Page 27 - Viva ICSE Computer Studies 6 : E-book

Sorting Files

Sorting the fi les on desktop refers to arranging them in a proper manner. The fi les can be sorted
by name, size, item type and date on which they were modifi ed. Sorting helps the user to back
up fi les easily.

We can sort the fi les in the following ways.
Name: This option helps to arrange fi les in an alphabetical order by fi le name.
Size: This option arranges fi les in decreasing order of fi le size.

Item Type: This option groups the fi les on the basis of their type.
Date Modifi ed: This option organises fi les according to the date on which they were last
modifi ed.
Step 3 Step 4
Follow these steps to sort the fi les in the desired way.
1. Right-click on the blank area of the desktop. Step 2
2. You will see a ‘Shortcut’ menu.

3. Click on the Sort by option and select the desired
sub-option.
4. The icons will be arranged accordingly.

Do and Learn

Sort the fi les on your desktop according to the date modifi ed.

Steps to be Followed
• Right-click on the blank area of the desktop.
• Click on the Sort by option in the Shortcut menu.
• Select Date modifi ed.
• The icons will be arranged accordingly.

File Formats

Before learning about fi le format, let’s understand what
a fi le extension is. File extension is a part of a fi le name Learn More
followed after dot (.). Some examples of fi le extensions are
The file type is also indicated
doc, pdf, jpeg and ppt. The fi le extensions tell us about the
by its file icon.
types of fi les. For example, doc fi le extension indicates that
it is a Word fi le.

Diff erent types of fi les stored in a computer have diff erent fi le formats (extensions) associated
with them. A fi le format is a standard way used to encode information in a computer fi le
indicated by the fi le’s extension.

Let’s learn about some common types of fi les with their fi le formats.
• Documents: Microsoft Word fi le has the extension .doc or .docx.

• Spreadsheets: MS Excel spreadsheet has the extension .xls or .xlsx.

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