:

Double-click on my My Computer icon.
Open the C: drive by double-clicking on the drive.
Open My Documents by double-clicking on it. This opens the file in order to see what you have saved in it.
To open a file, double click it.

To create a new folder on the local hard drive, complete the following steps:

Open My Documents.
Click File on the menu bar, choose new, and then select folder. Notice that a new file folder icon is now in you My Document section.
You will now name the folder by typing in the text box beneath the folder that appears blue. Name this folder for this exercise with your name. By creating new folders, you can organize your hard drive to meet your every need.
Now double-click the folder that contains your name to open it.
You will notice that you have nothing in your folder. As you complete activities, you can now save everything to this folder. This is a way to keep your information stored on the hard drive organized and easy to find.

Using Windows Explorer to open or manipulate files from a local or network hard drive, complete the following steps:

RIGHT click on Start. Select explore to open a browser window. OR
Click on the Start button to display the menu, click on Programs to display the programs available on your computer. Click the Windows Explorer icon. The Windows Explorer window will appear.
Notice the folders/drives are located in the left side of the window, and the contents of the folders/drives on the right hand side.
- A plus sign (+) indicates that a folder/drive contains more folders/file.
- Clicking the minus sign (-) will hide folders it contains.
Click on the plus sign to show files/folders within a drive or folder.
Double-click on a folder/drive to show files/folder it contains.
Click on the minus sign (-) to hide the files/folders.

File Options in Windows Explorer, complete the following steps:

Opening a File:

Open windows explorer (right-click on start, then select explore)
Navigate to My Documents.
Select your file by clicking on it once.
Click File on the menu bar.
Click open. This will open your folder.
Renaming a File/Folder:
Return to My Documents folder.
Select your file by clicking on it once.
Click File on the menu bar.
Then select rename.
Notice text under the folder has now turned blue again.
Type a new name for your folder, then press enter.
- You can also rename of folder by right clicking on the folder, then selecting rename from the menu.
Copying a File/Folder:
Create a new folder under My Documents. Name it Practice.
Select the Practice folder by clicking on it once.
Click File on the menu bar, select copy from the drop down list.
Double-click your folder to open it.
Click File on the menu bar, and then click Paste to paste the Practice folder into your folder.
The Practice folder should now appear in your named folder.
Cutting a File/Folder:
Select the practice folder located in your personal folder by clicking on it once.
Select File on the menu bar, select cut from the drop down list.
Open My Documents.
Click File on the menu bar, and then select paste from the drop down list.
The Practice folder should now appear under My Documents.
Copying a File/Folder by Dragging:
Open two different drives. Arrange the windows so that they appear side-by-side. Drag the file/folder from one drive to another by holding down the left mouse as you drag.
To copy a file, you must hold the CTRL key down while dragging the file to a new location.
You can select more than one file/folder by holding down the shift key/CTRL key as you select each file. Shift allows you to select files/folders that appear next each other. CTRL lets you select randomly located files/folders. Once all the files are selected, simply drag one of the files/folders to the new location. Remember to hold the CTRL key down when copying a file.
Moving Files/Folders
Open My Computer by double-clicking on it.
Open the C: drive by double-clicking on the drive.
To move a file to another drive, click on a file/folder by clicking on it once, choose the Edit menu, and click on Cut. This copies the file/folder into the clipboard so that you can paste it in another location. Close the C: window by clicking on the Close button (X in upper-right corner). The My Computer window should still be open. Double-click on another drive where you want it to move to.
Select the Edit menu, and then click on Paste.
The folder/file will appear.
There is also a shortcut for moving files/folders. Open both drives. Arrange the windows so that they appear side-by-side. Drag the file from one drive to the other.
You can select more than one file by holding down the shift key/CTRL as you select each file. Shift allows you to select files/folders that appear near each other. CTRL lets you select randomly located files/folders. Once all the files are selected, simply drag one of the files to the new location.
Deleting Folder/File:
Open My Computer by double-clicking on it.
Open the drive that you want to create a folder on by double-clicking on the drive. If necessary, open the folder you want to delete a file/folder from.
Select the file by clicking on it once, choose the File menu, and click on delete.
Shortcut: You can also delete a file/folder by clicking on it once to select it and pressing the delete key. In addition, you may right click on the file/folder and select delete on the Quick menu.
Starting a Program in Windows 98/2000:
Click on the Start button to display the menu.
Click on Programs to display the programs available on your computer.
Click the program you want to load.
Note: An arrow > indicates that there are more programs available. Simply click on the items with an arrow to see another list of programs.

Finding files and Folders:
Open the Start menu and select the Find command. Choose Files and Folders on the submenu.
Select the Name and Location tab if necessary. (This is usually the default tab selected when you open this dialog box.
Fill in the information listed below. Click Find Now when done.
Named: Type the name of the file or folder you want to search for in the text box. Try typing the name that you created a new folder for.
Look in: Change the drive to search. The default is the C: drive. Click on the down arrowhead to select a different drive. If you click on browse, you can locate a specific folder to look in. If you want to search for the folder you created, you will be looking in the C: drive.
Include subfolders: If this box is checked, all subfolders in the drive or folder you are searching will also be searched.
Alternative Options:
The Date Modified tab allows you to find files that were created or modified between a specific range of dates, files created or modified during the previous month(s), or files created or modified on the previous day(s).
The Advanced tab allows you to find files of a specific type, files that contain a specified string of characters, or files that are a certain size.
Wild Card Characters: You can use the wild card characters ? or * in a search.
- lesson*.* - finds all the files that begin with lesson.
- letter??.doc - finds all fines beginning with letter followed by two characters and ending with doc extension.
Using Windows Explorer:
Click on the Start button to display the menu,
Click on Programs to display the programs available on your computer.
Click the Windows Explorer icon.
The Windows Explorer window will appear. You can use Windows Explorer to manipulate files and folders.
- A plus sign (+) indicates that a folder/drive contains more folders/file. Click on the plus sign to show file/folders within a drive or folder. You may also double-click on a folder/file to show files/folders it contains.
- Click on the minus sign (-) to hide the files/folders.
- File Options:
  - Open - open a folder.
  - Explore - use Windows Explorer to explore a folder.
  - Print - print a file.
  - Quickview - preview a file.
  - Find - find a file or folder.
  - Send to - send a file or folder to the floppy disk or to your briefcase.
  - New - create a new file or shortcut.
  - Create Shortcut - create a shortcut to the folder/file.
  - Delete - delete file or folder.
  - Rename - rename file or folder.
  - Properties - see file/folder/drive properties.
- Edit Options:
  - Undo Delete - undo the previous operation.
  - Cut - move an item to the clipboard.
  - Copy - copy an item to the clipboard.
  - Paste - paste an item from the clipboard.
  - Paste Special - paste item from clipboard in special format.
  - Select All - select all files/folders.
  - Invert Selection - deselect all select files and select all unselected files.
- View Options:
  - Toolbar - turn windows toolbar on or off.
  - Status Bar - turn status bar on or off.
  - Large Icons - display large icons.
  - Small Icons - display small icons.
  - Details - display detailed file information.
  - Arrange Icons - arrange icons by name, type, date, or size.
  - Line up Icons - line up icons horizontally or vertically.
  - Refresh - refresh the screen.
  - Options - customize files that are displayed.
- Tools Options:
  - Find - find a file/folder or computer.
  - Map Network Drive - map a network drive.
  - Disconnect Network Drive - disconnect a network drive.
  - Go to - open a folder or find a file.
- Shortcut: You can right click on files, folders, and drives and utilize the quick menus to perform operations instead of using menu options.