Best Way To Organize Files and Folders on a New Mac
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- Опубліковано 1 жов 2024
- In this video we look at the best way to organize your files and folders on a new Mac computer. I you need help with a new Mac or just need some direction on how to organize all your files on your Apple Mac computer then watch this video.
Whether you have a MacBook, iMac, Mac mini, or Mac Studio they all share the same OS (MacOS) and the same file and folder structure. In this video we go over the best practices for saving your files on a Mac computer to keep your Desktop and overall computer clean of rouge files. If you are interested in the best method for storing files on a Mac, watch this video.
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Thank you! This video was so straight forward and easy to understand. I've been a windows user all my life. I finally got a Mac and was so confused on how the file system worked
Thanks for the feedback appreciate it.
Same! I am a windows user and just got a MacBook Air. This video is very helpful!
@@part9952 Yeah, me too. It was so good and helpful. Everyone thinks that these things are too basic. But not for new users!
This is very basic BUT very important solid step to move forward!!! These kind of tutorials are the best ones!!! Thank you so much!!🙏🏼
Thanks for the feedback Olivia.
I wrote an entire book on an outdated MacAir that I purchased used. It was supposed to be clean, but my folders began to save in the previous owners documents - to which I had NO password. So I saved it all on the desktop. I can’t believe I did it. I just bought a new MacPro, so I’m trying to learn how to do it correctly.
Wow, that is crazy. Yes, always do the clean reinstall if possible. Good luck with the new Mac Pro.
Vivid windows user here searching for how to handle files on Mac for my classmate. Fantastic video, great explanations and how to think. You are also quite easy to listen to, clear and precise explanations. Thank you for this video.
Thanks for watching and for the feedback. Appreciate that.
It's so easy to get up and running on a mac, and quickly find yourself lost in too many files. This was so helpful for me. Thank you!
I appreciate the feedback and thank for watching the channel. I have over 550 Apple related videos so check out the channel.
I sooo needed this! Thank you! I recently lost all my files and photos when my SSD failed on my old Air laptop because they were on a very cluttered Desktop! I now have a new Air laptop and been wondering how best to organise everything so as not to repeat the same mistake. Be great if you could do more of these tutorials, Craig.🙏
Thanks for the feedback. I'll work in a few more tutorials soon but I like to keep my videos mixed so I keep myself motivated. I also love looking at the new tech. Thanks for watching.
OMG How brilliant. I do and have done everything you say here, and have a very unstructured MacBook Pro. I download lots of clipart from a company I subscribe yearly too. So have a very messy laptop. Well I know what I am doing at the weekend lol. Thank you so so much. You are a very good teacher 🙂
Thanks for the feedback and I'm glad it helped you out a little bit.
Wanted to say thanks again and you mention that this is a very basic simple video but keep it up we need basic and simple. I mean we need some foundational things because it’s building blocks. Do you know if that foundation is not right then the rest of the stuff not gonna be right.
Thanks again for the nice words and for the sub.
Oops. I have over 7000 items and 70gb in my Downloads folder. It's somewhat organized. I tend to move the "important" stuff over to Documents.
If it's organized that's great. Nothing set in stone but I find that system as the easiest way to keep track of things. In the end do what works for you. I have a few Macs that have files all over the place and a few very clean.
That is not really a good idea. I have an external drive labeled DOCs and FILEs and store everything there, it saves a lot of space from the internal drive.
WE are all different and do what works best for you for sure. My video was just one way.
My question is what happens if the hard drive fails? I keep documents in i cloud and back up everything to external hard drive . Everything is protected.
Well been watching your video's for some time now. Today the 2013 iMac I have now runs from a external SSD hard drive, can't believe I did it. Really works quite well. So thank you from Canada.
I'm glad that works good for you (external SSD) and thanks for the feedback and for watching.
Your voice and your timing an breathing bro fu..ing love your content!!! This video help
Me alot!🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉 thank you!
Thanks for watching the channel.
As a previous windows user I’ve taken the (huge) step and have a MacBook Air.
Your tutorial is so valuable. Thank you.
One major flaw that I’ve found frustrating - I have Microsoft 365 office. But didn’t know you can’t open publisher on a Mac. I was at the point of wanting to return my Mac. I use publisher a lot. So if you have any suggestions for a similar program I’d be grateful.
For now I’ve saved my old publisher documents as pdf or changed them to word. I’m trying to hold fast and keep the Mac.
Many thanks. Julie 🦋
Thanks and I'll see if I can think of anything but here is a list online - machow2.com/publisher-for-mac/ . Thanks for watching the video.
