Choosing where "My Topicscapes" should go: Path lengths and security

Previous: Appendix C: Data storage in Topicscape

(Go to:Topicscape Pro User Guide - contents list)

Windows' limit for the length of a file-path, including the file's name, is 259 characters. Take the example:

C:\Documents and Settings\PietPetereson\My Topicscapes\The absent-minded father gets organized\ Alice's family\ Dates to remember\ Documents with expiry\ Driving License\CALIFORNIA DRIVERS LICENSE - CA DMV Department of Motor Vehicles Guide - DMV_ORG.mht

This is 254 characters -- only just within Windows' capability to store.

So by default the installer does not place "My Topicscapes" in "My Documents". The example just given could not be stored if it did. Although you can override the default setting, we recommend that you do not make the location of My Topicscapes any deeper than directly in your account's folder, as the example shows. If you can locate it in C:\My Topicscapes or D:\My Topicscapes, that would be even better, but this has an effect on the security of your Topicscapes and you will need to consider who else has access to your computer -- see Appendix E: Security of Topicscape documents and data.

To help you find your Topicscapes folder, we place a shortcut called ".My Topicscapes" in your "My Documents" folder. The dot at the beginning is to make it sort to the front of the list of files in "My Documents".

More on path lengths here: File names and paths when exporting to folders

More on security here: Appendix E: Security of Topicscape documents and data

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