15 Facts About Computer file

Computer file is a computer resource for recording data in a computer storage device, primarily identified by its file name.

Such a 'Computer file' now exists in a 'memory' tube developed at RCA Laboratories.

In 1952, "Computer file" denoted, among other things, information stored on punched cards.

The format of a Computer file is defined by its content since a Computer file is solely a container for data.

At any instant in time, a Computer file has a specific size, normally expressed as a number of bytes, that indicates how much storage is occupied by the Computer file.

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Information in a computer file can consist of smaller packets of information that are individually different but share some common traits.

For example, a payroll file might contain information concerning all the employees in a company and their payroll details; each record in the payroll file concerns just one employee, and all the records have the common trait of being related to payroll—this is very similar to placing all payroll information into a specific filing cabinet in an office that does not have a computer.

In others, the Computer file is anonymous, and is pointed to by links that have names.

In environments in which a file is named, a file's name and the path to the file's directory must uniquely identify it among all other files in the computer system—no two files can have the same name and path.

Where a Computer file is anonymous, named references to it will exist within a namespace.

For example, in the illustration shown in this article, the path uniquely identifies a Computer file called in a folder called, which in turn is contained in a folder called.

The folder and Computer file names are separated by slashes in this example; the topmost or root folder has no name, and so the path begins with a slash.

On Windows computers, extensions consist of a dot at the end of a file name, followed by a few letters to identify the type of file.

Any Computer file that has any useful purpose must have some physical manifestation.

Grandfather-father-son backup method automatically makes three back-ups; the grandfather Computer file is the oldest copy of the Computer file and the son is the current copy.