Question about Windows Explorer

[Jethro]

I may be wrong, but when I look at Windows Explorer, it seems to me
that folders appear repetitively and redundantly. For example, in my
desktop display I have several folders. For example, 'Internet' and
'Games'. In Windows Explorer, those two folders are shown:

Desktop\Internet and Desktop\Games

and

Desktop\My Computer\C:\Documents and Settings\me as
user\Desktop\Internet and Desktop\My Computer\C:\Documents and
Settings\me as user\Desktop\Games.

Why is that? To me, it seems confusing and unnecessarily
complicating.
Am I missing something?

Some educate me?

Jethro

 

[DanS]

I may be wrong, but when I look at Windows Explorer, it seems to me
that folders appear repetitively and redundantly. For example, in my
desktop display I have several folders. For example, 'Internet' and
'Games'. In Windows Explorer, those two folders are shown:

Desktop\Internet and Desktop\Games

and

Desktop\My Computer\C:\Documents and Settings\me as
user\Desktop\Internet and Desktop\My Computer\C:\Documents and
Settings\me as user\Desktop\Games.

Why is that? To me, it seems confusing and unnecessarily
complicating.
Am I missing something?

Some educate me?

Jethro

Yes you are missing something.

The Desktop & 'My Computer' are 'Shell Namespace Folders', they are not
real folders. They show either another single or combination of folders,
like a shortcut, but not the same thing.

In Document & Settings\%UserName%\Desktop is the actual folder that
stores the Desktop items for your %UserName%. There's also a Documents &
Settings\All Users\Desktop folder as well. When you log onto your PC, the
Desktop shown is a combination of the items for your D & S\%UserName%
directory & from the D & S\All Users\Desktop folder.

The 'Start Menu' is built from the D&S\%UserName%\Start Menu & the D&S
\All Users\Start Menu directories also.

This was MS's way of designing an OS for a PC that is meant to be used by
more than one person with each person being able to customize 'their'
Desktop.

Personally, I think it's a somewhat convoluted implementation, but if I
had to design how the multi-user environment was to work, who's to say
the best I could come up with wouldn't be just as lame.

My biggest beef is the requirement to have a directory on the root of C
named 'Documents & Settings'. I do not want it there. (I wonder if that
can be moved like the 'My Docs' pointer can ? Probably not.)

Regards,

DanS

 

[Jethro]

Yes you are missing something.

The Desktop & 'My Computer' are 'Shell Namespace Folders', they are not
real folders. They show either another single or combination of folders,
like a shortcut, but not the same thing.

In Document & Settings\%UserName%\Desktop is the actual folder that
stores the Desktop items for your %UserName%. There's also a Documents &
Settings\All Users\Desktop folder as well. When you log onto your PC, the
Desktop shown is a combination of the items for your D & S\%UserName%
directory & from the D & S\All Users\Desktop folder.

The 'Start Menu' is built from the D&S\%UserName%\Start Menu & the D&S
\All Users\Start Menu directories also.

This was MS's way of designing an OS for a PC that is meant to be used by
more than one person with each person being able to customize 'their'
Desktop.

Personally, I think it's a somewhat convoluted implementation, but if I
had to design how the multi-user environment was to work, who's to say
the best I could come up with wouldn't be just as lame.

My biggest beef is the requirement to have a directory on the root of C
named 'Documents & Settings'. I do not want it there. (I wonder if that
can be moved like the 'My Docs' pointer can ? Probably not.)

Regards,

DanS

Hiya Dan

Thanks for reply - it took some time I know.

Tell me briefly please -

In Windows Explorer I have

Desktop
My Documents
Corel User Files
My Pictures
(etc)

and

Desktop
My Computer
Boot Drive (C
Documents and Settings
ME
Desktop
My Documents
Corel User Files
My Pictures
(etc)
(plus all my personal desktop items)

The folders Corel User Files and My Pictures contain identical files,
I think.

Why two folders? What is the purpose of two My Documents, besides
the fact that only the second has my personal desktop items?

All this probably betrays my stupidity. Sorry.

Thanks again

Jethro

 

[DanS]

Hiya Dan

Thanks for reply - it took some time I know.

Tell me briefly please -

In Windows Explorer I have

Desktop
My Documents
Corel User Files
My Pictures
(etc)

and

Desktop
My Computer
Boot Drive (C
Documents and Settings
ME
Desktop
My Documents
Corel User Files
My Pictures
(etc)
(plus all my personal desktop items)

The folders Corel User Files and My Pictures contain identical files,
I think.

Why two folders? What is the purpose of two My Documents, besides
the fact that only the second has my personal desktop items?

All this probably betrays my stupidity. Sorry.

Thanks again

Jethro

It's not stored in 2 places. The 'My Documents' you see on the desktop is
just a pointer to the folder under c:\Documents and Settings\ME\My
Documents.

 

[Jethro]

It's not stored in 2 places. The 'My Documents' you see on the desktop is
just a pointer to the folder under c:\Documents and Settings\ME\My
Documents.

I said it wrong. So the pointer is stored in two places with same
pointers under it. Same question.

Thanks

Jethro