Solved Confused Between The Difference - "My Documents" & "Documents"-Win7?

[montecarlo1987]

Confused Between The Difference - "My Documents" & "Documents"-Win7?

Hello. I have been very curious for a while now and somewhat confused. This is regarding Windows 7, so if you are not using Windows 7 you may not know what I am talking about.

Okay, I see in Windows 7 you have a folder called "Documents" in your start menu and when you open it, you have the "Documents library". Inside there you have "2 locations" called "My Documents" and "Public Documents". When you go to: C:\Users\<username> you will see "My Documents". Some people cannot get past this part asking what is the difference between "Documents" and "My Documents" and how come I cannot see a folder called "Documents" on my system? But I need to know if I am right?

Please follow me here -- this is an assumption. I think, but I may be wrong, that: "Documents" is a *virtual* folder which actually is the same thing as the *virtual* "Documents library" (folder) that contains both two *real* folders called "My Documents" and "Public Documents". So if you were to look up on your system for a "Documents" folder, it does not exist. Only the "My Documents" and "Public Documents" are *real*. Basically substitute the "My" for your <username> and leave "public" as "public". Am I correct to say that?

However, I have another view and this is VERY CONFUSING and CONTRADICTORY in what I just said. ...that "My Documents" really is the "Documents" folder (for example: c:\Users\John\Documents) directory. If you notice in the address bar, when you are viewing "My Documents", and click in there, to see the full path, it changes to the actual folder path. The current Logged On user will always see their "Documents" Folder as "My Documents" based on folder personalization handled by the desktop.ini folder inside of it. This is just a thought.

So what is right? Is the "Documents" folder REALLY a *REAL* or NOT, especially when my last paragraph above is applied???

If someone here would explain the rationale here and what is going on here???

Please reply.

Thank you!

 

[Thorsen]

It is the same path. The folder view shows My Documents, but the actual physical location is c:/Users/<Name>/Documents

As for the other location. Libraries is just a way of organizing different folders into one view window. any other location that you want to store documents in, you can right click on the folder and go to "Include in Library" and select Documents and when you will then see those files listed in the Library>Documents

so the folders in the library are:
My Docs
Public Docs

Edit: also for clarification the Public Documents is the same way. This folder is for any documents you want anyone on your network (if you have a network set up) to see. It is named Public Documents but is located as C:\Users\Public\Documents

 

[montecarlo1987]

It is the same path. The folder view shows My Documents, but the actual physical location is c:/Users/<Name>/Documents

So to get this finally stragiht... ..."Documents" IS INEED A *REAL* FOLDER AND ***NEVER*** A *VIRTUAL* FOLDER then?????

Please reply.

The more I read about it, the more I get confused.

Thank you!!!

 

[Thorsen]

C:\Users\<Name>\Documents

This is the real non virtual folder.

The other descriptor "My Documents" is a method of making it easy for the User to navigate to and organize their documents

The same goes for My Music, My Pictures, My Videos

Each of them have the My in front, but only for appearances sake

 

[Thorsen]

lol no worries. They do this to confuse people I think

 

[seavixen32]

Good information on Windows 7's Libraries here:

Organizing with Windows 7 Libraries

Windows 7 uses virtual folders and symbolic links called junction points to assist legacy software that, for example, expects to find a folder called My Documents.

However, the default location in Windows 7 is C:/Users/User Name/Documents so a junction point is used to to tell the software written for say, Windows XP, you won't find a My Documents folder, but if you use this junction it will show you where Documents is in Windows 7.

 

[montecarlo1987]

@ Thorsen:

Hello again. Therefore from what I can gather... ..."Documents", "My Documents" and "Public Documents" are *ALL* *REAL* places. So the determiner of how or what we see written is, if it is:

1. the folder view.
-OR-
2. the physical location.

It is the folder view *ONLY* where we see "My Documents" and "Public Documents", BUT *NEVER* JUST "Documents"????

Is this ALL correct??????

Please reply.

Thank you again!!!

 

[Thorsen]

lol you are confusing me now....

if you go to My documents it looks like this:

 

[Thorsen]

If you click on the > marks, you will see this:

 

[Thorsen]

Here is a better way of describing it. why reinvent the wheel when wiki is your friend.

NTFS junction point - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[logicearth]

Almost every folder that has a "My ***" name to it has a desktop.ini file within it, this file is normally hidden. It is what is giving the folder it "My" prefix. It is part of Windows Localization. See below, an example desktop.ini file.

[.ShellClassInfo]
LocalizedResourceName=@%SystemRoot%\system32\shell32.dll,-21813

Or

[.ShellClassInfo]
LocalizedResourceName=CustomName

Removing "LocalizedResourceName" makes Explorer use the folder name as is.

 

[sgage]

Open a cmd window in /users/(your account) and type 'dir'. You will see the naked folders in all their glory.

 

[Thorsen]

Open a cmd window in /users/(your account) and type 'dir'. You will see the naked folders in all their glory.

