mws0123 said:
Upgraded from ME to XP. Now have "My Documents", "My Name Documents"
and a 3rd path c:\Documents and Settings\"My Name"\My Documents. It
looks as though evrything is in triplicate. What gives. Help me , I'm
drowning in files/folders.
As RajKohli told you, these are not separate locations. Also, you are
getting "memory" confused with physical hard drive space. The two have
nothing to do with each other. Here is a brief description of some of
the file structure you are seeing - which you should leave alone! Since
you upgraded, what you see may be a bit different and/or you might not
have any OEM-created users, but the concept will be the same.
XP is a multi-user operating system, no matter if only one person is
using it. In all multi-user operating systems - NT, Win2k, XP, Unix,
Linux, Mac OSX - there is the one built-in account that is "god" on the
system. In Windows terminology, that is "Administrator". In the *nix
world, it is "root". This is a necessary account and is not normally
used in everyday work. You cannot delete the built-in Administrator
account nor would you ever want to.
Here is the explanation of what you really have:
My Computer - represents your entire computer, showing drives and shared
folders.
Shared Folders - These are folders where you can put files you wish to
share with other users on the system. You don't need to use these
folders if you don't want to, but leave them alone!
[some name] C:\ - your first hard drive, usually the system drive.
My Network Places - This is a graphical representation of other
computers on the network and any shared network resources. If you don't
have other computers, you can remove the Network Places icon from the
Desktop using the Control Panel Display>Desktop>Customize Desktop
function. Leave the folder alone!
Document and Settings - The "container" for all user settings. Each user
will have [username] Documents, Music, Videos, My Pictures.
Administrator - Built-in account - Leave alone! Do not use! Do not worry
about it!
All Users - Section where items common to all users go. In a multi-user
operating system, users have separate accounts. This is the place where
if you want to share files with all the other users on the system you
would put those files. You don't ever have to use those folders but
they need to be there. This is where programs you install that are
meant to be installed for all users put settings. All the "Shared
Documents" type of folders you see at the root of C:\ are shortcuts to
the shared folders in here. Leave them alone!
Default Users - This is the template from which new user accounts are
made. You will never put anything in any of those folders but they are
needed to create new users. In Linux we use "skel" ("skeleton" - get
it?). In Windows, the less-colorful term "Default User" is used. Leave
it alone!
[OEM] Administrator or Owner - This is the generic user created by the
OEM when installing the operating system. After all, the OEM doesn't
know who is going to buy the computer. If you aren't using this OEM
user account, you can delete it from the User Accounts applet in
Control Panel. It is not the same account as "Administrator".
My Network Places - This is a graphical representation of other
computers on the network and any shared network resources. If you don't
have other computers, you can remove the Network Places icon from the
Desktop using the Control Panel Display>Desktop>Customize Desktop
function. Leave the folder alone!
Malke
