NWE Help: File Manager: Names

It's a good idea to follow a few simple rules when naming files:

Names can be any length, but should not contain spaces or tabs.
Names can contain dashes ( - - - ) and underscores ( _ _ _ ), but other special characters should be avoided.
Your file name should end with an extension. This helps NWE computers identify the file. We have a list of common filetypes handy.
Names should be specific. You can make your names long, so don't be afraid to make them descriptive.

Names can be upper and lower case, but all lower case is strongly preferred. The computers are case sensitive. If you name a file "Happy.html" and try to load the file "happy.html" the system won't find it. Upper and lower case letters are not interchangable in file names.

Let's look at some document names and whether they are good ones.

Document1: Not a good choice for two reasons -- it's not descriptive, and it doesn't end with an identifying extension.
essay.html: Good name. No blanks, no special characters, ends with an extension and is all lower case.
good day.gif: Not a good name. It does have an extension identifying it, but it also contains a space.
Big_Gator_Win.jpeg: Okay. This name contains allowable special characters (_) and uses upper and lower case. This name will work. But you'll need to make sure to use upper case when looking for the file.
another-assignment-about-metaphor.html: Okay. All lower case, allowable special character (-), but a bit long, don't you think?

Naming folders

When you are naming folders, you should follow all the guidelines above, except that folders do not need to have extensions.

If you follow these guidelines, you'll have no problems using your files at the NWE.