| |
| |
|
Personal Technology Information |
|
Put Order and Information into File Names
Unless you place your faith in internal search engine software or document databases to track your work, consider a relatively low-tech enhancement to your work methods. I promise it will pay big dividends. Consider how you name your files and folders. Have you missed an opportunity to clear the clutter and make your work more accessible? When you look at file names within a folder, do they sing out to you with sweet meaningfulness, or are they a cacophonous jumble of confusing heiroglyphics? The eye likes symmetry. The mind loves order. When you create files and they pile upon one another over time, does their accumulation reflect a master plan or a disaster unplanned? When you view your list of files, is your eye happy, your mind content? Basically, filenaming is an unrecognized art. Most of us are left to our own devices to figure it out. The good news: with some thought, you can be the artist of a system which will resonate with function. Let's start by considering the basis upon which files should be ordered. I will jump to the punchline and say it out loud: chronologically. To order files chronologically, have the filename start with a datestamp prefix such as YYYYMMDD- or YYMMDD. If you do this, your files will always sort themselves chronologically and you will have no trouble finding the latest and greatest work within a folder. What you do following the datestamp prefix depends upon how the file will be used. If the file travels to someone else as an email attachment and then returns back to you after some sort of review, I recommend having the second portion of your filename be a locator. The locator can be a 3-5 character abbreviation which will give you a solid hint about where the file needs to be refiled upon its return. You develop the locator so that you and others in your group recognize it as an abbreviation for a project. When they see the datestamp prefix and locator, they will already have much information about the contents of the file. After entering the datestamp prefix and locator, now you can write a nice, meaty descriptive text (descriptor). Use as many characters as you like, just beware that beyond a certain length, the filename will be truncated during display, and you will lose, rather than gain information. Consider 30 characters to be a maximum filename size. Subtracting 7 characters for the date stamp and 3-5 characters for the locator, this gives you 18-20 characters to tell your story. The way to know if you are doing a bad job with descriptors, is when you see the identical descriptor in multiple files. Don't repeat descriptive text unless you specifically want to highlight the similarity between the two files. Tip: NO spaces in names of files or folders. Spaces are not FTP-friendly and you may be FTP-ing sooner than you think. Tip: NO unnecessary capital letters and DEFINITELY NO TEXT WITH ALL CAPS. It's not only irritating, but it also takes away a useful tool, that of using upper and lower case text for better conveying your message. Tip: Find a style and stick with it. For example, if you like the looks of hyphens separating datestamp, locators and descriptors, then do it that way every time. If using underscore between words in the descriptor feels right, then make it a habit. Even artists can have discipline, you know. Tip: Use language to the greatest extent possible. In other words, use words more than acronyms. Cutsey corporate acronyms, after the first dozen or so, get pretty boring. Examples of good file names: Copyright 2005 Mark Meshulam A versatile denizen of Northbrook, IL, USA, Mr. Meshulam is an owner of a productivity software company (http://www.poingo.com), a construction company (http://www.buildersarch.com), and a document scanning/reprographics company (http://www.repro.docsys.us). His software product Poingo Email Printer has a feature which adds timestamps to filenames.
