Comments for What's the difference between AppData and Application Data folders? (And why have both?)

Comment from Mark J on 2011-10-21

2011-10-21T08:25:55Z

@Pat
Actually, I explained another kind of common files. The c:\program files\common are different. This is a folder for program components which are share amongst more than one program. These are files that are maintained by the system and the programs that install them. As the old saying goes there are no user serviceable parts inside. But if you do need to view them, they should be visible from any administrator account. You may have to set your Windows Explorer to view system and hidden files in order to see them.
If you are looking for lost photos you might try the advice in this article:
http://ask-leo.com/how_do_i_recover_my_lost_photos_on_my_hard_disk.html

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A comment on: What's the difference between AppData and Application Data folders? (And why have both?)

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Comment from pat o'loughlin on 2011-10-20

2011-10-21T04:46:05Z

Mark J, it was very kind of you to try to help me. I have vista and am the only user but I also have to be the administrator, (Apparently!) Does this mean that the common files (C:\Prog Files\Common Files) viewable depend upon whether I log on as Pat or Pat Administrator? Am I being thick or possibly trying too hard to understand? I really do appreciate you bothering to answer my query. Thank you again

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A comment on: What's the difference between AppData and Application Data folders? (And why have both?)

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Comment from Mark J on 2011-10-18

2011-10-18T07:34:21Z

@Pat
Common or shared files are files stored in a folder which is shared among all users of that computer. In Windows 7, it is the c:\Users\Public\Documents\ folder (or something similar in other versions of Windows). When there are more than one user registered on the computer, each user can only see what is in their Documents folder plus the contents of that common or folder.

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A comment on: What's the difference between AppData and Application Data folders? (And why have both?)

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Comment from pat o'loughlin on 2011-10-17

2011-10-17T21:23:51Z

Reading your article made an old lady very happy. I lost all my photos of a dream holiday for which I have worked 42 years simply because I thought everything was duplicated. Now if you could explain to me what common files are, perhaps I can make some progress on this new-fangled machine. Thank you for your 'reasonably' simply explanation. I am a learner and a technophobe but am trying very hard to understand, rather than just USING my computer. Thank you so much, young man. Regards Pat

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A comment on: What's the difference between AppData and Application Data folders? (And why have both?)

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Comment from James on 2010-01-14

2010-01-14T16:50:14Z

Is not one (or both?) of these a junction point? See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Junction_point. I don't know much about them, except that they have a lot to answer for.

Yes, I believe one or the other is implemented as a Junction or something similar to a Junction

15-Jan-2010

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A comment on: What's the difference between AppData and Application Data folders? (And why have both?)

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Comment from Mark on 2010-01-12

2010-01-13T03:37:22Z

One free tool I probably use as often as email is Everything - quick and easy way to find your files on any of your disks (and I have almost 8 TB on my desktop). It's super fast and you only have to remember the file name, or part of it. I uninstalled Google desktop search and turned off the Microsoft thingy after I experimented with Everything. Download at http://www.voidtools.com/

[[Sorry if this is a duplicate comment. I'm repeating it because I received a message that either I have Javascript disabled or am using some technique that comment spammers use. I got an XSS warning from noscript (I use Firefox), but after looking at the console, I saw that was because I disallowed pugetsoundsoftware.com. BTW - I get dozens of messages like Warning: The 'charCode' property of a keydown event should not be used. The value is meaningless.; also repeated with keyup event. There are a few other warnings too. :)]]

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A comment on: What's the difference between AppData and Application Data folders? (And why have both?)

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Comment from Me on 2010-01-12

2010-01-12T20:14:44Z

Yes, I think that's right about why the linkage is there, I have some older programs which try to put the files in Document and Settings. Sometimes it gets confusing because certain programs can see these links and it gets messy.

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A comment on: What's the difference between AppData and Application Data folders? (And why have both?)

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Comment from Sarahbeth on 2010-01-12

2010-01-12T18:28:52Z

Thanks for the answer because it clears up for me the "why" Microsoft has made changes and especially why the old XP addresses for files has drastically changed and I have had trouble learning the "system" in locating files and folders in windows7. Now I can forget about trying to locate My Documents and such in the new os and can concentrate on learning how to navigate using the new look.

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A comment on: What's the difference between AppData and Application Data folders? (And why have both?)

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Comment from Robert Stalker on 2010-01-12

2010-01-12T18:09:38Z

Another question on Application Data folders, is when I try to open file, met with Access Denied". The file in question is in Windows 7 Backup.

That's correct - you should access it via the AppData folder instead.

14-Jan-2010

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A comment on: What's the difference between AppData and Application Data folders? (And why have both?)

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Comment from Daffey on 2010-01-12

2010-01-12T16:55:04Z

Probably a good answer- technically, but a bit too technical for the average reader. If one uses the 'run command prompt' he/she is probably aware of the answer.(not to be critical)-Love Leo!

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A comment on: What's the difference between AppData and Application Data folders? (And why have both?)

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Comment from Mark Jacobs on 2010-01-11

2010-01-11T08:41:55Z

could the removal of the spaces have soething to do with Unix compatibility. I had to remove the spaces from my filenames when I migrated my web site to a Linux server so I imagine there would be a problem with spaces on a mixed Unix/Windows network.

It's possible, but Unix/Linux file systems support spaces as well.

12-Jan-2010

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A comment on: What's the difference between AppData and Application Data folders? (And why have both?)

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