One of the most basic things to do in a computer is opening files, and there are many different ways to do this, some more efficient than others. In this article, we'll learn how to open a file in several ways, and how the computer itself opens the files. Not all of these methods work in all applications, but it's a good to know about them anyhow.
Using a File Manager
The first methods that we'll see are done from a file manager.
On Windows, the file manager that comes installed by default is the File Explorer. On Linux, there are several, but most of them have the same functions.
The next steps require that you open your file manager first.
Method 1: Double Clicking a File
The simplest method to open a file is to double click on a file in the file manager.
File managers display a list of the files and folders inside a folder in their main screen. When you double click on a folder, the file manager "navigates" to inside the folder, displaying its contents. When you double click on a file, the file manager opens an application associated to that type of file, and then tells this application to open the file that was double clicked.
Image files are typically associated with an image viewer application. This means if you double click on an image file, the file manager will open an image viewer and then tell the image viewer to open the file.
If you double click on a text file, the file manager will open a text editor and tell it to open the file.
In other words, "opening a file" doesn't mean the file manager opens the file, it means the file manager opens an application that opens the file.
Method 2: Press the Enter Key in the File Manager
It's possible to operate the file manager without using the mouse, using only the keys of the keyboard. In this case, you can change the selected file using the arrow keys, and open the selected item, be it folder or file, pressing the Enter key. That is, pressing Enter has the same effect as double-clicking.
Method 3: "Open" Option in the Context Menu
It's possible to open a file by clicking on it with the right mouse button to open its context menu, and then choosing the option "Open." In this case, it's also possible to open the context menu without using the keyboard by pressing the Menu key on he keyboard instead.
Method 4: "Open with..." Option in the Context Menu
It's also possible to open a file using the option "Open with..." in the context menu of the file. The methods we've seen so far open the file using the default application associated with its file type. In some cases, a single file type can be opened with multiple different applications, so it's necessary to use "Open with..." to choose which application to use.
For example, an image can be opened with an application to view the image, such as JPEGView, or with one to edit the image, such as GIMP. Generally, the application that only views the file is defined as default application, and it's necessary to use the "Open with..." option to choose which other application to use. So, in this example, double-clicking would open an image in JPEGView, and if we wanted to open the image in the GIMP application, we would need to use "Open with...."
From Inside the Application
In some applications, it's also possible to open a file from inside the application, using the menubar, the toolbar, and other methods.
Method 5: Menu File -> Open
In most applications, it's possible to open a file from the menubar clicking on the menu "File" and then in the submenu item "Open...." By convention, "File" is always the leftmost item in the menubar, and "Open..." the first item of the "File" menu.
After you click this option, the application will open a dialog box for selecting a file to be opened. In this dialog box, you'll be able to navigate through your file system to find the file you want to open. Double-clicking on the file inside this dialog box or selecting it and clicking on the button "Open" next to a "Cancel" button will make the application open the file.
Unfortunately, not every application uses the same dialog box to open files. Applications made for Windows use the default Windows dialog box that works in a manner similar to the File Explorer, but applications made to work on Windows and Linux may use different dialog boxes.
In particular, applications made with GTK, such as GIMP, have a dialog box that's very terrible to use.
Besides this, some applications don't open files but folders. In this case, it's possible that a special dialog box for opening folders is shown instead. This dialog box is also very terrible to use.
Method 6: Open Button in the Toolbar
In some applications, there will be a toolbar where you can find a button with a folder icon that performs the same operation as clicking on the menu File -> Open.
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