File Naming Standards for Ease of Access

[furashgf]

I'd like to hear what people have done in terms of file naming standards for electronic reference materials (documents, etc.). I can usually find what I want using windows search and going through folders, but I'm sure there's a better way in the first place.

e.g., [date I got the file in yyyymmdd format] [tag identifiying basic topic] [file name]

[radioman]

I have not used the following system, but I stumbled upon it a while ago. I think it is at least worth consideration if you are serious about having a heavy-duty electronic filing system:

http://www.drbunsen.org/naming-and-s...es-part-1.html

http://www.drbunsen.org/naming-and-s...es-part-2.html

Joe

[Oogiem]

I'm slowly updating mine as I clean out old folders and archive data. This is what I am using right now. The goal is that by looking at the filename I have a clue what the contents are.

First letter is area of focus
P = Personal
W = Weyr Associates
D = Desert Weyr
A = Archive from Internet

Next is the description and keywords
indicate file contents by description
Author if a downloaded article
keywords as needed

Last is date
YYYY MM <DD> if needed

Two sets of files are kept separate
ABWMSA = ABWMSA Sheep Association
TDRC = Terror Ditch

Everything personal in a single folder. Separate ABWMSA & TDRC into separate folders.

[ellobogrande]

Theme, topic, person or project is what I use.

[furashgf]

Thanks all for the useful advice!

[kkuja]

File things for easy retrieval. What ever that is for you.

Below are two Get it Done guy links which I have found helpfull.

http://getitdone.quickanddirtytips.c...ame-files.aspx
http://getitdone.quickanddirtytips.c...ne-filing.aspx

[GTD_Fan]

I'd like to hear what people have done in terms of file naming standards for electronic reference materials (documents, etc.). I can usually find what I want using windows search and going through folders, but I'm sure there's a better way in the first place.

e.g., [date I got the file in yyyymmdd format] [tag identifiying basic topic] [file name]

This is a good question, which comes from time to time in the forums.
That's how my system looks like:

I have one big INBOX folder on the Desktop of my Mac - for items that are still to be processed: Articles I have found on the web, screenshots of different things, pictures, which I have previously exported from picture managing programms like iPhoto or Aperture to Desktop, in order to e-mail them further to my friends and family etc.
In my Documents directory I have these main folders:

PROJECTS - support for active, ongoing projects on almost everything

REFERENCE - with folders from A-Z ( support for everything that I might want to refer. This is going to be a big folder)

SOMEDAY/MAYBE - with folders from A-Z (support for things that I can't do now, but maybe one day. One folder inside is Projects On Hold - for things I have started, but for any reason couldn't work more at that time on them, or for future Projects)

ARCHIVE - for things that I have finished, I am in every sense done with them, and I don't need them neccessary for reference, but for any reason don't want to throw them away.

Further I have two extra large Folders for two organisations, with each names as folder names. With those I don't work very often, but on a regular basis. I want to have my Projects, Reference and Archive folders for those organisations separated from the other folders, since the work for those is organised regarding the type of the activity or subject.

This works fine for me!
If I have to organize edited pictures in my picture directory, it works best for me to put the year as a folder name. For example: 2012 - and then - Party Bonn and so on.

So, good luck!

GTDFan