My downloads has 1000s of files. Will fix that. Problem now is the internal ssd is full at 1T. I have an external HDD 16T, but its not always connected to the Macbook Pro. Becoming an issue all around with space now. May be time to get a Mac Mini & a Synology NAS.
The Synology Nas are nice and work well. Yes, storage can be an issue on any Mac since it's so expensive. Thanks for watching.
Craig ! That man in your video by blindly not filing items on your computer must be me MINE ARE EVERYWHERE SO MUCH SO I CANNOT FIND THEM !! And 7+ thousand phots & 5 copies of every one ! Where do I start cheers BRIAN
Thanks for watching and the feedback. Appreciate it.
Organization is the key to a healthy sanity. Good points! Appreciate the video.
Thanks for watching Scott.
damn i didn't expect MacOS to be that smart, windows sistem is ok but compared to the efficiency of mac it can't even get close and that tip of option key is great thanks for it i certainly will try variations on it. cleaning and mentaining clean stuff is easy for me, hardest part is learning the sistem and secrets of it.
Thanks for watching and thanks for the comment. Appreciate it.
❓❔❓Is there a way to auto move documents? For example, say maybe once a week, can my Mac automatically move files from my computer to my external hard drive?🤔 Is it possible to schedule that action?
It might be but I have not worked on that yet. There is something now called shortcuts that can do a ton of stuff on the Mac and I did a video on that. But you might be able to do that via Shortcuts. I'll see if I get some time later to research.
This totally helps! Thank you!!
You got it thanks for watching.
To be honest, this is a great video. I have been trying to find a desktop saving location to save word document on iMac not in Onenote. The video is a straight forward and easy, not complicated, to the point. Good job.
Thanks for the nice words and the feedback. Appreciate that.
Clear, concise, easily understood and you have a very pleasant manner of presenting. Thank you for helping me. I'm happy!!
Thanks for watching the channel and the comment.
I have one question. Whenever I’m creating a folder on Desktop, it’s being uploaded to iCloud Drive. When I open documents or items in my mac and see the path location through *option* key, it’s showing iCloud Drive. What should I do?
discussions.apple.com/thread/7994056 - thanks and this should help you get started on this.
This video REALLY, REALLY helped me as I'm trying to learn more about my new iMac. Awesome! Thank you so much!
Thanks for the feedback on the video.
Thank you so much! I had never learned this before, though I've been a Mac user for many years. This was extremely helpful.
Thanks and I'm glad it helped you out. Appreciate the feedback for sure.
What do you know about iCloud? It sucked up all my documents off my desktop into the cloud. Got a new make then it dumped all my old junk I didn’t want any more onto my new mac… Oi Ve!
You can turn off iCloud if you don't want to use it but I don't have any videos on that. I would do a search online to see how it works and how to turn that one off.
What I love to do: make shortcuts in Finder to the various subdirectories. It makes it even more intuitive, for me at least, to find stuff. Like screenshots for instance, I write a lot of documentation and screenshots are important for me, in finder I hold the sub folder with the left mouse button and slide it to the left. Remember too: everything you save on the computer, if you use Time Machine, gets backed up. But.... these are incremental backups, meaning that, by default, these run every hour and it becomes a huge folder on your backup device. If you recover the full backup, or even try to find a file, you will be going through the same misery again. Best to set your backup at a time when the cleanup of files is done. My documents sync up to family iCloud, it is even more important to only ship files there and not fill op the 2Tb for instance.
Thanks for sharing and the feedback. I agree and there are a few good ways to do this for sure. I just think too many people let it go too long and then the clean up is impossible for them. Thanks again for watching.
Absolutely brilliant !! Thank you for making this a simple task- just moving over from PC to Mac - Nightmare !! This is just what I needed. I have subscribed. Thank you!!
Thanks for the feedback and sub.
Oh my gosh Craig, this was SOOO helpful! Thank you😊🌻
Thanks for the feedback.
I've been a Windows user since DOS and 3.1, but when I needed a laptop to travel with, the MacBook Pro was 30% lighter with to to three times the battery life, plus it seemed to be fast. A week later I'm enjoying the learning curve, but not loving the file system. I think it was a case of not seeing the wood for the trees, and after watching this short video it's become clear and easy to follow. I was disappointed that I couldn't park different windows, but Rectangle has fixed that. So thanks for the heads up. Now I'm wondering what else you have on your channel?
Yes, it takes a little time but after you use MacOS for a few months it really becomes quite easy and most people never go back to Windows.
