1
00:00:00,080 --> 00:00:06,240
having the right tool for the job is important but how do you know exactly

2
00:00:03,919 --> 00:00:08,960
what the right tool is i mean it might be hard to figure out how exactly they

3
00:00:08,000 --> 00:00:14,799
make those cakes with the hole in the middle if you've never seen a bundt pan but your

4
00:00:12,719 --> 00:00:19,199
computer knows exactly what program it should use to open say a photo or video

5
00:00:16,960 --> 00:00:23,920
or a document basically every time that's thanks to today's unsung hero of

6
00:00:21,680 --> 00:00:27,920
tech the file extension not to be confused with browser extensions which

7
00:00:25,840 --> 00:00:32,000
you can learn about here file extensions are those two three or four letters you

8
00:00:30,240 --> 00:00:37,920
see after the file name when you're poking around your hard drive so doc

9
00:00:34,800 --> 00:00:39,680
mp3 and exe for example those are all

10
00:00:37,920 --> 00:00:44,559
file extensions see your operating system doesn't just analyze the internal

11
00:00:42,000 --> 00:00:49,760
code of a file and and try to figure out what it is that would be an inefficient

12
00:00:46,800 --> 00:00:54,160
and inexact process instead whichever program created the file will slap an

13
00:00:51,680 --> 00:00:58,000
extension onto the end to tell the os exactly what kind of data is inside for

14
00:00:56,480 --> 00:01:01,840
example if you've ever saved a document in word you've probably seen that drop

15
00:01:00,000 --> 00:01:06,240
down menu that lets you pick exactly what format you want the file to be

16
00:01:03,680 --> 00:01:10,799
saved in after you make your choice word will attach the appropriate extension so

17
00:01:08,320 --> 00:01:14,799
that Windows will know to use word if you've saved it as a standard word

18
00:01:12,240 --> 00:01:19,920
document notepad if it's plain text or adobe reader if it's a pdf when you open

19
00:01:17,680 --> 00:01:25,040
the file the os will check the extension against a list of file type associations

20
00:01:23,119 --> 00:01:28,799
you can bring up this list easily enough right here in Windows actually where you

21
00:01:26,720 --> 00:01:32,640
can see and modify which program is assigned to which extension now Windows

22
00:01:30,799 --> 00:01:37,119
will have a lot of default file type associations pre-loaded when the os is

23
00:01:35,040 --> 00:01:41,280
first installed for example it'll automatically know to use the built-in

24
00:01:39,200 --> 00:01:44,400
photo viewer app to load up a jpeg instead of trying to open it with like a

25
00:01:42,880 --> 00:01:48,320
music player or something but when you install new programs they'll usually ask

26
00:01:46,720 --> 00:01:51,439
if they should be the default program for opening certain file extensions

27
00:01:50,000 --> 00:01:55,920
especially with popular media applications like vlc which will present

28
00:01:53,759 --> 00:01:59,360
you with a long list of extensions that you can pick and choose from and

29
00:01:57,759 --> 00:02:04,159
extensions aren't just useful for getting your files to load up quickly

30
00:02:01,360 --> 00:02:08,399
they also help you the user see exactly what they are at a glance in the file

31
00:02:06,000 --> 00:02:13,200
explorer as Windows will assign little icons to your files solely based on what

32
00:02:10,959 --> 00:02:16,560
the extension is there are also times when it's useful to change a file

33
00:02:14,959 --> 00:02:19,920
extension especially if you've downloaded a file from the internet that

34
00:02:18,319 --> 00:02:23,840
you really want to get into it's possible that the creator of the file

35
00:02:21,360 --> 00:02:28,400
stuck the wrong extension on it or the file just doesn't have one at all so

36
00:02:25,840 --> 00:02:33,040
slapping a txt for example on the end of a mysterious file can at least get

37
00:02:30,640 --> 00:02:38,000
notepad to open it letting you have a peek inside to see or change an

38
00:02:35,360 --> 00:02:42,560
extension just disable this option in Windows 10. unchecking this box will

39
00:02:40,400 --> 00:02:46,879
cause file extensions to appear everywhere it's not a bad idea if you

40
00:02:44,720 --> 00:02:52,480
download a file you're not sure about in fact file extension trickery has led to

41
00:02:49,200 --> 00:02:55,200
some bad malware epidemics notably the

42
00:02:52,480 --> 00:02:59,599
love letter virus of the early 2000s the bad guy sent out an email with an

43
00:02:56,800 --> 00:03:04,400
attachment that appeared to have a txt extension fooling the user into thinking

44
00:03:02,080 --> 00:03:08,319
it was just a harmless plain text file but showing the extension in Windows

45
00:03:05,920 --> 00:03:12,400
explorer revealed it was actually a vbs file in other words a script that

46
00:03:10,159 --> 00:03:16,239
contained malicious code so be sure to pay attention to file extensions

47
00:03:14,159 --> 00:03:21,920
whenever you download anything and be especially wary if it's an unidentified

48
00:03:18,800 --> 00:03:24,239
exe or vbs as they have code that will

49
00:03:21,920 --> 00:03:27,760
run when you open them so be sure you know where they're coming from so tip of

50
00:03:26,000 --> 00:03:31,599
the hat to file extensions they can warn us about dodgy files and help our pcs

51
00:03:30,159 --> 00:03:36,319
run more quickly and because of that they are today's

52
00:03:33,360 --> 00:03:39,840
unsung hero of tech do you have an extra five minutes per day then use

53
00:03:37,920 --> 00:03:43,519
brilliant's daily problems to help you train your brain each problem provides

54
00:03:41,680 --> 00:03:47,360
you with a context and framework that you need to tackle it so that you learn

55
00:03:45,440 --> 00:03:50,640
the concepts by applying them if you like the daily problem then there's more

56
00:03:48,959 --> 00:03:54,000
like it in the quiz on the left so you can explore the concept in great detail

57
00:03:52,480 --> 00:03:57,360
and develop your framework if you're confused and need more guidance then

58
00:03:55,680 --> 00:04:00,879
join the community in discussing these problems these thought-provoking

59
00:03:58,720 --> 00:04:05,200
challenges will lead you from curiosity to mastery one day at a time the first

60
00:04:03,200 --> 00:04:09,200
200 people to go to the link will get 20 off an annual premium subscription so be

61
00:04:07,280 --> 00:04:12,239
sure to check it out so thanks for watching guys if this video sucked you

62
00:04:10,560 --> 00:04:16,000
can hit that button but if you liked it like the video get subscribed and be

63
00:04:13,760 --> 00:04:21,280
sure to hit up the comment section for with suggestions for other videos that

64
00:04:17,759 --> 00:04:21,280
you want to see in the future