How to change metadata for a file

By Ed Bott

Every file you store on an NTFS drive has the ability to include a huge assortment of information about that file, called metadata. Learning how to manage that metadata can help you find files faster.

Some metadata is created automatically for every file type and can't be changed. The size of a file, for example, is determined by the file itself, and for good reason. It would make no sense for you to be able to change the file size metadata to make a file look like it's larger or smaller than it is.

Other types of metadata are specific to file types. A photo you take with your smartphone or a digital camera is tagged with the camera name and details about the camera, F-stop, exposure time, and ISO speed, which can't be changed easily. Likewise, the bit rate for an MP3 file is determined by the file itself.

But you can change other types of metadata. The author of a Microsoft Word document. Tags and ratings for digital photos. Album and artist information for MP3 files.

To change metadata for a file, right-click it and choose Properties, then click the Details tab. Any files that are available for editing will reveal an editing box when clicked. To edit data for a group of files, select the files first, then click Properties. You can change the album title for a group of MP3 files in this way, or tag pictures with a location.

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