Windows 10: What's the Proper Way of Naming Files?

Over the years, I've come across dozens of ways to properly(?) name a file. For example, as in my movie, here are just a few:

The_Secret_of_NIMH_1982
The-Secret-of-NIMH-1982
The.Secret.of.NIMH.1982
The Secret of NIMH_(1982)

I think some of them may go back to the good ol' PC DOS days. Not sure.

I ask this because I'm going thru ALL my files and tediously re-naming them, for conformity's sake, but I want to know the universal/proper/accepted/etc. way if there is one!

Thanks!

:)

 

What's the proper way to disconnect a completed sync?

Hi Frankie, I usually just unplug the cable. Never had any issues.

 

What's the proper way to disconnect a completed sync?

I'm syncing via USB from outlook on Vista to my HTC Touch Cruise.

Just curious as to what the proper 'end' procedure is before I unplug the cable.

When it says 'sync completed' or do I have to close the activesync task on

the phone first or di I just unplug the cable?

Or is there something else I should shut down first before unplugging?

Just wondering the proper way to do this.

-Frankie

 

I don't think there is a "proper way" to name files.

CLIs often use spaces as delimiter characters.
When you use the Command Prompt, this is why you have to surround path names with quotes (if the path contains spaces).

Linux Distros used to often have dummy spits when they encountered spaces.
Old-School Linux users often use underscores and dots instead of spaces.

Web-based stuff can have problems handling spaces (a lot of web servers use Linux).

Some software automatically replaces spaces with a code.
This is why you can sometimes see filenames/URLs like "word%20word%20word".

 

There's no universal standard - it's up to the individual or organization to come up with their own naming conventions (or not).

However, there are some things to keep in mind if you are sharing with other people using different OSes:

• As lehnerus2000 said, spaces are annoying to handle in various situations so a lot of people use underscores or dots, although all OSes can handle them with proper escaping.
• Windows has reserved filenames (like NUL, CON, PRN) that have special meaning on Windows but other OSes treat like normal files. So if someone using Linux creates a file called "nul" and sends it to you, Explorer can't open or delete it.
• Windows won't allow filenames with certain characters that other OSes are fine with - Naming Files, Paths, and Namespaces (Windows) . I recall a thread on this forum where someone couldn't delete a file because it had a trailing space, which is allowed by Linux but not on Windows.
• Unicode handling between OSes is tricky so sticking with ASCII is ideal
• Maximum filename and path length is also different between OSes

 

For me there is only one rule. And that rule is "I do it anyway I feel like". Whatever makes sense to me becomes my method.

There is no universal "right way". Just do it "your way".

 

One hint is that, if you're trying to store files in date order, include the date in YYYYMMDD or YYMMDD order.
Then, let File Explorer & ASCII sort it out automatically, every time you refresh the directory (F5).

 

Sometimes to keep files in order that have 1, 2, 3, 11, 22, etc., in their names it usually works good to 'pad' the number with zeros as in 01, 02, 03, etc., allows 11 to follow 10. My usage goes back to the early '90s and the DOS naming convention of 8.3, up to 8 characters for the name and up to 3 character for the extension most often assigned by the program creating the file. With the advent of Windows 95 came the introduction of LFN/Long File Names which does allow creativity but still the extension needs to be what a program recognizes to be able to open it. There are some restrictions by the Operating System in characters that can't be used but there's always a prompt about them when that is tried. Now with the use of large-capacity drives/more partitions possible and external drives there is also a limit of how long a name can be caused by the 'path' to where the files are stored.

 

I use that method for folders.

When I create Backup Images, I use that method for System Reports and Storage Setup.