Chapter: 02. File Management Organisation Of Data
File Management: Organisation of Data
This chapter will help you understand how to organize and manage your digital files and folders on a computer. You’ll learn essential skills like copying, moving, sorting, and searching for data, as well as understanding different types of files.
What is Data Organisation?
On a computer, everything you do and save—documents, songs, images, presentations, or spreadsheets—is considered data.
Files: Individual pieces of data saved on the computer (e.g., a Word document, a song, a picture). Folders: Digital containers used to group and save files that belong to the same category. File Explorer: A tool that helps you organize and manage your files and folders.
Copying Files/Folders from One Drive to Another Drive
Copying files and folders is crucial for organizing data and creating backups.
Drive: A storage box inside your computer where files and folders are kept. Partitions: The hard disk of a computer is divided into smaller parts called partitions, which are also known as drives (e.g., C: Drive, D: Drive, F: Drive). These make it easier to access files. Hard Disk Location: The computer’s hard disk is found inside the CPU box. Effect of Copying: When you copy a file or folder, the original file or folder remains at its original location, and a duplicate is created at the new location. Steps to Copy a File or Folder:
Open File Explorer: Click Start → Windows System → File Explorer.
Locate Original File: In the left pane, click on the drive where your file/folder is located. Select File/Folder: Choose the file or folder you want to copy (e.g., a Word file named Cloud). Click Copy: On the Home tab, in the Clipboard group, click the Copy command.
Go to Destination: Click on the drive where you want to paste the copied file. Click Paste: On the Home tab, in the Clipboard group, click the Paste command. The file or folder will appear in the new location, and remain in the original.
Moving Files/Folders from One Drive to Another Drive
Moving a file or folder is different from copying.
Effect of Moving: When you move a file or folder, it is removed from its original location and moved to the new location. Steps to Move a File or Folder:
Open File Explorer: Open the File Explorer window. Locate Original File: In the left pane, click on the drive where your file/folder is located. Select File/Folder: Select the file or folder you want to move (e.g., a Word file named Cloud). Click Cut: On the Home tab, in the Clipboard group, click the Cut command.
Go to Destination: Go to the drive where you want to move the file or folder. Click Paste: On the Home tab, in the Clipboard group, click the Paste command. The file or folder will be moved from the original location and pasted to the new location. TECH FUNDA
You can also copy or move files/folders using the Copy to or Move to command from the Organize group of the Home tab. Alternatively, you can use the shortcut menu by right-clicking on the file or folder and selecting the desired option (Copy, Cut, Paste, Copy to, Move to).
Copying Files/Folders from One Device to Another Device
Various storage devices are used to store data. These include:
We can move or copy files and folders between these storage devices. Common methods for transferring data are through a pen drive or a CD.
Clickipedia 101
The process of transferring data from one storage device to another storage device is known as writing of data.
Copying Files or Folders from a Pen Drive to a Computer
Pen drives are commonly used for transferring data due to their portability.
Steps to Copy from Pen Drive to Computer:
Attach Pen Drive: Connect your pen drive to the USB port of your computer. Click Notification: A notification will appear at the bottom-right corner of the screen. Click on it. A pop-up box will appear at the top-right corner.
Open Folder: Select the Open folder to view files option. The File Explorer window will open, showing all files on the pen drive. Select File/Folder: Choose the file or folder you want to copy from the pen drive. Click Copy: Click on the Copy command under the Clipboard group of the Home tab.
Browse Destination: Navigate to the location on your computer where you want to copy the file or folder. Click Paste: Click on the Paste command under the Clipboard group of the Home tab. Safely Remove Hardware: Click on the arrow button in the Notification Area on the Taskbar. Then click on the Safely Remove Hardware icon and select your pen drive. Eject/Remove Safely: Choose the Eject or Remove safely option from the system, and then physically remove your pen drive. Clickipedia
To move files and folders from a pen drive to a computer, you simply click on the Cut option instead of Copy in step 5. The rest of the steps remain the same (Paste, browse destination, safe removal).
Sorting of Files/Folders
Sorting means arranging the files and folders on your computer. Windows allows you to arrange files and folders in different ways:
By Date of Creation or Modification Sorting by Name
This arranges files and folders alphabetically.
Steps to Sort by Name:
Browse Location: Go to the location where you want to sort files and folders. Click Sort by: On the View tab, in the Current view group, click the Sort by command. A drop-down menu appears. Select Name: Select the Name option from the drop-down menu.
The files and folders will be arranged by their names. Sorting by Size
This arranges files and folders based on their size, from smallest to largest or vice versa.
Steps to Sort by Size:
Click Sort by: On the View tab, in the Current view group, click the Sort by command. A drop-down menu appears. Select Size: Select the Size option from the drop-down menu.
