The location of a file is often specified by listing the folders and subfolders that lead to the file--this list is called a path. A file's path is visible in two places in File Manager. First it is shown in the iconic path as a string of folders. Second, it is shown in a text form in the text path line above the view area. These two areas can be turned off. (See "To Configure the Headers" for more information.)
The path to an object is a way to specify where the object is located in the file system. There are two ways to specify the path: absolute path and relative path.
A path is an absolute path if it begins at the root folder. The root folder is the single common folder on your system where the hierarchy begins. If a path begins with a slash (/), it is an absolute path specified from the root folder. For example, the following is an absolute path to the file letter:
/usr/dt/config/letter
A path is relative if it describes the location of a file or folder as it relates to the current folder. If you are in a folder and you want to move down the folder tree, you don't need to type the absolute path name. You can just type the path starting with the name of the next folder in the path. If a path does not begin with a slash, it is a relative path. For example, if the current folder is /usr/dt and you want to move to the folder /usr/dt/config/letters, you would use the following relative path:
config/letters
Two special folder names are useful when specifying relative paths. The "." folder (sometimes called "dot") represents the current folder. The ".." folder (sometimes called "dot-dot") represents the parent folder--the folder one level up in the folder hierarchy. For example, if your current folder is /usr/dt/config, then the relative path to the Dtwm file becomes:
../app-defaults/language/Dtwm
because the file is in the /usr/dt/app-defaults/language folder, one level above the current folder and in the app-defaults/language subfolder.
If you still want to learn more about your computer's file system, refer to the online help or documentation for your operating system. There are also many commercial books available that cover the basics of file systems and file management.