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Naming Conventions: Good for Faculty and Students Alike

August 18, 2011, 4:11 pm

By Jason B. Jones

Desk

Naming conventions–the idea that related files are named in consistent ways–are clever time-savers, because they help ensure that the file name remains meaningful to you across time and through changes in context. Last year, I wrote that “every minute you spend teaching naming conventions at the start of the semester buys you up to ten minutes per student over the course of the semester.”

The difference between grading forty files named “paper1.doc” and those same forty files named “StudentName Course PaperTopic.rtf” really adds up over the course of the semester. (Of course, you have to be very specific in your instructions, else you will literally get files named “StudentName Course PaperTopic.rtf,” quotation marks and all!)

I was reminded of this–and of faculty members’ occasional penchant for complaining when students do things we ourselves do–this week when reading Luke Turcotte’s clever explanation at HackCollege of how to “Use Hazel to Organize Your Class Documents.” Hazel is a Mac-based preference pane (for a Windows equivalent, see Belvedere) that lets you set up all kinds of rules for handling files. (And, yes, this is a belated answer to George’s question, “How Do You Unclutter Your Computer?”)

Setting up rules to handle files automatically really is a great idea, so I was eager to see how Luke applied this to his college experience. And it turns out there is a pain point in his otherwise foolproof plan–us:

After installing Hazel.prefPane, take a look at your Downloads folder. If you’re lucky, each one of your Professors uses a unique naming scheme when distributing class documents. In Hazel, after adding your Downloads folder to the left sidebar, create a new rule for the class you wish to auto-sort. You’ll need to configure the rule so that only the files associated with that particular class will match the rule.

I would like to think that’s true, but it probably isn’t. I usually remember to name my syllabuses things like “Fall 2011 ENG 458 Dickens.rtf,” but many handouts emerge at the last minute get more general names. In short, they’re not Hazel-friendly.

Here’s a natural opportunity for faculty and students to find common cause in the classroom! We’ll give them class documents with a unique naming scheme, and they will submit online assignments with one as well. It’s a simple strategy, but one that can save everyone a great deal of time and aggravation.

Do you have a handy tip for teaching naming conventions? Let us know in comments!

Photo by Flickr user samcrockett / Creative Commons licensed

This entry was posted in Productivity, Teaching and tagged , . Bookmark the permalink.

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  • http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1406599701 Danny Guenther

    I might also add that in addition to naming conventions, file format conventions are nice. In a class I was taking that was about presentation and design for digital assets, we often were submitting things to each other and sharing them in class. People had Macs and Pcs and whatnot, and for about two weeks it was a hassle sharing everything and not having the right program. Then we just spontaneously decided, ok, everything gets turned in as a PDF! Simplified everything.

  • garay

    Over the years, directing Teaching and Learning Technology at our campus, and co-teaching a class or two every semester, I have come up with a file naming convention that essentially eradicates potential problems and one that works everywhere.

    These days, it is not uncommon for instructors and students to use a multitude of tools and systems, most with a varying degree of flexibility and idiosyncrasies when it comes to supporting file names. often, a per or document uploaded to a blog or discussion board, ends us somewhere else (besides the instructor’s computer or iPad).

    I think, it is important to standardize and keep to a single set of recommendations. Following are mine, and those that we evangelize about at UIC:

    1) always include the correct filename extensign, e.g. week4.lecture2.handout.pdf (where .pdf is essential).

    2) avoid naming files using blanks (space characters), quotation marks or any special characters. Use only alphanumeric characters, the period, the underscore and the hypen. (again: no blanks)

    3) follow the same naming conventions in 2) when naming folders and subdirectories.

    4) instructors should follow strict and consistent naming conventions. Note that increasingly, educational materials are consumed on mobile devices, not just iPads and Android tablets, but on a lot of smartphones and Internet-enabled cell phones (with tiny screens) :: make sure your filenames list the most distinctive attributes of the content first, e.g. “week1.lecture1…” instead of having filenames starting with “classname.classtitle…” or “multimedia.podcast…” which produces unnecessary scrolling on smartphones and tiny screens.