Lol yes very nice sgage

 

[kenC]

<< The other descriptor "My Documents" is a method of making it easy for the User to navigate to and organize their documents

The same goes for My Music, My Pictures, My Videos

Each of them have the My in front, but only for appearances sake>>

Actually, the 'My' prefix serves another purpose - it groups the Pictures,Documents,Videos and Music folders together and easy to spot in a long list of folders. Without the 'My' they'd be separated.
I found this out when I created duplicate folders on my D drive and dropped the 'My'

 

[montecarlo1987]

@ Thorsen:

Hello again! Thanks for continued help and your links!

Okay, let me throw this one at you... ...and you may ACTAULLY AGREE WITH ME...

ONLY when I realize by keeping it ONLY WITH "Documents", "My Documents", and "Public Documents" folders now, things start to click in my mind and you conceptually rationalize this:

JUST MAYBE, because we CANNOT SEE THE PHYSICAL "Documents" folder... ...AND it is in lieu of both "My Documents" and "Public Documents" ACTUAL folders; "Documents" IS ACTUALLY the "Documents Library" which we know "Libraries" IS A VIRTUAL PLACE. Therefore, "Documents" (A CATCH ALL FOR "My Documents" and "Public Documents") IS THE SAME THING AS the "Documents Library" and IS A VIRTUAL PLACE. If I look at my folder views of "My Documents" and "Public Documents" each folder contains 22 and 8 items prospectively, and in total my "Documents Library" should have 30 SINCE IT IS COMBINED and IT DOES! ..and when I perform the so-called conversion with the "My Documents" in the address bar to "Documents" (and also "Public Documents" as "Documents" too) using the technique you have shown above, they BOTH are calling themselves "Documents"), "Documents" IS INDEED the SAME PLACE AS THE VIRTUAL "Documents Library" -- BOTH VIRTUAL AND NOT REAL PHYSICAL PLACES! Therefore (logically, by the nature of the evidence) "Documents" *IS A VIRTUAL PLACE*, AND *NOT* A REAL PLACE! That would also mean this I have now just realized:

When you see in an address bar with C:\...\...\... ( the full directory name) of what have you, it can be BOTH A REAL and NOW A VIRTUAL PLACE, even though right along we have always accepted and considered it as a matter of convention (at least I have and I am sure many others have too) as a REAL place on your system. Now, with Windows 7, that does NOT hold true anyone that that the full directory name given will ALWAYS MEAN it is a REAL place.
Just a "logical and rational" thought???

Please reply if you wish.

Thanks!!!

 

[Britton30]

Libraries actually contain nothing at all, they are a "shortcut" to various real folders. when a Library is opened, you may see the "My" prefix, as said this is for legacy operations which are expecting to find, say, My Pictures.

In an explorer window, you should see Libraries in the left pane near the top, expand them and you'll see what that Library junction point is pointing too. Go down the tree on the left farther to Computer, whatever your install is called, Users. Expand users and you find the folders "contained" in the Libraries.

That said, I find no use for Libraries myself and was confusing when I first got Win 7. What I did was to include only one location in each, eg, Documents has only 1 location, Documents. When I click documents from the start menu, voilà! The Documents folder opens up, nothing else.

 

[vaioseven]

Here is a better way of describing it. why reinvent the wheel when wiki is your friend.

NTFS junction point - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

To Thorsen

Thank you so very much for your patience, valuable explanations, and links. This thread has been immense help to me.

After years of running my ThinkPads, in a very stable, fast, reliable XP Pro powered environment, I skipped Vista, but am very determined to run and enjoy Windows 7. Yet that said, old habits die hard especially with a highly optimized trouble free XP setup which is mission critical for my work.

Then add to the mix the fact that I work in a cross platform environment, with about half of my time spent running OS X 10.6.x on my MacBook Pro, and it's obvious why anything that saves me time as I ramp up my knowledge of Win 7 is quite appreciated.

Thankfully, I came across this thread which has _finally_ made it possible for me to say adieu to XP and fully embrace Windows 7.

Finally it get's even better, since I am a huge Windows advocate and use it for all my personal computing.

Your exemplary help has been priceless, you have made my day!

Cheers...

 

[Thorsen]

Well, thank you Vaioseven. I appreciate the compliments and I am ecstatic that I can be of such help.

 

[Mitsubishiman]

The real purpose of libraries is intended for those that are generally incapable of or simply do not want to organize their files, so windows does it logically by sorting files by extensions.

Those of use that are used to and will continue to organize every single file exactly as they feel appropriate find libraries incredibly annoying and of zero value.

 

[drgerry]

I know this is old, but I'm still sooo confused!! That's one reason I did away with "Libraries", (MicroSoft idiots).

When in Windows Explorer, I have 3 places for "My Documents":
Desktop\Admin\My Documents
C:\Documents and Settings\Admin\My Documents
C:\Users\Admin\My Documents

the one under Documents and Settings does NOT contain all of my stuff, only a few files

I deleted Documents and Settings. I think the Desktop location is only a shortcut, maybe?