How To Organize the Files On a Mac
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 3 ก.พ. 2021
- macmost.com/e-2367 It important to come up with an organization system for your files on your Mac that meets your needs. Here are some examples of how you can do it. Your system doesn't have to start out perfect and you should always be looking for ways to improve it.
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#macmost #mactutorial #gettingorganized - วิทยาศาสตร์และเทคโนโลยี
This is literally Priceless info and organization most every Mac user should know and use from day one!
best channel i've come across for mac users!! thanks
It truly is!
I am a longtime Windows user and this week I got my first MacBook Air. I am hooked to your channel and love it. thanks for making things so simple.
Wow, what a clever person you are, I am in my seventies and, to be honest most of your videos are way over my head. This doesn’t stop me viewing them, I screen record the ones that I like best so that I can watch them many times. D S J England.
I just discovered this channel. Your tutorials are just awesome, man! They've helped me a lot. Many thanks.
Your programs are so good , they are informative, sensible, unbiased, and from experience, brilliant
I like the way you organize YOUR files... greatest tips. Thanks Gary! That really helps me stay on the right track... your system makes perfect sense.
Thank you so much for this video. You explain things so simply. I really appreciate you making this video. It has helped me so much!
Gary, I'm really enjoying your videos, recently with the window manipulation topics. As for organization, some things I have long done are: 1) End a file name with the date so if I make a new version, it sorts chronologically, such as Filename 2021 02 04. 2) For previous folders, I usually name them Archive nn within a higher level folder. 3) For all folders, I end them with a two-digit year, so I can immediately see when I created the folder. Sometimes I'll then create a new folder of the same name but with a new year, such as Folder 21, to segregate it from the older info. 4) Sometimes I archive right within a current folder. For example, I'll create a folder Taxes for 2020. Inside are the files for 2020 such as 1099's and W-2's, plus the folders Taxes for 2019, Taxes for 2018, etc. 5) To help sanity, I have folders in email named similarly to the folders on my Mac, although not precisely also to help sanity.
Thank you, especially since im a novice with my mac lol, you speak in simple language and even though I may play the video many times its ok because you make it simple enough that I can follow, now I just have to practice-thank you
Superb! I rarely make comments but this is so appropriate and related to the video description and title, it demands praise.
Love your videos. Keep up the good work this was great to just have playing in the background while I was organizing my MacBook.
I just switched from windows to a macbook and this is a life saver! Thank you so much
A great lesson I'm going to try "tagging" never used it before
This really helped me understand how to store and organize!
This video was oddly satisfying 😅 Your vides are the best, I feel I'm finally taking advantage of my Macbook.
Thank you so much. One thing I wanted to add is I often end files that have more than one version with an ending of _v1 and _v2. It's been helpful in maintaining multiple versions.
Thank you for nice ideas on how to improve my files structure.
About the section - Home User - Documents - Equipment Manuals. I have started keeping my manuals, whether an actual book or a PDF, in the Books app.
I am a technical trainer by trade, between work and home, have hundreds of manuals, brochures, and the like. I started storing them in Books with different collections based upon topic, class, etc. So far, I am liking this method very much and will continue to tweak it as needed.
My company uses PCs, and if I can work out how to seamlessly cast and teach from my Ipad, I will be G-T-G. :)
P.S. I love the channel and am learning so much. Thank you.
Yes, that is a good option. It is especially easy to access them on the iPhone when they are in Books.
I just discovered your channel and find it really helpful, thank you!
As a content creator I needed ideas on how to organize my files so I can repurpose them in the future and this gave me the idea I needed to do it. Thanks for sharing.
I am 75 and my memory is very poor. I think this video will help me. Thank you.
Great tips, I've been meaning to get more organized!
I totally agree about having an Empty desktop at all times. Been doing it this way literally for years now. I only have temporary screenshots and my external hard drives/devices on my desktop, all of which temporary.
So simple and full of sensible guidelines, a suggestion would be one on mail app
Thanks again for another EXCELLENT video
Great video!! Thanks for sharing!
