There are two standard dialogs provided for file manipulation: the Open dialog and the Save as dialog. Each provides similar function, but has slightly different behavior due to the different function being performed with the dialog. The use of these dialogs enables application developers to provide these functions in a consistent manner, without having to code such function into their application programs.
The standard "Open" dialog box, used to select and open directories and files from within an application, is shown in Figure "Standard File Dialog for "Open"".
The file dialogs are required by application-oriented programs wishing to conform to the 1991 CUA guidelines. By standardizing the commonly performed file manipulation tasks across different programs, they help to eliminate minor inconsistencies in dialog operation, which results in fewer user errors.