Creating and naming files in Intro to Computing - Practice Exercises

Challenge - 5 Problems

🧠 Conceptual

intermediate

Why is it important to avoid special characters in file names?

Consider you want to save a file on your computer. Why should you avoid using special characters like \ / : * ? " < > | in the file name?

A Because special characters can cause errors or prevent the file from being saved properly.

B Because special characters make the file open faster.

C Because special characters make the file name longer and harder to read.

D Because special characters automatically encrypt the file.

💡 Hint

Think about what happens if the computer does not recognize a character in the file name.

Special characters like \ / : * ? " < > | are reserved by the operating system and can cause errors if used in file names. Avoiding them ensures files save and open correctly.

❓ trace

intermediate

What is the correct file name after these steps?

You create a file named Report 2023. Then you rename it by adding the extension .txt. What is the full file name now?

A Report.txt 2023

B Report 2023.txt

C Report 2023txt

D Report_2023.txt

💡 Hint

Remember that the extension comes after the last dot in the file name.

The extension .txt is added at the end of the file name after a dot, so the full name becomes Report 2023.txt.

❓ identification

advanced

Which file name is invalid on Windows?

Identify the file name that is NOT allowed on a Windows computer.

A Holiday_Photos.jpg

B My_Document.docx

C Budget:2023.xlsx

D Notes_2023.txt

💡 Hint

Windows does not allow certain special characters in file names.

The colon : is not allowed in Windows file names, so Budget:2023.xlsx is invalid.

❓ Comparison

advanced

Compare these two file names and identify which is better practice

Which file name follows better naming practices for easy understanding and compatibility?

A Project-Plan_v2.0.doc

B Project Plan v2.0.doc

C ProjectPlanv2.0.doc

D Project@Plan#v2.0.doc

💡 Hint

Think about spaces, special characters, and readability.

Using hyphens and underscores instead of spaces or special characters improves readability and avoids errors in some systems. Option A uses a hyphen and underscore correctly.

🚀 Application

expert

How many files can be created with these naming rules?

You want to create files named File1.txt to File100.txt. However, your system does not allow file names longer than 8 characters (excluding extension). How many files can you create with this naming rule?

A 9 files

B 90 files

C 100 files

D 99 files

💡 Hint

Count the characters in the file name excluding the extension and consider the limit.

File names like File1 to File9 have 5 characters, File10 to File99 have 6 characters, and File100 has 7 characters. All are 8 characters or fewer, so 99 files can be created because 'File100' has 7 characters which is within the limit, but the question states excluding extension, so 'File100' is 7 characters which is allowed. However, the original question states the limit is 8 characters excluding extension, so 'File100' (7 characters) is allowed. Therefore, 100 files can be created. The correct answer should be 100 files.