I’m back, learning every day from you
Another extremely useful video, Gary. Speaking of organizing and optimizing, I know you’ve done several videos on the Apple photos app, but I’m very interested in collecting all my photos from Google Photos, random pics strewn around my Mac and Apple photos and making sure I have all of them in one place, ideally without any duplicates. I then intend to save them on an external SSD so I can save some money on iCloud storage. Is this something you’ve addressed in the past, and if not, would you consider it worth doing as a separate adjunct to today’s video on organizing files generally? Thanks.
My computer is a mess and I can’t find anything. This video gave me some great ideas on how to get organized. Thank you!
I'm about to get a new iMac and thinking that I should reorganize my files. As I purchased new computers, I just migrated my original system over to the new computer, so I've got my work cut out for me. I'm determined to clean house. Thanks for this. Some great ideas.
Thank you sir I will spend a day and file everything in finder this looks like the easiest for me!
Thank you so much Gary!
Thank you for a very helpful video!
Great content man.
Thank you, Gary! 👍🏻
You are doing a great job. thank you very much
fantastic! Thank you
Good thing to continually consider, file organization.
By far, the most important thing is a good filename for each file. Then, even if it is stuck in some obscure folder in an unorganized system, search will easily find it.
But, with good filenames, you can considerably (and I mean CONSIDERABLY) simply the folder structure, thereby speeding up navigating to a file in finder since it will not be buried in a labyrinth of folders.
That, plus using the various sorting/ordering functions makes it a snap to find a file.
Nothing is set in stone. Well said. I agree completely.
Hi just found your channel and love it. Had my macbook air for 4 years and still learning. Do you happen to have done a video on Bookmarking using the Mac. I have so much trouble when I want to bookmark things, I do a lot of research and have stuff all over the place?
Thank you so Mucha! 🙂
This channel is priceless!
Thank you so much
I do my organization differently. My docs are organized by year number and then month inside the year. That is in a folder called YEARS. I then use Smart Folders in another folder next to YEARS.
This helps with organization by having my word processor app always create new documents in the current month.
If I was writing g a document for a class (as an example) including the class title in the paper heading means it will automatically be grouped with the other docs for the same class (remember the Smart Folders).
Great Job!!!!!!
I use the desktop as a 'to do list' of links, screenshots, etc. and it's a good system.
I am using Hazel to sort my searchable PDF Scans into a defined folder structure, add tags semi automatically and also create sensible names.
Thanks
Wow 🤩 I need to organize my Mac. It’s a mess. Thank you 🙏
Great info Gary!! Is there a way to automatically number your files in Automator to organize your files with a numeric value at the beginning? (ie. 1 - Personal, 2 - Business, etc. with the respective subfolders appearing like 1.1 - Health, 1.2 - Personal Growth, etc. so that each sub folder is its own decimal point?)
I don't think Automator can help with that. You'd need to name them yourself as Automator won't know what type of file it is. But I would suggest that you look into a better method anyway, like tagging, instead of using numbers in the filename.
Hi Gary... been watching your videos for a while now but just came across this one today.
Anyway, I am a UI / Web / Graphic Designer / Illustrator. In one of my previous jobs where I worked with multiple designers, we had a file naming and numbering system that I have since adopted for me own.
In that previous job, we had multiple clients that each had multiple projects so a numbering sub-system worked best for us.
In my new role, I am the sole designer but work on multiple projects from web, social media and print. I've organized all the graphic files for my team in the following way:
00 - Archives
---- Archives sub-folder
-------- Archive year 1
--------- Archive Year 2
01 - Company Logo Files
---- 00 Company Logo Archives
---- 01 Company Logo Assets
---- 02 Company Logo - Web
---- 03 Company Logo - Print
---- 04 Company Logo - Merchandise
02 - Company Social Media
---- 00 Company Social Media Archives
---- 01 January
-------- 01 Social Media project 1
-------- 02 Social Media Project 2
---- 02 February
(The dashes aren't there. They are just to show the sub folder structure)
For individual file names, sometimes I have to design multiple versions of something before the final is approved so a file name might look something like this:
Name or project - sub name - Format_version_file type
which would look something like this:
[Name of Social Media Event] - Fall Forum - Twitter_v3.png
Hi Gary, I organize most of my files the same way, but on my Synology Server (which would eventually make sense for you, at least for archiving large files). The reason I put my files on the server, is the simple way to share documents with my family members. This would not be possible having all those documents only on my MBP!