The files and folders will be arranged by their size. Sorting by Type
This arranges files according to their file type (e.g., all Word documents together, all images together).
Steps to Sort by Type:
Click Sort by: On the View tab, in the Current view group, click the Sort by command. A drop-down menu appears. Select Type: Select the Type option from the drop-down menu.
The files will be arranged by their type. Sorting by Date of Creation or Modification
This arranges files and folders based on when they were created or the last time they were changed by the user.
Steps to Sort by Date:
Click Sort by: On the View tab, in the Current view group, click the Sort by command. A drop-down menu appears. Select Date: Select the Date created or Date modified option from the drop-down menu.
The files and folders will be arranged by their date of creation or modification. Clickipedia
You can also sort files and folders using the shortcut menu by right-clicking in the folder window and selecting your preferred sorting option from the “Sort by” submenu.
Searching of Files or Folders
Even if you organize your files into folders, you might sometimes forget where you saved a particular file or folder. Instead of manually searching through File Explorer, you can use the search feature. Windows provides a search box in the File Explorer window.
You can use the search box if:
You remember the complete file name or folder name, or even just part of it. You know the date of the last modification in the file or folder. You know the file extension (e.g., .docx, .jpg). Searching of Files/Folders Using File Explorer
This method is useful when you know the exact name or extension.
Steps to Search using File Explorer:
Open File Explorer: Open the File Explorer window. Type Search Term: Type the file or folder name (or part of it) that you want to search for in the search box at the top-right corner.
View Results: Windows will automatically display files or folders matching your search term. Open File/Folder: Double-click on the desired file or folder to open it. Searching for Files/Folders Using Wildcard Characters
You can find a file or folder even if you don’t know its exact location or complete name by using wildcard characters.
Wildcard: A special character used to represent one or more characters in a search term. Common Wildcard Characters: Asterisk (*): Represents one or more characters. Question Mark (?): Represents a single character. Searching for files/folders using (*) asterisk
The asterisk * replaces a string of characters in the search term. If you use *, Windows will search for file or folder names that match the given characters plus any other text string.
Example: If you type 'comp*', it searches for files/folders starting with ‘comp’ and could display results like ‘computer’, ‘company’, ‘Compiler’, etc. Steps to use Asterisk for Search:
Open File Explorer and Type Search Term: Open File Explorer and type 'comp*' in the search box.
View Results: File Explorer displays files and folders that start with ‘comp’. Narrow Search (with extension): To search for a specific type of file, type 'comp*.docx'. File Explorer will then display only Word files (.docx) that begin with ‘comp’.
Searching for files/folders using a question mark(?)
The question mark ? replaces a single character or symbol. It represents only one character in the search term.
Example: If you type "C?M" in the search box, it will display files or folders with names that have exactly three characters, where the first character is ‘C’ and the third character is ‘M’ (e.g., “CAM”, “C2M”). You can use the question mark multiple times depending on the number of unknown characters in the file name you are searching for.
Using Multiple Applications
Computers allow you to work on more than one file or open more than one application at a time. This is called multitasking.
Examples of Multitasking: Working on a Word file while searching for notes on Google. Creating a PowerPoint presentation while having an image folder open in File Explorer. Listening to music while doing other work. All these applications open in separate windows. Windows offers many options for displaying multiple application windows simultaneously. TECH FUNDA
Use Alt + Tab keys to quickly switch between open windows. To display multiple windows side by side:
Right-click on empty Taskbar area. Select Show windows side by side option.
Think Tank
If you could organise your computer files like a fantasy kingdom, with each folder representing a different realm or kingdom. How would you design the folders to reflect the magical world of your imagination?
Different File Formats
Every file you save on a computer stores a specific type of data. The computer identifies this data type using its file format, also known as the file type.
File Extension: A group of three or more characters used to identify the type of a file. It appears after the file name (e.g., document.docx, song.mp3). Purpose of File Extension: Helps the operating system recognize and open different types of files with the correct software. Software used to create files automatically adds the appropriate file extension. Here are some commonly used file extensions (file formats):
Chapter Summary (Reb@(0)t)
Data on a computer can be arranged in the form of files or folders. File Explorer helps us to organize and manage files and folders. When we copy a file or folder, the original file or folder remains at the original location, and a duplicate is created at a new location. When we move a file or folder from one drive to another, the original file or folder will be removed from its original location and moved to a new location. Sorting means arranging the files and folders on the computer. A wildcard is a special character that is used to represent one or more characters when searching. We can use multiple applications simultaneously in Windows. File extensions help an operating system recognize the different types of files.
Self Study
If you could organise your computer files like a fantasy kingdom, with each folder representing a different realm or kingdom. How would you design the folders to reflect the magical world of your imagination?
