File Management

File management in an operating system refers to the processes and

techniques involved in creating, organizing, accessing, manipulating, and
controlling files stored on storage devices. It includes file creation, deletion,
naming, classification, and access control.

A file is a unit of data in the file system that a user can access and manage, or
a collection of digital data stored in a computer system. A file can be a
document, spreadsheet, image, or other type of item that is stored on a
computer. Files are typically associated with a program or software application
that is needed to open the item. Files are usually organized in folders.

A folder is a storage location within a drive. Another term for a folder is a

"directory", however, the term "folder" has become the term of choice for most.
A folder can consist of files or additional folders (called "Subfolders"). Users can
create folders that accommodate their method of organization. For example,
you may want to store all your work for your English course in a particular
area of your computer to make it easier for you to find.

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Figure 3.2: Different storage media on a computer

The capital letters and colon indicate what type of disk it is. For example,
from Figure 3.2, you can see the following:

• The C: This is also known as the C-drive, usually refers to the hard disk
drive (HDD).
• The D: This is also known as the D-drive, usually refers to a CD or DVD
drive.
• Other letters are also used to indicate storage media, for example, in this
case, E: & G: refer to a removable disk (USB). Storage media, such as
DVDs, USBs, and hard drives, do not save data to the disks on the
computer.

A name is given to a file. A file name has two parts: file name and file name
extension.
The file name is the name you save your document as is the name that comes
before the dot. A file extension is part of the file name and uniquely identifies
the type of file, also referred to as the format. When your instructor receives

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your e-mail and sees your file with a .doc extension, she knows that you are
sending her a Word document. An example of a file name is RESUME.doc

The filename extension is a period (.) that is often followed by three characters
but may also be one, two, or four characters long. For example, the file name
"myfile.txt" has an extension of ".txt", which is a file name extension associated
with text files.

What is a File Management Utility?

A File Management Utility is a computer program that provides a user with a graphical
interface in which he/she can organize files and folders on a computer's storage
device. Examples of file management utilities are: ("My Computer", "Computer" or
"Windows Explorer" depending on the version of Windows you are using).

Figure 1: Example of File Explorer used on Windows 10

File Path: The path refers to the exact location of the file and indicates to the
computer user the entire sequence that must be followed to find the file. The path
begins with the drive and then includes any folders or subfolders that house the file. A
Microsoft Word document named "July 2013 Journal.docx" that is stored in the
"English" folder and “Journals” sub-folder would have the path:
C:\English\Journals\July 2013 Journal.docx.
For example, Jane has a music folder where she keeps her songs. Figure 3.4 shows an
example of this file path.

Figure 3.4: Example of a file path

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As Figure 3.4 shows, each file’s unique file path starts with the storage device drive
letter. After the drive letter, you will see the name of the file’s folders and sub-folders.
A backslash (\) is used to separate the drive letter, and the different folders and files.
Finally, the file path ends with the name and extension of the file.

CREATING AND NAMING FOLDERS AND FILES

To create a new folder:

1. Using the File explorer, go to the location where you want to create a folder.

2. Open the Action menu by either right clicking, or by using the ALT-F shortcut
key.

3. Hold the mouse cursor over the new option and select the Folder option.

4. Enter a name for the new folder and press Enter on the keyboard.

Table 3.1: How to rename files

Things to avoid when naming files:

• Symbol characters, such as “\ / < > | “ ? [ ] ; = + & $ α β”

• Abbreviations that are not easy to understand

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 • Simple words, such as “draft”, “current” or “document”.
FILE TYPE & FILE EXTENSIONS SUMMARY TABLE
Here is a summary of File Types and Common File Extensions with which you
may interact.

File Type Common File Extension

1. Video Files .mp4, .wmv

2. Audio Files .mp3, ,wma

3. Text Files (for text only) .txt, .doc (Files created in

notepad and word pad)

File Type Common File Extension

4. Document Files (for text & images) .pdf .doc, .docx (files created in
Microsoft word. .docx is used in
Word 2007 and beyond)

5. Spreadsheet Files .xls, .xlsx. (files created in Microsoft

Excel. .xlsx is used in
Excel 2007 and beyond

6. Database Files .accdb (files created in Microsoft

Access. .accdb is used in
Access 2007 and beyond

7. Presentation Files .ppt or .pptx (files created in

Microsoft PowerPoint. .pptx is used in
PowerPoint 2007 and beyond
Note: The 'x' added to the extension means that the file can be opened online.
.doc does not make this possible.
This was the older versions of Microsoft Office
Word, Excel,Database and PowerPoint.

8. FILES
There are five main formats used to store graphics:
1. .bmp (bitmap image)
2. .gif (Graphics Interchange Format)
3. .jpg or .jpeg (Joint Photographic Experts Group)
4. .png (portable network graphics)
5. .tiff (tagged image file format)

9. Compressed Files .zip, .rar (Files become smaller in size

when compressed; not the image becomes smaller.
Compare the same files but different file types. Examine the size before and
after compression.

The original file was 7,211 Kilobytes, When compressed it becomes 7,118 KB.
The OS has a feature in file explorer to compress files.

10. Executable Files .exe (Any app you download to install on

your phone or tablet, it is an executable
file. To execute means to 'run'. Often times
when
you are installing a software, the computer

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 will ask you to click
'run' or to 'run the set up'.

The two most common extensions for web pages are:

1. .html
2. .htm

Steps for Zipping/compress a folder using Windows Explorer:

1. Navigate to the location of the folder that you would like to zip. Do
not open the folder, just click on it once to highlight it.
2. Right-click on the folder, point to the "Send-To" option and select
the "Compressed (zipped) Folder" option.
3. If a border appears around the folder name, Press the Enter Key to
accept the default name of the zipped folder.
4. This will create a second copy of the folder with a ".zip" file
extension. The icon of the zipped folders also slightly different than
the original as it contains a picture of a zipper on the folder.
5. The zipped folder is now ready to be sent. (Please see the
"Communicating Using a Computer" area of this tutorial for more
information about attaching files.

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