MORE RESOURCES:
|
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Cache In Your Chips And Get A Bus! Computer related terminology could sometimes be daunting to newcomers. These are relatively new words or hybrids of words, already in existence. Improve PC Performance - 6 Tips You Must Know Are you frustrated with your PC?Is it feeling sluggish or crawling at a snail's pace?Are programs running slower than they used to?Are you just plain fed up with frequent slowdowns, freezes or crashes?Then it's time to stop what you're doing and optimize your system to improve PC performance!Follow these 6 simple sure-fire tips to help improve PC performance and you'll be surprised by the results! Each comes with an indication of how often you should do it.Improve PC Performance Tip #1:CLEAN UP YOUR WINDOWS REGISTRY (Frequency = Daily)This is an essential, but often overlooked, task to improve PC performance. 4 Easy Ways to Speed Up A Sluggish PC Computers are supposed to speed up our productivity?to help us do more in less time. What do you do when your computer is running so slow that it's keeping you from getting your work done? Before you kick it to the curb, try these easy, do-it-yourself suggestions to help your system run & perform better. Palm PC critique I met an entrepreneur who hole heartedly disagree with an article in Advertising Age by Bradley Johnson that Palm Pilot can keep their market share through brand name. We discussed RIMM Research in Motion and my stock in that company and I defended the wireless venue, but he went into a tirade, luckily I used a digital recorder and got most of it; basically here is his critique:"That grip has already eroded by Palm PC makers and clones. How to Protect your PC from Spyware in the Cyber Age Wouldn't you be shocked to find that your personal sensitive information, like files, credit card information, operating system / software and other non-disclosed data to be penetrated by unscrupulous prying eyes? Even worse.. Is DVD Storage An Attractive Alternative For Your Computer Backup? If you have a computer for home use or for your business and don't take comprehensive backup for full protection then you are in the danger-zone.Maybe you do not take any backup at all. Portable DVD Players - Things To Know In my humble opinion nothing makes a long trip easier (especially if you have kids). A portable DVD player is the ideal solution for those long plane rides or endless drives in a car to keep everyone entertained, especially when you have new hit DVD to play. 5 Simple Ways To Increase Your Computer Speed & Help Your Computer Run More Efficiently! If you're a computer expert, you'll probably already know about these tips (hopefully this will provide you with a little reminder). If you're not an expert, don't worry - these tips are simple, and don't require a lot of computer experience. Printing Multiple Copies of Photos I do a holiday letter every year and send them to friends so they know what's happening with my family and I ask them about theirs. Though addressing the envelopes and such is a pain, I enjoy doing the letter and adding a wallet-sized photo of my kids to show them off. New Computer? Steps to Protect Your Computer Before Connecting to the Internet Getting a new computer should be an exciting and gratifying experience. After all, you'll be able to do things faster, safer and without having to worry that your old hard drive is so full that one more file will "break the camel's back. Cisco CCNA Candidate FAQ CCNA FAQQ. What exams do I have to take to get my CCNA?A. Your Affiliate Business - Peripherals, Software, Computers I have always been interested in computers, but in the beginning, I would not venture any further than to the software end of learning. However, learning only the software side, and knowing nothing about the hardware side, can open you up to some costly times at the shop. Protect Your PC from Viruses, Worms & Trojans Each of the items in the checklist below is part of a broad and easy to implement security policy.Install all windows critical updates for your operating system from the Microsoft Update site - it's free! All that's required to keep your Microsoft operating system up to date is an Internet connection. Reliable File and Folder Sharing in Windows Xp This tip is on sharing files and folders on a local network in Windows XP. It has been tested on Windows XP Professional (with and without SP2). 2 PC Annoyances and How To Solve Them! I have a love-hate relationship with my computer.In fact, often I love to hate my computer!It will do things I know even the great Mr. Keeping Passwords Secure As the web has evolved, so have the methods of collecting personal information. A large number of websites require visitors to register to gain access or participate. Password Nightmares Good Morning Mr. Sampson. The Benefits of Open Source If you are a building a website or a forum, chances are you are using a web editor or paying for message board services. The costs of using these "out of the box" products can add up, especially if you are trying to grow your business. Help, I Need a New HDTV! (Part 3 of 5) Feeling overwhelmed in selecting a new TV? With all the choices these days, you may feel like, "Where do I start?!"In part 3 of our 5 part article, we the discuss what HDTV is.HDTV stands for High Definition TV. Digital Cameras: How Many Pixels Do I Need? With the bewildering number of digital cameras on the market, it's increasing difficult to know where to start for your first purchase. One of the major determining factors of the price of a digital camera is the number of pixels.
|
| home | site map | contact us |