This is OK but perhaps it would be worthwhile to inform your audience how iCloud drive impacts the Documents folder and its content. Personally I'd rather limit many documents' exposure and not host them in my Documents folder because my Documents folder is hosted on iCloud drive. Instead I create notable subfolders in my home folder to provide organization. This allows me to be extremely selective as to what is and isn't shared to all my devices through iCloud drive as a breach in one would expose all of my iCloud drive's content.
It's just a video to give people a few ideas.
Oh My God... It was such a useful and very well-explained video. Thank you so much. I can finally organize everything well on my laptop. Thanks again.
You got it.
That this even needs explaining is a testament to how shit mac organisation is compared to windows. It's completely intuitiv on windows.
I don't think so but it's people who are using Macs for the first time. Once I started using a Mac I never picked up a Win PC again.
Weird, the Function hold when clicking file in recent doesn't work on my mac. I have no way of knowing where files are. I have to just search for them - which makes organization difficult. I don't love a lot of macs functions.
Not sure why - maybe you are on a much older OS? Not sure.
Good tips. I too move downloads to another folder as soon as possible, sometimes the desktop folder if it's something I'm going to be working on immediately. Then I can work on the file and do a save as if I want to preserve the original.
Yes, if I work on something quickly I leave it on the desktop. I do have some older macs that have a ton of folders on the Desktop and it's too late for them but all new Macs I try and follow this system. Thanks Bryan.
Thank you so much. I was looking for ways to make my Mac faster and came across you video. Would you be able to make a video on how Icloud Drive works. I thought that once you upload your files, you can delete from your computer in order to have more memory space.
Thanks for watching. I'll see what I can do in the future.
What about downloaded music production tools such as wav sounds and one shots. I download sample packs, once I move them to the right place and they are in the download folder as well can I delete the download folder. And what about programs etc…. Can I delete them from download folders
In most cases you can delete the original download files for programs etc. and it won't delete the program if it was installed. There are rare cases this may not be true but overall I would just test it and then you will know.
at 6:30 what did you press to blue highlight all the items u wanted to put in landscapes and what did you press to put them under landscapes ? using 6:30 as an example I have another question : how would you create another sub folder called "landscapes wide angle lens " per say
I'm guessing the shift button to select multiple files.
Thank you. It was really helpful. Just got a new Mac, and had no idea how to organize things on it. Thanks again!
Your welcome, thank you.
Can I copy existing folders on a Windows PC and copy them via USB to a MacBook?
I mean you can use a hard drive formatted in ExFat and it can work on both Windows and Mac. But Macs may not be able to read some files that are Windows specific. But things like JPG and other files would work fine.
All this could’ve been said in couple minutes.
Ok but I am who I am so that's how I do the videos
Thank you, this was just what I needed to jumpstart my digital organization.
You are welcome.
Great video, Craig. Yes, my download folder is five times worse than you describe.
@@edatwell7281 funny.. good luck with everything.
Bro i new to mac ..I want to move my music folder from the desktop to the hearddrive..Please help
As you can imagine it's hard for me to respond to individual help needs but I try my best to create videos that help people. In this case I would just search for the music files and then copy them to an external SSD.
Use good file names and OCR everything. Spotlight will be your friend.
Yes, most don't start with good naming of files but that could be a key.
How do I set every folder to sort by name? I have to change it every single time
I would need to go back and research that questions as this is an older video. I'll see if I can get some time soon.
The fact that I have to search for this right after I bought my macbook, makes me wanna return it
@@Payton-Prescott I would not return it. I have Macs and PCs but us my Macs 98%of the time
Slow down please--talking like you are going to a fire, hard to learn much or follow.
I do talk fast
i absolutely HATE finder! i havent even watched your video but i hope it helps
It should help a little I hope.
Thanks for the tips. Why does my desktop folder show under iCloud and not onto where all the other folders are?
You must have added your desktop to iCloud so anything you store there goes to iCloud.
I found the File window too small. Helpful information, but hard to read.
Ok.
Well Done, thanks a lot!
Thanks for the feedback and for watching.
Hi, how do I create folders and make sure that they are done so anyone can access, download, see the folders
That's a whole other video. I would just do a search on that in Google and it will show you how to set that up. Thanks for watching the video.
omg thanks you its a game changer for me !
Thanks for the feedback on the video.
You ad lib too much so what you are trying to say is lost. Also speak more slowly. Also If something is not important why are you talking about it?
Many channels out there. Watch another one.
I had a thousand people who liked that video and it helped them. Just watch something else.
there is no best way its what you want for your self that works for you
Of course.
I watched the full video, and I still dont know how to make a new folder.
Well, you might be the first one.
Awesome fundamentals lesson. Thanks!
Thanks for watching the channel.
