22 December 2004

Data Organization: Copy and Move

Reorganization is good. Organization is better. Here in the 21^st century, most computer programs have caved into Microsoft’s mandate of saving files to My Documents by default. A few brave-hearted ones save elsewhere.

It is a very good idea to keep all of your data files, i.e. those documents, pictures, songs, etc. you created, in one central location. When you backup that one location, you are assured that you have backed up all of your data. Additionally, if you buy a new computer or a larger hard drive, moving your data is safe and simple.

It is a very good idea to put all of your data files into a single folder using sub-folders. By creating subfolders – say, one for word processing, one for spreadsheets, one for pictures, etc. – you make it easier to save your files and even easier to find them.

Note: if you have more than one login profile, follow this procedure for each profile. If, when you start Windows, you can choose from more than one user, login as the first user and follow the steps outlined below. When the migration has been completed, log off and then login as the second user and go through the process. Repeat as necessary.

Move Everything Out of My Documents

1. Close all windows and exit all programs.
2. Right-click on an empty area of the Desktop and then click New. (Click always means left-click.) Click on Folder, type the name Data Transfer, and then press Enter.
3. Double-click the newly created Data Transfer folder to open it.
4. Double-click the My Documents folder to open it. (Note to XP users: if the folder is not on the Desktop, click on the Start Menu, and then go to My Documents and click on it.
5. Click the Edit menu and then click Select All.
6. Click the Edit menu and then click Cut
7. Return to the Data Transfer folder and click the Edit menu.
8. Click Paste and wait patiently as all of your files are moved from My Documents to Data Transfer.

There is an important difference between copying files and moving files. If you copy a file from folder A to folder B, you will end up with that file being in two places – folder A and folder B. If you move a file from folder A to folder B, you will end up with that file being in one place – folder B.

Create Sub-folders in My Documents

1. Close the Data Transfer folder and make the My Documents folder full screen.
2. Right-click on an empty area of the folder, and then click New. Click on Folder, type the name of the new folder, and then press Enter. When naming these second-level folders (or sub-folders if you will), be more general. Use names such as Word Processing, Spreadsheets, or Quicken.
3. If you like, you can create more-specifically named folders within the general ones. Within Word Processing, you might create a sub-folder for letters, recipes, 2004, etc.
4. Finish creating your hierarchal folder system.

Move Data Files from My Documents

1. Return to the Desktop and open the Data Transfer folder.
2. The area on the screen below the Desktop and in between the Start button and the clock is the Taskbar. On it, you should see buttons for the two open folders.
3. Right-click on the Taskbar between the open folders and the clock.
4. Click “Tile Windows Vertically” (or horizontally, if you prefer). You will now have the screen filled with the two folders.
5. Move files (or sub-folders) from the Data Transfer folder to the My Documents folder by the click-and-drag method.
   1. Left-click on a file or folder.
   2. Hold down the left mouse button and move the mouse to the destination folder.
   3. Release the mouse button, dropping the file or folder into the destination.

Select Multiple Files
There are two methods for selecting more than one file for copying or moving.

• Select Random (non-contiguous) Files
  • Click on the first file.
  • Hold down the Ctrl key and click on the remaining files.
• Select Contiguous Files
  • Click on the first file.
  • Without clicking another file, scroll down to the last file in the group.
  • Press the Shift key and click on the last file.

Once you have selected a block of files, click on any of the files and drag them to the destination folder. (You may also use the Edit - Cut, Edit - Paste method described above.)

Move Data Files Not in My Documents
Some programs, such as Quicken and QuickBooks, save their data files in the program directory. That is, Quicken saves its files in C:\Program Files\Quicken by default. You can move those files to a folder with My Documents.

1. Open the program (Quicken in this example).
2. Find the data file location by clicking File and then Open.
3. Look to see where the data files are kept and what name (or names if you have more than one) Quicken is using for the file. The most common one in Quicken is qdata.
4. Close the Quicken program.
5. Open My Computer and double-click the Drive C icon. Navigate to the Quicken folder in the Program File folder.
6. Locate all of the files with the same name as the one used by Quicken. If your data file is qdata, select all of the files having the name qdata.
7. Move the files into the Quicken folder you created in My Documents.
8. Open the Quicken program.
9. Click File, and then Open.
10. Navigate to the Quicken folder within My Documents and open your data file.
11. Quicken will now know where to look for this file.

Most programs will allow you to move the data to My Documents. If a program balks, move the data back to where you found it.

Organization is the key to successful data backup. Don't go overboard with sub-folders. You might find it difficult to remember where you put a particular file.