Working with files

To create a new folder, right-click in an empty space, choose the new-folder command in the context menu, and type a name. A new file is usually created with a program, for example, we write a document in a text editor and save it. To rename a file or a folder, select it and press the F2 key.

When we copy a file, it stays where it was, and an exact copy appears in the new place. When we move a file, it is taken from the old place and put in the new one, so it is no longer in the old place. Shortcuts make this easy: Ctrl + C copies, Ctrl + X cuts and Ctrl + V pastes. First you copy or cut the file, then you open the folder you need and paste it.

To delete a file you do not need, select it and press the Delete key. Usually a deleted file does not vanish at once but goes to the Recycle Bin, and you can restore it from there. After the bin is emptied, the file may not come back. Files deleted from a flash drive usually skip the bin, so be careful when you delete them.

To select several files at once, hold down Ctrl and click each file. To select files that are next to each other, click the first one, then hold Shift and click the last one. Keep a backup copy of important files in another place: if something happens to the originals, your data will not be lost.

Key takeaways

A new folder is created from the context menu and renamed with the F2 key.
Copying leaves the file where it was; moving puts it in the new place.
Ctrl + C, Ctrl + X and Ctrl + V copy, cut and paste.
A deleted file usually goes to the Recycle Bin, and you can restore it.
Keep backup copies of important files.

Practice tasks

Create a folder called “Informatics” on the desktop and add a second folder called “Tasks” inside it.
Copy one file to another folder and move a different file. Compare what has changed in both folders and write down the difference.
Create a text file you do not need, delete it, open the Recycle Bin and restore the file.

Review questions

Test yourself: think first, then reveal the answer.

1How do copying and moving a file differ?Show answer

When copying, the file stays in the old place too; when moving, it leaves the old place and appears in the new one.

2Where does a deleted file usually go, and can it be restored?Show answer

It goes to the Recycle Bin, and it can be restored from there.

3How can you select several files at once?Show answer

Hold Ctrl and click each file, or select files that are next to each other with Shift.