An alias or a shortcut (alias is what it’s called on a Macintosh and shortcut is what it’s called on a PC) is a pointer to a folder or a file that behaves a lot like the folder or file itself. If you double-click an alias, it will open the original file. If you have an alias to a folder, you can drag a file right onto the alias and it will move the file into the corresponding folder. This comes in handy if you’re doing a lot of work that relies on folders that are far away from each other, digitally speaking. Here’s an example. Let’s say you run your company’s Instagram feed. You use an online tool (Canva, a stock photography source, AI, etc.) to create or source images for your feed. When you download the images, they end up in your Downloads folder. This obviously isn’t where they need to end up. Perhaps you need to share them with your boss for approval, which requires you to find the graphic you downloaded and move it to a folder called “For Review” that lives deep in your company’s shared drive. You’re doing okay with having two folders or directories open at the same time, but every time you do this task you have to find both folders and open them. Sometimes you feel that you’re spending more time moving files around than you are on your actual work. Instead, you can create a shortcut or an alias. Here’s how it works, using the situation I’ve just described as an example.
On a PC:
- In File Explorer, navigate to the “For Review” folder and right-click it.
- Select “Create shortcut” from the pop-up menu. Windows creates a shortcut icon with a little arrow in the top corner indicating that it’s a shortcut.
- Move your newly created shortcut into the Downloads folder. You can rename the shortcut if you want, and it will still point to the same folder.
On a Macintosh:
- In Finder, navigate to the “For Review” folder and right-click it.
- Select “Make alias” from the pop-up menu. MacOS creates an icon that says [Filename] alias.
- Move your newly created alias into the Downloads folder. You can rename it, and it will still point to the same folder. But wait - let’s say now you’re in the “For Review” folder and you need to quickly navigate to your Downloads folder. No problem — create a shortcut or alias to the Downloads folder and put it in the “For Review” folder. Aliases and shortcuts work both in File Explorer / Finder and within any programs you’re using, so the shortcuts will also save you from constantly drilling up and down through folder hierarchies when you need to open a file from one location and save a copy to another.
