No Experience Necessary - Part 2

This week we take a look at running programs and creating files. We shall also look at managing your files and how the computer makes this easy for you to do.

Running Programs

The windows environment gives us a number of ways in which we can run programs. A program can be launched by:

· Clicking a menu item - usually from the Start button

· Double clicking a program from Windows Explorer

· Double clicking a file that has an associated program attached to it (such as double clicking a .TXT file will cause Notepad to open and automatically load the file we clicked)

· Double clicking an icon placed on the desktop (known as a "shortcut")

· Dragging a file onto a desktop shortcut or program icon within Windows Explorer

So you see, there are quite a few ways in which we can run a program. Most programs use files of one kind or another.

Windows uses the "folder" analogy in that a collection of common or related files is stored in a single folder. For example, letters could be stored in one folder whilst pictures are stored in another. The term "folder" can also be known as a "directory" (and most people who have used a computer for any length of time tend to refer to folders as directories).

Folders

Imagine storing all the files in your office in one massive filing cabinet with only one drawer. Now try and think how difficult it would be to find a file - not an easy task! Instead, filing cabinets have separate drawers to make locating files easier.

In computers, the files on your computer's hard disk are divided up into separate folders. It is possible to have folders within folders. This is known as a "directory structure."

Your hard disk will be made up of a series of folders that contain other folders which can, in turn, contain yet more folders. For example, you may have a folder called "My Documents" which may contain folders such as "Letters," "Spreadsheets," and "Graphics." The Letters folder may contain further folders (called "sub-directories") called "Personal" and "Business."

By splitting your disk into folders, finding a file later can be made much simpler. That letter from Bank Manager will be contained in "Business" which is contained in "Letters."

Within Windows 95/98 you can have folder names that contain spaces and can have "meaningful names" such as "My personal letters." In older operating systems such as Windows 3.x and DOS, you are limited to eight-character folder names that cannot contain spaces.

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