Files and
Folders
By Cate Eales
Appeared February 14, 2008 on castanet.net
Every Windows user has a folder called My Documents
(Except Vista users. They have a folder called Documents, and isn't that
really kind of better?). So many of my clients have this folder full
of....everything under the sun. Everything just gets saved in My
Documents, and it's really hard to find anything. Here are some tips to
make working with your files and folders a little easier.
FileSort
In Windows you can sort those files by file type, by date, by
file size. Simply click on View | Arrange icons by... and then experiment
with the options. You'll see what's going on a little better, but in the
end, you'll still end up with a bunch of stuff in that folder.
There's an easy way to sort it all out. Have a look at
FileSort.
You just create a few simple rules, and FileSort will tidy up. You can
also set it to do that automatically. FileSort is free.
Grab it here.
Rainbow Folders
If you now find yourself with a gazillion folders, try changing
the colour of some of them. If you share a computer, each person could use
a different colour. If you're the only one using your computer, you could
colour code your projects. That makes finding the folders you want a
little easier.
I've been using
Rainbow Folders since the Win98 days, and the new version works with
everything from Windows 9.x to Vista. It's easy to use, it doesn't need to
run all the time, and it's free. You can
get it here.
FileTypesMan
Advanced users may know that to change which program opens a
certain type of file, the click path is My Computer | Tools | Folder
Options | File Types. Then, a confusing list of extensions and programs
opens. At that point, even if you know what you're doing, it's going to be
tedious.
FileTypesMan displays the list of all the file types registered on
your computer, along with more (and more helpful!) information about each
type. You can change the file association there, and (again for more
advanced users) you can add, edit, and remove actions in any file type.
FileTypesMan is free, and
available here. It works with any Windows version from 98 through
Vista.
Updates Galore
Don't forget the security updates!. Apple issued an update for
its
QuickTime player, here. Note that you DO NOT have to download
QuickTime with iTunes if you don't want iTunes.
You should be using version 1.6.0_04 (also known as "Java 6 Update 4) of
Java. Visit
http://java.com/ and click
on "Do I have Java?" to see if you're up to date. Don't forget to
uninstall previous versions of Java (Start | Control Panel | Add/remove
programs in XP; Start | Control Panel | Programs | Uninstall Programs in
Vista)
And of course,
Adobe Reader needs updating. You can
get it here. Don't forget to uncheck the box for Photoshop Album
Starter Edition. Why not uninstall it entirely?
For alternatives, see last week's
column, here.
Firefox is currently at version 2.0.0.12. If your Firefox hasn't updated
itself for some reason, or if you'd just like to try it,
point your
browser here.
And, apparently Microsoft will have as many as twelve updates for us this
week. Make sure you either have your Automatic Updates turned on and
scheduled for a convenient time, or that you
visit the update
site on your own.
The very best way to stay up to date on important security updates is to
visit the Secunia website, and run their web-based
Software
Inspector, here. The software inspector will scan your computer and
show you where you are at risk. It will also point you directly to pages
where you can update your software.
Thank you to everyone who emailed questions, comments, and suggestions.
Please email
cate@rlis.com with more of those! You can also
browse the column archives at any
time by pointing your browser here. If you'd like to subscribe
to this column by email,
please visit this link. It's easy, and free. If you'd prefer the
RSS Feed, click here.
See you next week!
Links
FileSort
http://mwynwood.com/blog/?%20p=231
Rainbow Folders
http://www.softpedia.com/progDownload/Rainbow-Folders-Download-35725.html
FileTypesMan http://www.nirsoft.net/utils/file_types_manager.htmlApple
QuickTime
http://www.apple.com/quicktime/download/
Java http://java.com/
Adobe Reader
http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html?ogn=EN_US-gntray_dl_get_reader
Alternatives to Adobe Reader
http://rlis.com/columns/column132.htm
Firefox
http://www.mozilla.com/en-US/firefox/
Secunia Software Inspector
http://secunia.com/software_inspector/
Microsoft Update
http://update.microsoft.com
Getting Along With Your Computer Column Archives
http://rlis.com/column.htm
Get Cate's column by email
http://www.feedblitz.com/f/f.fbz?Sub=20618
RSS Feed:
http://rlis.com/rlis.xml
---
Cate Eales has been helping people make online computing safe, accessible
and fun for over 20 years. She lives in Kelowna with her husband, Eric,
and her dog, Sandy. Cate is a partner in Real Life Internet Solutions,
helping individuals and small businesses with virus, spyware and malware
eradication; personal computer training and management; digital image
management; music transfer; and website design, hosting and management.
Email Cate at cate@rlis.com with your
comments, suggestions, or questions. To browse the column archives, visit
the Real Life Internet Solutions website at
www.rlis.com.
©
Cate Eales 2008 – All Rights Reserved
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