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Working with files and folders
You can organize your files and programs to suit your preferences much like 
you would store information in a file cabinet. You can store these files in folders 
and copy, move, and delete the information just as you would reorganize and 
throw away information in a file cabinet.
Viewing drives
Drives are like file cabinets because they hold files and folders. A computer 
almost always has more than one drive. Each drive has a letter, usually Local 
Disk (C:) for the hard drive and 3½ Floppy (A:) for the optional diskette drive. 
You may also have more drives such as a CD, DVD, or recordable drive.
To view the drives on your computer:
■In Windows XP, click Start, then click My Computer on the Start menu.
- OR -
In Windows 2000, double-click the 
My Computer icon on the desktop.
Drives 
						

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To see the files and folders on a drive:
■Double-click the drive icon. If you do not see the contents of a drive after 
you double-click its icon, click 
Show the contents of this drive.
Creating folders
Folders are much like the folders in a file cabinet. They can contain files and 
other folders.
Files are much like paper documents—letters, spreadsheets, and pictures—that 
you keep on your computer. In fact, all information on a computer is stored 
in files.
Help and 
SupportFor more information about files and folders in 
Windows XP, click Start, then click Help and Support.
Type the keyword files and folders in the HelpSpot 
Search box  , then click the arrow.
Folders
Files 
						

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To create a folder:
1In Windows XP, click Start, then click My Computer on the Start menu.
- OR -
In Windows 2000, double-click the 
My Computer icon on the desktop.
2Double-click the drive where you want to put the new folder. Typically, 
Local Disk (C:) is your hard drive and 3½ Floppy (A:) is your optional 
diskette drive. If you do not see the contents of the drive, click 
Show the 
contents of this drive
.
3If you want to create a new folder inside an existing folder, double-click 
the existing folder. If you do not see the contents of the folder, click 
Show 
the contents of this drive
 or Show the contents of this folder.
4Click File, New, then click Folder. The new folder is created.
5Type a name for the folder, then press ENTER. The new folder name appears 
by the folder icon.
For information about renaming folders, see “Shortcuts” on page 65.
Copying and moving files and folders
The skills you need to copy and move files are called copying, cutting, and pasting.
When you copy and paste a file or folder, you place a copy of the file or folder 
on the Windows clipboard, which temporarily stores it. Then, when you decide 
w h a t  f o l d e r  y o u  w a n t  t h e  c o p y  to  g o  i n  ( t h e  destination folder), you paste it there.
When you cut and paste a file or folder, you remove the file or folder from its 
original location and place the file or folder on the Windows clipboard. When 
you decide where you want the file or folder to go, you paste it there.
Help and 
SupportFor more information about creating files and folders in 
Windows XP, click Start, then click Help and Support.
Type the keyword creating files and folders in the 
HelpSpot Search box  , then click 
the arrow. 
						

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To copy a file or folder to another folder:
1Locate the file or folder you want to copy. For more information, see 
“Viewing drives” on page 51 and “Searching for files” on page 58.
2Right-click (press the right touchpad button) the file or folder that you 
want to copy. A pop-up menu opens on the desktop.
3Click Copy on the pop-up menu.
4Open the destination folder.
5With the pointer inside the destination folder, right-click.
6Click Paste. A copy of the file or folder appears in the new location.
To move a file or folder to another folder:
1Locate the file or folder you want to move. For more information, see 
“Viewing drives” on page 51 and “Searching for files” on page 58.
2Right-click (press the right touchpad button) the file or folder that you 
want to move. A pop-up menu opens on the desktop.
3Click Cut on the pop-up menu.
4Open the destination folder.
5With the pointer inside the destination folder, right-click.
6Click Paste. The file or folder you moved appears in its new location and 
is removed from its old location.
ImportantThe clipboard stores whatever you cut or copy until you 
cut or copy again. Then the clipboard contains the new 
information only. Therefore, you can paste copies of a file 
or folder into more than one place, but as soon as you copy 
or cut a different file or folder, the original file or folder is 
deleted from the clipboard. 
						

