# How to name a folder you can find again

Start with the thing, then add the useful distinction. “Garden / 2026 / Seed notes” is easier to scan than “Stuff / New stuff / Final”.

Use dates in year-month-day order when exact dates matter. Use plain words when subject matters more than time. Choose one approach within a project and stick to it.

Useful patterns:
project-topic-version
yyyy-mm-dd-event
subject-location-original-date

Avoid making “final” do the job of a version number. If the document can change again, use v01, v02, or a date. Keep the real original when you need it, and make edits in a clearly named working copy.

Add a short README in complicated archives: what this is, where it came from, and how it is organized.

Naming committee decision: “final-final-actually-final-7” has been gently escorted out.

— AlfieInTheAttic