What’s a Synology server?
Is it better to put stuff like photo library, albums etc into pictures? Should photo editing stuff including apps be in this.
Hi Gary, want to ask, how do I retrieve or add info between 2 different file numbers. I'm running a small business, so putting all the information in one file would be too large in memory. So I thought it could link to another file. do you have a tutorial about it? thank you..
Gary . . . great video's, many thanks . . . I am/was a PC user since early 90's . . . love my new Macbook Pro . . . question for you . . in PC land when I wanted to save a doc/etc I would select save as, browse files and then select the sub/sub file for example I wanted to put the doc in . . . it might look something like this . . . "Documents . . . Innovation . . . .Portfolio Management . . . . Product Type" and then save it to "Product Type" . . . likely I must be doing something wrong or missing something on my Mac as when I select 'Save As" it just give me the choice of "Documents" and a few other things but does not appear to allow me to find a sub file or a sub sub sub file . . . how can I select "Save As" with my MacBook and get to the file / sub files I want to put something in? Many thanks as I have been looking for the answer to this on Google but I don't seem to be finding anything to it
Cool video
For years, I never understood why I might ever want to “Make Alias” so in order to keep a file in two places I would “Duplicate” it ie copy it, the obvious disadvantage being that if I updated the original, the copy was not updated, and worse, I might not even remember that I’d ever made a copy that I ought to also update/replace! plus I was using up more hard drive storage space. Then I discovered “Make Alias” ! Bingo! Both problems solved!
I don't keep any files on my internal drive. The apps and the OS are all that's there. I've had too many problems with internal drives overheating and dying. So now I keep the internal simple. Given that, what is the downside to leaving files on the desktop? I tend to use the desktop as my to-do list or a work-in-progress folder selection. I like to see all the files in front of me, so that the names are clear and ready to remind me of urgency. If I file the folders away too quickly, they risk being forgotten. What are the downsides to letting folders and files accumulate on the desktop? Thank you!
Great video! Was wondering if you know an easy way to only transfer new files onto mac, instead of all files (which might duplicate). For example say i download 1000 jpegs from an sd card to a backup folder on mac or external drive, and then a month later i have 500 new pix on the same sd card- is there an easy way to only import the “new” 500 files without needing to manually check and sort out which files are new and which were already imported into the backup folder in the first round? Thanks so much for the help and awesome content!
Just sort them by date? That should do it. Or filename if this is from a camera with numbered files. Of course if this is a camera and you are using the Photos app for pictures, then the Photos app actually handles this exact situation for you.
Just watched your interview with Enacaus, you earned yourself a sub even tho I don't use macs.
I subbed cuz' of your personality
Why are you posing as PewDiePie? Are you trying to make Enacaus seem more legit by using a fake account with a famous youtuber's name?
I don’t make a folder unless/until there is enough files in that category. I use an assortment of tags too and mostly have everything saved to the drive and offbosrded to a passport
Excellent! Very helpful. I'm struggling right now (the perfectionist!). Still not sure how Music file works. Doesn't storing on hd take up space on computer? Wouldn't you rather have it in iCloud? What about back up?
Apple offers two ways to have your music in iCloud: Apple Music and iTunes Match. Yes, everything you store on your Mac will take up space, which is why it is important to get a Mac with enough space for what you need. For backup use Time Machine.
Thank s
How about a quick, step by step method for deleting or removing folders? It would help. Thanks.
This is great because my files on my old mbp are so hazard and I hate that somehow I linked them into iCloud . Won’t be doing that on my new machine since I’ll use an external ssd.
man, thank you a lot for doing what you do. could you explain how do you make picture in picture videos like that?
Look for Screen capture software like "Capto." If you want to make a professional How-To video, you'll need to ensure you have consistent lighting and background in your studio.
I use Screenflow -- pro screen capture and video production software.
