Among the many new and improved features that Windows 7 boasts, Libraries are one of the most convenient improvements this time around. Although not a completely new idea, Libraries give the Windows 7 user the ability to access most file types from one location.
One specific use that I found for Libraries is when I need to store all of my pictures in one area. The problem is that I have multiple hard drives and the pictures are stored in multiple locations on those hard drives. You can also add shared folders from other PCs or LAN drives/home servers to your Windows 7 libraries. With Windows 7 Libraries, I can keep the picture files in their respective locations; I only need to point a Library folder to the multiple folder locations and double-clicking one Library folder gives me all of my pictures without moving a single file or folder around.
Windows 7 Desktop
The process of setting this up seems complicated at first, but Microsoft couldn’t have made it easier to manage multiple files in different locations. The default libraries are: Documents, Music, Pictures and Video, but the user has the ability to create their own custom libraries.
Create a New Library
To create a custom Windows 7 Library, you can right-click on the Libraries icon in the task pane and select New->Library.
Create a New Library
Add and Remove folder locations
To set-up the current default Windows 7 Libraries you will open the specific library that you would like to edit and click the Locations link at the top left-hand corner of the window. When the window opens, you will see the current locations that this particular library is pulling files and folders.
Add or Remove Folder Locations
To remove a location, select the folder that you would like to remove and click the Remove button. You can also add folder locations by clicking on the Add button.
Browse for Folder
Once the desired folder is added to the particular library, Windows will automatically update the library when a file is added to the target folder.
Change file types for the library
You can also optimize a Windows 7 library for specific file types. To achieve this:
- Simply right-click on the library icon and select Properties.
- In the drop-down under Optimize this library for, click the specific type of file and click OK.
Optimize Library
Libraries have been a huge time-saver for me because I can throw all of my different file types in their own Library and pin the that icon to the taskbar for easy access. What about you, any chance this quick setup could save you time from searching through files and folders on different hard drives?
