File management

1
File management
GAP Toolkit 5
Training in basic drug abuse data
management and analysis
Training session 2
2
Objectives

• To review the physical storage of information on
  a computer
• To review the referencing of storage mediums
• To describe the software partition of the storage
  space into directories
• To establish a taxonomy of files
• To review the file-management facilities in
  Windows

3
Computer storage

• A binary system with information stored as on or
  off
• A bit
• A byte
• A kilobyte (KB)
• A megabyte (MB)
• A gigabyte (GB)

4
Permanent storage

• Disks physical storage
• Hard disks
• Floppy disks CDs Zip disks
• Disk Drives input/output devices to the disks
• Hard drive
• Floppy disk drive Zip drive CD drive or CD
  read/writer

5
Referencing disk drives

• Disk drives are referenced by using a letter
  followed by a colon
• A the floppy disk drive
• C the hard disk drive
• Depending on the configuration of the
  computerD or E a CD drive or Zip drive
• F or greater a network drive

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Filing cabinet analogy

• Think of the storage space on the computer as a
  filing cabinet
• Disks can be thought of as drawers in a filing
  cabinet
• At present, we have a cabinet in which we could
  start throwing files into the various drawers,
  but there would soon be a muddle of program and
  data files, with no order or plan

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Directories/folders

• Directories or folders are the key to creating
  order on a disk
• Directories can contain files and/or other
  directories
• Analogous to folders in the filing cabinet drawers

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The root directory

• A root (or original) directory is automatically
  created for each disk
• The root is the start of the directory structure
• It is referenced by a backward-leaning slash \
• For example, A\ C\ D\

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The hierarchical structure

• As directories can hold other directories, the
  disks become split into a hierarchy of directories

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Files

• Types of file
• - program
• - user-created
• - executable
• - batch, etc.
• Naming

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File suffixes

• .doc Word
• .xls Excel
• .htm(l) Internet
• .pdf Acrobat
• .ppt PowerPoint
• .mdb Access

• .sav SPSS data file
• .sps SPSS syntax file
• .spo SPSS output file
• There are a number of other SPSS file types left
  over from previous versions such as .por, etc.,
  but the above are the most important

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Windows Explorer

• Used
• To navigate the file structure
• To create, move and delete directories
• To copy, cut and paste files
• To Open
• Start/Programs/Windows Explorer
• Windows key E

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Windows Explorer
Folders tool to view computer and directory
contents
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Displaying contents
Click here to collapse the view of C
drive/directory contents
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Collapsing an entry
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Drive/directory contents
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View options

• Large icons large folder icons
• Small icons small folder icons
• List list of files and directories, but no
  details
• Details the most useful option, contains
  directory and file details
• Thumbnails icons once again

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Exercise

• Open Windows Explorer
• Display the contents of the root directory of the
  C drive in the right hand window
• Display the contents of the directory My
  Documents (Documents and Settings if using NT or
  XP)
• Try all five available views

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Directories

• Important directories
• My Documents
• Program Files
• Windows
• Main operations
• Creating
• Moving
• Deleting

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Hierarchical directory structure
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My Documents

• A directory created by default by the Windows
  software to contain user-created files
• Save all files to the My Documents directory or a
  subset of that directory

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My Documents
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My Documents
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Creating a sub-directory

• Select the location for the new directory
• My Documents in this case the new directory is a
  sub-directory of My Documents
• File/New/Folder
• Enter a name for the new directory
• GAP in this case

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File/New/Folder
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Enter a meaningful name
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(No Transcript)
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Possible hierarchy of directories
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Moving a directory

• Click and Drag
• Copy/Cut and Paste
• Copy leaves the original directory in place a
  copy of the directory and all the files and
  sub-directories it holds is created at the Paste
  location
• Cut removes or deletes the original directory,
  moving the directory and all the files and
  sub-directories it holds to the Paste location

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Cut and Paste

• Edit menu
• Edit/Cut Edit/Copy Edit/Paste
• Quick menu
• Point at the object to be moved and click the
  right hand mouse button
• Keyboard shortcuts
• Ctrl C copy
• Ctrl X cut
• Ctrl V paste

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The quick menu Copy
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The quick menu Paste
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Directory added to treatment centre
Data directory added here
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Deleting a directory

• BEWARE!
• Deleting a directory will delete all the files
  it contains and all the sub-directories it
  contains
• Make the directory to be deleted current and
  press the Delete button on the keyboard

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Directories to avoid

• Program Files
• Contains the files that comprise software
  programmes
• All software programmes should be loaded by
  default to sub-directories of Program Files
• Windows
• Contains the files that comprise the Windows
  operating system

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Moving up the directory structure

• The toolbar contains an icon of a folder with an
  arrow imprinted on it this is used to move up
  the directory structure
• The top of the directory structure is the root
  moving up the directory structure is equivalent
  to moving towards the root

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Exercise
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Files

• Copying, moving and deleting files
• Opening and saving files

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Copying, moving and deleting files

• Using Windows Explorer, the procedure is the same
  as for directories
• Make the file current by pointing and clicking
  using the mouse
• Cut, Copy and Paste, or Drag and Drop
• Delete using the Delete key or the quick menu

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Open/saving files

• Software packages require previously created
  files to be opened and newly created files to be
  saved for future use
• File/Open
• File/Save or File/Save As from within the
  software package

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SPSS Save As dialogue box
click here for full directory list
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The wider directory structure
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The Save As dialogue box
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Find

• Find is used to search for lost files
• Find is accessed by either
• Windows Key F or
• Start/Search/For Files or Folders (Windows 2000)

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Find
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Exercise

• Create a word processing file called Test and
  save it to the GAP\Data directory
• From Windows Explorer, copy Test into the
  directories GAP\Exercises and GAP\Notes
• Use the Find facility to locate the file
  spsswin.exe
• Copy the file spsswin.exe to the desktop

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Summary

• Drives
• Directories
• Files
• Hierarchical directory structure
• Navigating
• Creating, moving and deleting directories

• Copying, cutting and pasting files
• Saving files to a directory
• Find