Windows automatically replacing write-protected files when moving them due to long filenames in some of them?

So, at first I was moving a folder with a heckload of screenshots into another directory the other day, which resulted in Windows automatically renaming many of them into 6-8 digit names (in caps) like 'SCREENS\~1' (when they exceeded the filepath limit) instead of asking or aborting. Not reversible by Ctrl+Z, it seems.

But **then** just recently, when trying to move several of these PNG files from a folder on the root of C:\\ to a subfolder under my docs/pictures, WinXP just REPLACES several of them (WITH the long-named files)?! Even after clicking"No" each instance, when it was prompting me about replacing.

From what I've seen, WinXP wrongfully prompts me that 'another file with the same name exists' when I try to move several files into a folder and some of the them has too long filenames, and then asks if I want to 'replace' (instead of just skipping the long one, ask to rename or simply aborting the process). But this time, despite declining, it practically deleted several screenshots by replacing some shorter-named files with the image of the name-lengthy file that were next in the line of the selected files... Wtf.

They were even **write protected**, out of fear from the first-mentioned event but maybe writeprotecting made it worse? I only said yes to moving the files at first (which needs confirmation for write-protected files). I tried to seperate all the shorter-named files from the ones with lengthy filenames. I don't remember experiencing any issues like these the other times I moved files between folders or computers. Does this only occur when they are write-protected? Better avoid this illogical mess and further headaches from happening again.