Can I delete all my recent items and not loose them in their actual location?
I think so but just delete a sample file and you will answer that question.
This way is almost impossible to keep up with.
1. I suggest that you set one folder let’s call it “All Downloads” where all ur downlods from any browser or any Apple device “ipad or iphone” this way anything you download will be in one folder .
2. Use tags or / and smart folder , watch macmost video on this subject
Thanks for the info. We are all different so it's good to hear other ways to do this also.
just received a MacBook Pro from my father and damn, never going back to windows. It's brutal how much Mac is way smoother and user friendly. Thanks for the video, was useful :)
@@dr.greenvil7679 welcome and thanks for watching
This is too dogmatic. The best way to organize your folders is the way you think and work. For some people, a folder for downloaded pictures is fine. For others, folders by project (or university course, or whatever) are better, with each project's downloaded pictures in that project's folder. For still others it might be a folder for each week's work, with that week's downloaded pictures among everything else - and with weeks more than two months in the past in another folder by month or quarter. You have to think about this before you create your first folder, or you'll be wasting a lot of time and probably re-doing a lot of work later on.
Dogmatic.... Funny. Everybody is different and this is just one way to do this. I have had very positive feedback and this gets people started by understanding where files go etc. All methods are welcome since the main goal is helping people understand the way the file system works. I just got a kick out of Dogmatic.
Thank you so much, that was so informative. Have used Apple iPhone, iPad and Watch for years, but not the IMac, and have just purchased one to run video editing software on, but first needed to learn about the Mac. That’s great.
Thanks for the feedback on this and good luck.
Thanks for that lovely piece of advice, Craig.
Also I would like to ask would it be all right if I start to organise my data right in the downloads folder? (having folders and subfolders in the downloads folder itself)
You can do that. It's not standard practice but that doesn't matter. As long as you follow that system from the start it's a great way to keep things organized. Everybody will do it a bit different.
this entire video is about the downloads folder and recent
Not true and it has a 99% positive rating. So it's helping people for sure.
Craig. Thank u SO much for this insight. You have truly opened the door for me. I have had no idea how to start with my ‘mess’. This weekend…. Nailed it! Your simple and visual tips clicked for me.
I’ve subscribed to your channel, and look forward to some more ‘beginner’ learnings. It really has been a revelation. Not all of us were born in the computer decade, and need this insight. Thanks.
Appreciate the feedback. I do a mix of stuff and check out all my previous videos on my channel as I did a ton of learning videos in the past. Thanks.
Hi Craig Could you do a video on how to download apps to a external hard drive. This mac mini is my first mac in 20 years, so I am coming from windows 11 and that I know how to do. Thank You for your time, the mac mini is a 2012 with a internal hard drive. I have no idea how to put stuff on the external at all.
Thanks for watching. I actually did a video on that a year or more ago. Search my channel and you should find it there.
I've been using Windows since I started using computers, and when I switched to Mac, this video really helped me learn how to organize my files on Mac. Thanks!
Thanks for the feedback on the video and good luck with the switch.
Thesis so helpful, adult ADHD and I need organized computer. thank you
Thanks for the comment and for watching.
At 6:01 you create a new folder, but you forgot to tell how to do it.
I would look up how to create new folders on Google as it's easy to do and you can right click and just pick new folder or use the menu bar.
I had to leave three comments... It was very informative. And you were not all over the place. You said what a new user needed to hear. Thanks.
I like comments - thanks.
Thank you so much, I found this video really helpful. I came from Windows so it is a learning curve!
Thanks for the feedback and for watching.
Great video and explanation
Thank you
Hi Craig, Great video. I really need to cleanup my M2. I have only had it for a short time and it's a mess already.
I have an external SSD and will try to make that my main bootable drive so its a good time to start off fresh and clean.
All the best
regards Peter.
Thanks Peter and good luck with everything.
what state are you from you have an interesting accent?
Illinois area
Your tips on how to organize screenshots were helpful. Thank you. 🙇🏻♀
Thanks for the feedback on that.
Hi, thank you for the video. This concept is tough and can be confusing for me; please don't assume it's easy for everyone.
Thanks for the feedback and for watching.
This information was VERY good for me. Used windows for 30 years in office setting, got Macs after I retired and love them. Yes my downloads folder was TOO big. This helps !!!
Thanks for watching
Awesome content; you always learn something new no matter your level of expertise.
Thanks for watching and the feedback. I appreciate it for sure.
@@craigneidel no doubt!!
this is exactly what I needed, thank you! I feel empowered to tackle my messy files now.
Thanks, hope it helps.
Thank you for being short, simple and made it easy. Very Helpful! I like your style!