    5) teachers should instruct students to follow simple naming conventions for their individual and group assignments (based on 2) and 3) above), noting also that links and URLs are generally case-sensitive. Domain names and email addresses are not case-sensitive, but the stuff after .edu/ or after .com/ is.

  • markejohnson

    I teach photojournalism and multimedia courses and everything comes in as an electronic file (photo, video, folder with web components), so I have to teach a digital asset management lesson. The format that has worked for me since the mid-90s starts with a six digit date code, followed by three initials, then the assignment name and then the file extension:

    yymmdd_mej_portrait.jpg

    We use the underscores to separate out sections for legibility (and because periods will confuse an occasional server, so they’re reserved for denoting the file extension). The yymmdd format keeps everything in order and the initials let me search for a missing file quickly. With three course sections a semester, and each student turning in 50-75 files, I can end up with 3,000 files a semester coming in. If something comes in without the code, I don’t accept it.

    How serious am I about this? I joke that if my step-kids were my biological kids, they’ve be named 980418 and 000104 … 

  • translog

    Naming conventions for all  those in the university and the higher institutions of learning. Without it would be like Alice in the Wornderland and it is a good idea to teach it in th e beginng if the semezter as assignments and documentation multiply/

    For more practical wisdom I would advocate the system developed in Alberta and you can find it here now https://www.rimp.gov.ab.ca/publications/pdf/DocumentNamingConventions.pdf

  • dorinne34

    Re: comment in paragraph two…SO funny, SO true!

  • dpmccain

    I have used the naming convention  strategy for several quarters, and it has reduced my grading time dramatically,  Although I teach f2f, I accept some assignments by email, and some are accepted by email only.  The Subject line of the email must read 332WC_student name_assignment name  Whatever the course number is and the campus initials must appear first.   I teach the same course at two different campuses.

    Some of my student fought me, but they are advised, both orally and on the lesson plan that after week 3 of the quarter, incorrectly named email submissions will be returned unopened.  Some wiill test me, but when the continue to see zeros on their grade sheets week after week, they comply.  I do not mark off for late work (for most assignments) so they are not penalized for being lazy or stubborn…and I don’t run daycare. 

    I do, however, explain why I expect compliance and have shown them my inbox in varying view forms, Date, Subject, From, etc.  and most then understand that I am not being a jerk…it simply makes finding their assignments easier, as I switch to Subject when grading email submitted assignments.  Because I subscribe to varying technical and education newsletters, by Week 3 my inbox ususally contains about 600 emails (which is nothing for some,I realize), but weighty for me. 

    Lastly, after archiving work in folders both in Outlook, and on my home computer, I do not delete assignments, until the student has either graduated, or has not been a student of mine for two quarters.  This has eliminated the “you deleted my assignment” argument. 

    As to paragraph 2 of Prof Hacker’s post…yes indeed…I have received, class332wcstudentname-maccaine (check the spelling of my name)…this is usually evidence of the quality of work I will receive from said student.  Even though I “model” the format using the projector, and it appears on virtually every document throughout the quarter…there are some holdouts to compliance. 

    As many online newsletters have now inserted a symbol and space to make sure their newsletter sorts first in Subject, next quarter I am going to add a space, then a symbol, then the course number, etc…this should be fun…pray for me.

  • bookishone

    Not owning a smartphone, I didn’t realize that the naming convention could affect the ability of students to find a file on their mobile device. 

    However, your solution would pose a problem for me, because my course documents all put the course title and semester first in the filename so that they automatically sort by name and can be readily compared to similar files in previous semesters. I like to think it also makes it easier for students to find all the course-related files quickly on their computers, which is doubtless where they’re completing these assignments (I discourage them from writing 8pp papers on their iPhone). I’m not willing to give up this functionality but would be interested to hear other options. 

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