Is there a way to get rid of duplicate documents and duplicate files? I have the nightmare of having saved similar docs and files (sometimes several times) and can’t tell if they’re identical, true duplicates, and can be trashed or which is most recent and should be saved. I don’t know where to start!
Hi Gary, if you happen to read this. How do we create "Smart Folder" that automatically contain all (in your example) the "tagged invoices" - do we have to do it manually or there is short cut? Thanks - new fan from Malaysia
Do it just as you describe. Search for the tag you want. Then save that search as a Smart Folder. Note that with tags you can also just look at the tags in the left sidebar of the Finder and select that tag. Then you get the same result without a Smart Folder.
I don't keep files on my desktop, but I do keep an alias to folders I use often.
One thing that bugs the crap out of me is that many apps decide they can put their utility folder/files in your Documents folder. So over time the apps utility folders are mingled with true documents. Is there any way to stop that? My solution has been to create a "-Docs" folder inside of the Documents folder and put that folder on the sidebar. I use the dash so that it sorts to the top in Documents. It works but it seems that it's an imposition. Seems to me there should be a system folder that is buried somewhere called "System Support" and all Mac app developers would use that by convention for their support folders and files.
Gary, I'm a composer and i need your help. On 2/12/21 i transferred my phone data to my mac laptop via smart switch. Long story short, when I finished I did an All My Files double save. Mistake! It pulled some of the data out of my desktop folders. I use digital performer software and numerous songs now have analog, mp3 and wave files data removed from them. All this data is now churned up in the All My Files location now. How do I get it back to the original folders? Thanks
Hi Gary,
Is there a reason that you don’t save your photos in the document folder? I would think you would want them backed up, but if I understood you correctly you mentioned it was why you don’t store them there? Did I miss something on that?
I save my photos to the best place: the Photos library. I don't have them as plain files at all. There's too much value in the Photos app not to use it for all my photos.
Hey Gary is there a way to organize all the content within a folder, be them individual files or subfolders with items themselves, to sort as name? When I press Command+J the sort option allows me to select sort by "name" but that only sorts the files within that folder, what my issue is some folders have subfolders which in turn also have items in them and its a pain to do each subfolder individually. So Im asking is there a command prompt or shortcut or terminal code so that I can sort Everything within a particular folder to "sort as name." Thank you for your help. Cheers
Every folder has its own sort setting. So if you encounter a folder that is not sorted as you like, then change it. But if you are in List View then you can open folders and they should be sorted the same way (open, not dive into) and the same in Column View.
Is there an advantage or reason you use txt files (for notes and podcast description information) instead of Pages files In your Business Macmost Podcasts folder?
No need for a larger Pages file for those. I just need bits of information like the title, description, keywords, links to files, etc. Why go with a full word processing document when a simple small text file will do?
I was tripping out looking at your home folder because my name is Gary too lol
hey man I wanna ask so basically to switch tab forward is ctrl + tab my question. how to change ctrl + tab into an easier shortcut keys
You can do that in System Preferences, Keyboard, Shortcuts. But I don't know how much easier you can get than Control+Tab.
thank you so much for this on file organization. I'll have t0see it again. Can you tell me how to slow your speech just because I live in the South. The rest of the world has a different cadence. Thanks again, roberta
Captions in TH-cam do you mean? Click on the CC button.
Moral of the story is to use a good amount of folders inside folders, and name all your folders and files appropriately.
a beautiful system of organizing files. How can I go back to the file I was watching?
Not sure what you mean.
I have used Mac for 15 years and just kept dumping the files from the old computers into the next model. Now I have a mess and a 80GB Documents folder. Your video gave me some good ideas. Can you refer to other videos that may help with files and syncing? I subscribed.
Syncing in what way? What are you trying to do?
I would like to see you do a file organizer for DJ's in the music category, I have downloads of music that don't always go to my music app and can't tell which one is in the music and which is not. Also how to keep sound effects and dj drops separate from my music app
Probably best for a DJ to do that tutorial as I don't know what organizational problems DJs face. But I would start with just well-named folders with well-named files. Maybe use Finder Tags to add info like if a file is in the Music app or not.
