Computer Navigation
Senior 1 · ICT
Computer Navigation
Lesson 4 of 5
18 min
Let's begin
By the end of S1 you may have dozens of files: notes, projects, photos and homework for every subject. If they are all dumped in one place, finding last month's ICT project takes ages. The school office keeps papers in labelled box files; a computer keeps files in labelled folders.
File Explorer is the Windows program for managing files and folders. Open it with the yellow folder button on the taskbar or with Windows key + E. Its main parts are:
Folders inside folders make a tree. The path of a file is its full address, from the drive down through each folder. In Windows the parts of a path are separated by a backslash (\).
Read it from left to right: drive C:, folder Users, then Keza, Documents, S1 and ICT, and finally the file my-computer-notes.docx. The file is directly inside the ICT folder.
| Task | How (File Explorer) | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Create | Open the place where it should go. Right-click an empty space > New > Folder (or press Ctrl + Shift + N). Type the name and press Enter. | A new, empty folder |
| Rename | Select the folder and press F2 (or right-click > Rename). Type the new name and press Enter. | Same folder, new name |
| Copy | Select it, press Ctrl + C, open the destination, press Ctrl + V. | Two identical folders: the original stays |
| Move | Select it, press Ctrl + X (cut), open the destination, press Ctrl + V. Or drag it to a folder on the same drive. | One folder, now in the new place |
| Delete | Select it and press Delete (or right-click > Delete). | The folder and everything in it goes to the Recycle Bin |
Dragging an item to a different drive, such as a flash drive, copies it instead of moving it.
Naming rules: use clear names such as S1 ICT project. Windows does not allow these nine characters in file or folder names:
Umutoni wants one folder for S1 with a subfolder for each of three subjects.
The finished folder tree. Each step to the right is one level deeper: S1 is inside Documents, and the three subject folders are inside S1.
Tip
Copy makes two; move keeps one. Ctrl + C then Ctrl + V copies; Ctrl + X then Ctrl + V moves.
Press F2 to rename whatever is selected.
What is the difference between a file and a folder?
Solution: A file holds data, such as a document or a photo. A folder is a container that holds files and other folders to keep them organised.
In the path C:\Users\Mugisha\Pictures\Trip\lake.jpg, which folder holds lake.jpg directly, and on which drive is it?
Solution: The folder Trip, on drive C:.
Keza wants her ICT folder on the school computer and on her flash drive. Should she copy or move it?
Solution: Copy it (Ctrl + C, then Ctrl + V on the flash drive), so that the original stays on the computer.
Why will Windows not accept the folder name Maths: Term 1?
Solution: It contains a colon and a question mark, two of the characters Windows does not allow in names.
Remember
Sources and credits
This lesson adapts CC BY-SA material and is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.
C:\Users\Keza\Documents\S1\ICT\my-computer-notes.docx\ / : * ? " < > |Documents
└── S1
├── English
├── ICT
└── Mathematics
└── fractions homework.docx