Managing Files and Folders in Mac OS 12 Monterey

Name: Managing Files and Folders in Mac OS 12 Monterey
Author: Nizar Dajani

Learn how to organize files and folders and use tags.

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Course: On-Demand

In this lesson we will learn how to organize files on folders in Mac OS. Everyone organizes their files on folders on their computers as they see fit. And there are good ways and not so good ways to do so. In other words, there are best practices to how you organize your files on folders. The first bad practice I see at times is having lots of files on folders on the desktop. And the reason why this is not a good practice is because the way the Mac OS graphical system works, having many icons on the desktop, will require significant computer resources. You might not realize it with a few files on folders on the desktop, but the more you add files and folders to the desktop the slower your computer response time will be. If you're familiar with the spinning beach ball in Mac OS, which is the icon that appears, while you wait for your computer to process something then you might be seeing the spinning beach ball a lot more if your desktop is filled with items. So, as a best practice in organizing your files on folders, please refrain from using a desktop or at least use it as a temporary storage area. But again, it's best practice to use your other folder structure instead. Okay, now with that point out of the way, let's discuss the folder structure of a typical Mac OS computer. I'll now open a Finder window, then I'll go to the Go Menu, then I'll choose Computer. This will bring up the highest level in my folder structure. Here I can see my local hard drives, network items, as well as any external drives that I have connected at the moment. Currently I only have my local hard drive, which is called Macintosh HD and I don't have anything in networks, meaning no connected servers or resources. I'll double click on my hard disc and I see four folders; applications, library, system and users. These are called top level folders. The applications folder is where you have all your apps installed, like Safari, TextEdit, Calculator and so on. Next we have the Library folder, and that's where we have the shared libraries or files that are necessary for the Mac OS to function properly. Then there is the System folder, which has system files that are also needed for the Mac OS to run properly. And finally, we have the User's folder. This holds the different home folders for the different users of the computer. Right now, I only have one user account, which is my personal user account on this Mac machine. And inside that folder you'll find more files and folders. Some are files and folders that I created myself to organize my work, while others have been provided for me by default. Some of these default folders are the Downloads folder, where files are downloaded to by default. Then there's also the Movies folder, the Music folder and the Pictures folder. The Mac OS makes these default folders for us, so we can store videos in the Movie folder, songs in the Music folder, and pictures in the Pictures folder. This is just a suggested folder structure. And while you don't have to follow it, it just makes sense to organize your files that way. But the next question is, where do we store regular files like PDFs or TextEdit files? For that Mac OS has another default folder called Documents. However, I don't see it in my folder structure here and that's because I use iCloud. And if you look at the sidebar I see iCloud and right under it is my Documents folder. Typically, the Documents folder is a local folder on my computer, but I have set up my iCloud account to keep the Documents folder online, instead of my local computer. And here's where you could find this setting. I go to the Apple Menu, then System Preferences, then Apple ID, then iCloud on the left. Then on the right next to iCloud Drive, I click on Options. And at the top I have checked the Desktop and Documents folder. This is the option that makes these two local folders, not local anymore, but instead they are now under iCloud. And since I also see desktop, that's another local folder, but I now have it in the cloud as well. And if you remember from a previous lesson that the desktop files can be accessed as a folder in Finder or from the main desktop area. Now, someone might ask if you have the Desktop and Documents folder in the cloud, why not also have the Movies, Music and Pictures folders in the cloud as well? Why are they still on my local computer? The answer is because these are media folders and typically the file size is large, so there will be a lag time to download these large files from iCloud down to your local computer, so you can use them or update them. And for that, we keep it locally on our computer.

Beginner Provider : Nizar Dajani 4 Lessons · 27m in Arabic, German, English, Spanish, French, Portuguese, Chinese

Course Description

In this course, you will learn to organize files and folders, use tags, and manage folders. There are multiple options when it comes to organizing files and folders in macOS Monterey, starting with the highest of the folder structure on the Mac. This course will also cover using tags to help you organize and find your files and folders.

There’s no right or wrong approach to organizing and managing your files and folders. However, there are best practices to follow, and this course will help you learn them. With time and practice, you will become more comfortable with how organizing your files and folders on macOS Monterey.

What You'll Learn

Describe the macOS Monterey folder structure interface
Recognize the different features of files and folders
Identify how to manage files and folders in macOS Monterey
Explain the concept of tags for organizing files
Organize files and folders using best practices
Manage folders within the macOS Monterey environment

Key Takeaways

macOS Monterey offers multiple options for organizing files and folders, starting from the highest level of the folder structure on the Mac.
Tags can be used to help organize and find files and folders.
There is no right or wrong approach to organizing and managing files and folders, but there are best practices to follow.
With time and practice, learners become more comfortable organizing files and folders on macOS Monterey.

Frequently Asked Questions

What will I learn in this course?

You will learn to organize files and folders, use tags, and manage folders in macOS Monterey. The course covers describing the macOS folder structure interface, recognizing features of files and folders, managing files and folders, and explaining the concept of tags for organizing files.

What topics does this course cover?

The course covers organizing files and folders (in two parts), tags, and managing folders.

Does this course teach a single correct method for organizing files?

No. The course states there is no right or wrong approach to organizing and managing your files and folders, but it teaches best practices to follow.

What skills does this course help me build?

It helps build skills in directory structure, document management, file management, using the file manager, and file organization.