Interesting video 👍
Is every external hard disk icon in Mac shown in yellow?
Not sure what you mean. I don't see external hard disk icons as yellow.
Yes, all external hard disks (even SSD) have default yellow disk icon. USB flash drives show in white and disks that you assign for Time Machine have green colour. Your internal disk is always shown in metallic silver colour icon.
@@Dheeraj_Bh Thank you
I like your videos because you explain so well. I am a new MacBook Air m1 user and do not know how to move files from one folder to another, nor make sub folders. Also, I prefer to save everything in external hard drives,not iCloud. In addition I downloaded the parallel desktop to have access to Word but I don’t know when I save where these docs will be saved because this computer automatically saves into iCloud. I want it to save to you external hard drive, can you make video on these topics please ? Thank you in advance
You mainly move files around by dragging. th-cam.com/video/ld6gquvbb8A/w-d-xo.html To create a new folder, in the Finder, choose File, New Folder. Why use Parallels to run Word for Windows instead of just using Word for Mac?
@@macmost I do not know anything about Mac, so if I see xyz Video first on TH-cam it influences me. Usually I research many opinions before I make a decision, but because I am in a rush, I have to type my lesson plans and anything in Pages takes an eternity to find out a simple function, like the upside down exclamation point or how to change the font to lowercase. Due to time constraints I get desperate and find a solution that is doable and fast and I do not care about paying for it, I want to be able to type my lesson plans fast.
@@jessicajackson9164 All I'm suggesting is just use Word for Mac instead of Word for Windows inside of Windows inside of Parallels.
Hey Gary, Enacaus sent me here
I’m trying to use Smart Folder to find duplicate files
But I can’t seem to get the Document Container filter to function correctly
Very helpful video! I have created (on paper) an organization plan to use. But I've got a gazillion files that I need to quickly view and sort to those newly created folders. Any advice? (Would like to view a file and then delete, sort to file, etc).
There's no magic way to do that. Just do it in small 10-minute sessions and it will eventually get done.
@@macmost Is there a way to see a preview of a file by clicking on it?
@@sherryterry1 See th-cam.com/video/Y-SMfAvOKZM/w-d-xo.html
how do you choose which are going to the icloud folder and what not? i have the desktop in the cloud, so i access the folders in my mac, iphone, ipad. it's very convenient. but then i am storing too much data in the cloud? please explain...
You must have an iCloud storage plan that is larger than the files you need to store. Up your plan if you do. Otherwise, remove files and archive them to another location or external drive if you don't need those files anymore.
In MacOS there is the problem (as in Windows) of file paths becoming too long, which then create problems in copying files or moving them? thanks
There should be able problem copying files because of the length of the filename. At least not on the Mac or iOS.
Hi, thanks for your video’s !! Perhaps you cab help me, I have a corrupt folder (I guess) and I am not able to remove the files (no permissions). Is there any way to force delete files on macOS?
The solution depends on the exact problem. Have you simply tried to change the permissions of those files first?
@@macmost yes I have. Via finder does not seem possible…
@@ermo2004 Select the folder, Command+i, then change the permissions, then click the three-dots button and apply to the contents of the folder. If that doesn't work, then you should call Apple Support.
@@macmost Thanks!!
Have you done session on filling emails?
Something like this? th-cam.com/video/NwCkS2DBoXs/w-d-xo.html
@macmostvideo I have tough question for you. Let me first explain the situation. I have been using google drive to save my documents to. I decided to move the files off of google and for the time being same them on my mac. Once I finish setting up a NAS I will move them to there.
I used google takeout to get a copy of my documents. Well Google is making it way to hard to do this. Good old Google created 32 zip files. When I unzipped the file it create a folder \Documents\takeout-1\drive\documents\subfolders. For each file unzipped it has the file structure. I hate how google has done this. I have to drill down each and every subfolder in the \takeout-number\drive\document\subfolder\file. to move it to my document folder \ subfolder. Mac will complain when I drag \takeout-1\drive\documents\subfolders\ to another finder window, saying file already excites.
