File management/ husbandry

[tim]

I was looking for a file on my pc today - a jpg file of a piece of my funiture and when the search was complete it showed the file existed in 5 different folders across two drives. I'm not so surprised by this since I often copy things over if I'm working on a particular project or want to only move one directory to another computer etc.

However, it has got me thinking about the duplications that must exist and the wasted space as a result. Is there software available (obviously for free) that allows me to quickly show a list of where duplicates exist without using the very slow search function with every candidate.

Thanks

Tim

 

[RogerS]

Tim

A quick Google for file duplcation gave this freebie

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1895,18 ... X2B2200331

 

[WellsWood]

Hi Tim

I use a program called comparator which is very good for comparing 2 specific locations ( in my case identical copies of my "work" folder on 2 networked machines) for duplicate files. It will search within sub-folders and gives you the option of copying/deleting newer/duplicate/missing files in either direction. Sounds like it might be just the thing.

You can download the latest version of ComparatorPro here, but it's trial period shareware then you have to buy. If you want cheap and cheerful I can email you a zipped copy of an older (freeware)version with no time limit - it's only about 500Kb uncompressed. PM me if interested.

Mark

 

[WellsWood]

p.s. That's a brilliant avatar!

 

[Roger]

Finding duplicates is fine - as long as you know what they are and what they do. If you're running XP, be VERY aware that duplicate files exist in several differing folders and are meant to be there. You could very easily nuke one thinking it's superfluous and find that your system won't start.

Unless you're critically short of space, then forget it. Buy another drive - they're cheap.

 

[SlimShavings]

Picasa is a free software download from Google that helps you:

* Locate and organize all the photos on your computer.
* Edit and add effects to your photos with a few simple clicks.
* Share your photos with others through email, prints, and on the web: it’s fast, easy and free.

Take your photos further with Picasa from Google.