Digital Document Management

Digital Document Management

Naming a file is a very neglecting issue but very helpful and beneficial in the long run. In everybody’s computer you will see a pile of files whether useful or pointless.

The pointless files are considered as junk and junk files occupy unnecessary space in your computer whether official or personal. So, devise or adopt a healthy system for file naming not only for professional level but personal level too.

File naming convention :

A file naming convention is a way that describes the system to keep your files in order or easily traceable in case of need. For tracking and preventing duplicating of file, it is necessary to devise some conventions to define naming of file.

It will be easier and faster for you or your co-workers to find, identify, and retrieve information, if folders and files are named systematically, logically, and appropriately.

There are mainly four types of naming conventions in coding but here we are using three of them for naming convention of files in our computer. The three conventions are Pascal Case, Kebab Case and Camel Case.

Three types of naming conventions :

Pascal case: In this type of naming words are delimited by Capital Letters. e.g. ProjectTwo

Kebab Case : In this type of naming method words are delimited by a hypen

Camel case: In this type of naming words are delimited by Capital letters except the initial word or letter. e.g. projectOne

A filename can be made up of a series of descriptive elements, such as keywords, date, identifying numbers etc. For more clarity see the below examples:

Letter :  You can represent a file name like - LTDDMMYYYYR0

               (In this example LT- stands for Letter, DDMMYYYY means                                          date 01/01/2000, R0 means revision no.

Minutes of Meeting :  MN13072024R0 -Minutes of Meeting stands for MN then date format and revision no. 

You can define your own nomenclature for easy traceability and trackability.

Simple Key Rules for naming files : 

• Keep file names short, meaningful and easily understandable to others.
• Avoid unnecessary repetition and redundancy in file names and paths
• For numbers 0-9, always use a minimum of two digit numbers to ensure    correct numerical order (e.g. 01, 02, 03 etc.) 
• Dates should always follow same format: YYYYMMDD e.g. 20170425
• Mention Version no. also.
• Use capital letters to delimit words, not spaces or underscores.
• Don’t start or end your filename with a space, period, hyphen, or underline.
• Keep your filenames to a reasonable length and be sure they are under 31 characters.
• Most operating systems are case sensitive; always use lowercase.
• Avoid using spaces and underscores; use a hyphen instead.

Advantages of file naming convention :

• Easily knowing the file content.
• Find & identify files ever if they are no longer in their original folder
• Mange files more easily.
• Prevent unnecessary confusion of duplicate files.

Watch YouTube video for more clarity on this subject

Files and folders creation and management :

Create a Main Folder : 

First create a Main  folder for keeping your files. Examples -Create Main Documents folder to organize all your documents in it.

Sub-Folder : 

Within main documents further create sub folders as per your requirement. For example you can create Personal, Bank, Property under "Document" Main Folder.

File Placement : 

Place files in the appropriate folders based on their content only. It will be helpful for finding and tracking the files.

Avoid Duplicates :

Avoid multiple copies of the same file and keep one in a specific location for easy access and reference it from other places if needed using Shortcuts.

Delete Unnecessary Files :

Regularly review your files and remove unnecessary items to free up disk space and minimize clutter.

Backup of  Files :

Define a back up plan for routinely taking back up of  your important files. A robust data backup strategy involves creating multiple copies of your data and storing them in various locations to safeguard against data loss.

Watch video on Backup strategy 3-2-1.

Watch video on File history is a feature that automatically backs up copies of your files and folders, allowing you to recover them if they are lost, damaged, or accidentally deleted.

Other important tips : 

• Utilize tagging systems to group files according to particular characteristics, such clients, projects, or keywords.
• Avoid having too many files and folders on your desktop to keep it neat and orderly.
• Review your file organizing system on a regular basis to make sure it continues to be efficient and successful.
• Avoid duplication of files and folders.
• Delete unnecessary files and folders from time to time. 

By adhering to these rules, you can establish a neat and orderly file system that facilitates file management and discovery.