Is there a easier way to move files that skips the folders that are already in my document directory and just copy the files that are different?
example folder \Documents\takeout-1\drive\documents
esume\ to \Documents\takeout-1\drive\documents
esume\
Great channel Gary! Unrelated Q: what kind of case do you use for your MacBook? Thanks!
Nothing special. I get a cheap thin hardshell to protect from scratches. If it ever got damaged, I would just get a new one.
With years of documents and pictures...years of "everything" all over the place. I am about to embark on organizing my stuff. (No more desktop dumping or folders that say "go through and organize" 🤣- never works.
Besides documents, I have a lot of pictures from my card-crafting hobby. Your video has inspired me. Before I begin to organize and pull certain items from iCloud I have a question. Does it make sense or rather would it be a good idea for me to create a Folder in Documents that is Called CardCraft Documents? Thus everything connected to that hobby can be stored in just one place? I could set a new finder window to open that particular folder? My organizational skills need a lot of work/help. lol
Organize as you like -- do what makes sense to you. A CardCraft folder sounds good. Remember, you can always move things around later if you come up with a better idea or things change.
Thank you ! A CardCraft documents folder and its subfolders might help me save time in the future. ☺ @@macmost
Could you please tell me how do I organize the mac immediately get the new file from photoshop because the mac tends not to show it automatically? And I tried to organize settings date last opened, date added, date created, date modified
Show it where? You have to be looking in the folder where you saved it or all of the sorting you do won't bring it up.
Wait, how do u get your OS and document listing to look like that in the first place???? Mines small and grey and looks out dates
Are you using the latest version of macOS? Have you tried switching views in the Finder (Icon/List/Column/Gallery).
How do you know where the folders are saving things to? You mentioned photos are saved to your hard-drive, but documents are saved on icloud? where do you see that...
Not sure what you mean. It is up to you. When you save a file, look at where you are saving it.
This video seems to be about coming up with ways to organize by making a chronological file system with names and folders and that is great, however, it doesn't give the details as to where to relocate things and how to reorganize the mess that I accidentally created. I am new to using mac ios and I accidentally moved everything (all files) to my desktop. I fear everything may be on my desktop. I need help! I am not sure of the best route on how to fix this. To minimize the chaos on my desktop, I discovered the stacking ability which has helped temporarily, until I find a real solution. I have no idea how I did this, but my computer is now in chaos mode and majorly disorganized with a ton of duplicates throughout. How do I get rid of the duplicates created from downloads, documents, desktop, iCloud, and memory stick? Yes, I am computer illiterate with Mac and need to learn quickly how to undo this mess without losing my files. How do I reorganize this chaotic computer mess that's all on my desktop? Is there a built-in program that I can click to reorganize it for me and place everything where it is supposed to be? There are far too many files for me to do it manually. How do I get these files to be placed in the appropriate places? For example, get all of my photos placed on my local hard drive and all of my document files placed on my iCloud drive? Where are all these "download files " being automatically placed? Are they on my iMac or using all of my iCloud space? This is what started the entire confusion and mess from the beginning. I began seeing far too many duplicate files and I wanted to minimize it, but Mac is set up differently than Microsoft. Yes, I realize I have a huge learning curve in front of me, however, your guidance would greatly be appreciated!
Lots of questions there, probably too many to answer here in a TH-cam comment. As for cleaning up the mess, you just have to do it. Go through your files and see what you have, move things to folders, etc. There's no "easy button" that will do this for you as only you can decide where to put things.
I want to know how to make that folder, do I activate anything or I just can create extra folder on favorites on Finder? help im tired of having everything on my desktop and on iCloud :c
Go to where you want the folder created. For instance, iCloud Drive, Desktop, Documents, your Home folder, wherever you want it. Then in the Finder choose File, New Folder. Once you have created this folder, you can drag it to the Favorites section in the Finder window to add a shortcut to it.
@@macmost Thank you so much! I can finally have a better organization
sir in apartment we are 3 partners how is the best way to put entry by using numbers. please let me know
Sorry, I don't understand your question. Try asking again with more details, but use macmost.com/ask instead of as a comment here.