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Deleting files and folders
When you throw away paper files and folders, you take them from the file 
cabinet and put them in a trash can. Eventually the trash can is emptied.
In Windows, you throw away files and folders by first moving them to the 
Windows trash can, called the Recycle Bin, where they remain until you decide 
to empty the bin.
You can recover any file in the Recycle Bin as long as the bin has not been 
emptied.
To delete files or folders:
1In My Computer or Windows Explorer, click the files or folders that you 
want to delete. For instructions on how to select multiple files and folders, 
see “Shortcuts” on page 65.
If you cannot find the file you want to delete, see “Searching for files” on 
page 58.
2Click File, then click Delete. Windows moves the files and folders to the 
Recycle Bin.
Help and 
SupportFor more information about copying files and folders or 
moving files and folders in Windows XP, click Start, then 
click Help and Support.
Type the keyword copying files and folders or moving 
files and folders in the HelpSpot Search box 
, then click the arrow.
Help and 
SupportFor more information about deleting files and folders in 
Windows XP, click Start, then click Help and Support.
Type the keyword deleting files and folders in the 
HelpSpot Search box  , then click 
the arrow. 
						

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To recover files or folders from the Recycle Bin:
1Double-click the Recycle Bin icon. The Recycle Bin window opens and lists 
the files and folders you have thrown away since you last emptied it.
2Click the files or folders that you want to restore. For instructions on how 
to select multiple files and folders, see “Shortcuts” on page 65.
3Click File, then click Restore. Windows returns the deleted files or folders 
to their original locations.
To empty the Recycle Bin:
1Double-click the Recycle Bin icon on the desktop. The Recycle Bin window 
opens.
2Click File, then click Empty Recycle Bin. Windows asks you if you are sure 
that you want to empty the bin.
3Click Ye s. Windows permanently deletes all files in the Recycle Bin.
Browsing for files and folders
A file or folder that you need is rarely right on top of your Windows desktop. 
It is usually on a drive inside a folder that may be inside yet another folder, 
and so on.
CautionEmptying the Recycle Bin permanently erases any files or 
folders in the bin. These files cannot be restored.
Help and 
SupportFor more information about emptying the Recycle Bin in 
Windows XP, click Start, then click Help and Support.
Type the keyword emptying Recycle Bin in the HelpSpot 
Search box  , then click the arrow. 
						

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Windows drives, folders, and files are organized in the same way as a real file 
cabinet in that they may have many levels (usually many more levels than a 
file cabinet, in fact). So you usually will have to search through levels of folders 
to find the file or folder that you need. This is called browsing.
To browse for a file:
1In Windows XP, click Start, then click My Computer. The My Computer 
window opens.
- OR -
In Windows 2000, double-click the 
My Computer icon on the desktop. The 
My Computer window opens.
2Double-click the drive or folder that you think contains the file or folder 
that you want to find. If you do not see the contents of a folder, click 
Show 
the contents of this drive
 or Show the contents of this folder.
3Continue double-clicking folders and their subfolders until you find the 
file or folder you want. 
						

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Searching for files
If you are looking for a particular file or folder or a set of files or folders that 
have characteristics in common, but you do not remember where they are 
stored on your hard drive, you can use the Search utility to search by:
■Name or part of a name
■Creation date
■Modification date
■File type
■Text contained in the file
■Time period in which it was created or modified
You can also combine search criteria to refine searches.
Files and folders found using this utility can be opened, copied, cut, renamed, 
or deleted directly from the list in the results window.
Help and 
SupportFor more information about browsing for files and folders 
in Windows XP, click Start, then click Help and Support.
Type the keyword files and folders in the HelpSpot 
Search box  , then click the arrow. 
						

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Using the Windows Search utility
To find files and folders using the Search utility:
1In Windows XP, click Start, then click Search. The Search Results window 
opens. Click 
All files and folders.
- OR -
In Windows 2000, click 
Start, Search, then click For Files or Folders. The 
Search Results window opens.
2If you want to search by file or folder name, type in all or part of the file 
or folder name in the name box in the left pane of the window.
■If you type all of the name, Search will list all files and folders of that 
name.
■If you type part of the name, Search will list all of the file and folder 
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3Click Search or Search Now. When the search is completed, Windows lists 
the files and folders whose names contain the text that you searched for.
4Open a file, folder, or program by double-clicking the name in the list.
Using advanced search options
Search can find files meeting more criteria than file name. You can narrow your 
search by selecting the search options that you want. You can search by the:
■Date the file was created or modified.
■Size of the file.
■Type of file, such as a program or a text document.
Help and 
SupportFor more information about searching for files and folders 
in Windows XP, click Start, then click Help and Support.
Type the keyword searching in the HelpSpot Search box 
, then click the arrow.