Thanks for the feedback
Great Job Craig !!! I am semi retired from my litigation support work always using Windows. Now I am in music school as an old guy and have to learn Mac - YOU HELPED !!!
Thanks for the feedback and good luck with everything.
Hello I’m a new subscriber from Phoenix Arizona. Your videos are awesome. I have been looking for some plain simple advice like this forever. I’m currently working on a HOLE backup system for my MacBook Pro and my PC. Right now I’ve got stuff everywhere I’ve got external hard drives. I’ve got Time Machine I’ve got P cloud in iCloud so I’m trying to figure out how to pull all this together and have three succinct copies to on site by two separate media modes and one offsite or maybe even two offsite. In case my house burns down or something. If you have done any other videos on back up philosophy, I would love to know. I also just learned about a Synology Nas and I’m thinking about that too. Thank you.
Thanks Joe for the comments and nice words. I may do a video on that in the future but don't have anything yet on that topic. I like to just keep things easy and I back my data up to multiple external drives and keep them in 2 locations. I have a background in datacenters but also have seen that complexity like with RAID etc. can sometimes cause major issues with clients that make a mistake. Thanks again and I'll see what I can put together in the future on this topic.
Thanks so much for taking the time to make this video Craig. I've been a Mac user since 1989, but I never knew the option key would bring up "Save As" instead of just "Save". Empty the Downloads folder... That would be like having an empty Inbox in my email! lol But it's a great goal!
Thanks for the feedback on the video and for watching the channel. I appreciate it and good luck with everything.
I can’t find my documents folder ):
Open Finder. Then to the top menu and click on Finder ---- Settings --- Sidebar (top icon) and then check the documents folder so it shows up.
Thank you! I have a quiz this week and the Mac is new and slightly confusing coming from Windows. Truly a learning process.
Thanks for watching and good luck.
Very useful, I am a new Mac user and I was lost 😅
Thanks for the feedback.
very well explained thank you and it helps me alot of sorting of my files
Thanks for the feedback.
you are brilliant!
Funny thanks
Yes my mac and house both needs cleaning🤩 . Thank you so much
Thanks for watching.
student who just got their first mac, this video was super helpful, tysm!
Thanks for watching and leaving a comment on the video about organizing the files. Appreciate it.
That was such a help. I have just moved to a all person and i get a little lost at times. Thanks
Thanks for feedback
was basic but helpful for someone having no idea about macs
Thanks for watching.
He is very knowledgeable but he talks a lot faster than I can hear. I have to back up several times during his presentation to grasp the information.
Trying to slow it down but I don't use a script so it's hard. Working on it.
@@craigneidel No problem. I will keep returning as needed. Which will probably be frequent.
@@phillipdumesnil4871 thanks
Thanks Craig!
Thanks for watching
pretty good, how do u add a note pad into a folder, for making notes about something you are researching? Im new to mac, might switch from PC
I'm not sure what you are asking but I just use Notes - program built into MacOS for saving notes.
@craigneidel if you create a folder on the desktop for "fishing" for example. Then, inside the folder, I would like to have fishing photos and "notepad" for any fishing data I collect. I would hope this could happen. But I want the note pad to be only the fishing data I record, not other notes from other information. Do you follow. Just like how windows does.
@@miketorre16 yeah. I would do quick search on Google and compare to windows and some info should come up. I don't use that feature as I'm just using the notes app.
@craigneidel but on a Mac. Aren't you allowed to add a note pad in a folder? I have been doing some research. I went to best buy. But they have demo modes.
How about in general. When using the Notes. When you create a new note for "fishing" does it open all the other notes you created prior?
Basically, for Example, I'd like to open 20 notes or note pads. Each note for a specific topic. When I open each note, it's for that particular topic. I do not want to see the other 19 topics in that note. Thanks for responding though
Yes, you can tie notes together. I did a video on Notes so search my channel and I have a bunch of tips in there.
Great presentation- no fuss! No extra nonsense. Thank you!
Thanks for watching the channel. Appreciate that.
brooo saved my life
thanks
Thanks for the feedback.
I never thought I need to learn how to organize THE FILE
Not sure what you mean.
Thank you for this information, very useful 😊😊😊😊
Thank you for the feedback.
Thank you! I recently lost all my files and photos when my SSD failed on my old Air laptop because they were on a very cluttered Desktop! I now have a new Air laptop and been wondering how best to organise everything so as not to repeat the same mistake. Be great if you could do more of these tutorials, Craig.🙏
Thanks Deni.
picked up 3 useful tips - thank you for your work.
Thanks for the feedback.