There are a number of ways in which some combination of Windows XP and the applications (MS and other) that work in its environment could either use a little help in remembering what I’ve done lately, or get blocked from being so damned efficient about it.
I know what it is that I’d like to do, but I don’t know whether/how it can be done. So naturally, I’m asking y’all for help.
The list of files recently opened in an application: this is the one where you click on ‘File’ in MS Word or Excel, or in WordPerfect or PC-SAS or whatever, and at the bottom of the dropdown, it shows you the last four Word docs/Excel spreadsheets/WP docs/SAS programs you’ve opened up in that app.
It would be nice if it showed me the last 8-10 docs I’d looked at in that app, rather than just the last 4. Seems that whatever I’m doing at work, there’s a rotating list of docs, programs, whatever I’m working on at a given time. It’s almost always bigger than 4. It’s almost always less than 10. It would be nice if my list was big enough so the ones I was currently working on weren’t dropping off the bottom of the list, making me hunt through the file structure for them.
It would also be nice if the ‘File’ dropdown didn’t do quite such a good job of remembering which options I hadn’t availed myself of lately. When you click on ‘File’ and it doesn’t show you '‘New’ so you stare at the screen a second, then remember, oh yeah, click the damned carrot at the bottom…is there a way to tell it to not hide certain menu options in the drop-down, no matter how long since you’ve used them?
The same thing’s true with the Start button, specifically Start>Programs. For the most part, I don’t mind if it hides the apps I use less frequently, but there’s some I’d like it to show me always, even if I haven’t used them since who knows when. Is there a way to make that happen?
Answers to any of these would make my computer less annoying. Thanks!
Thanks! I’ve just been bouncing back and forth between apps, changing this setting. That’s gonna make a BIG difference!
The wording’s slightly different on mine, but there’s an equivalent choice.
It looks as if, under Tools>Customize>Commands, maybe I could customize it a bit finer if the “Modify Selection” button weren’t grayed out. But it is. I’ll have to see if that button works on the home computer, since certain things here at the office are preset for everybody by the IT people.
In WinXP, you have a section of the Start menu that is permanent. It usually has your default browser and e-mail app in it. It’s separated from the rotating recent apps by a fine line. Just drag a shortcut from the recent area above the line, and it should show up every time you go to Start.
You can also use the Quick Launch bar, which allows you to get your fave apps without even hitting the Start button. If you don’t have it now, you can activate it by right-clicking on your Start bar and selecting it from the Toolbars submenu.
We use WinXP here at work, and I’ve got it on both the desktop and the laptop at home. I don’t see the line here, and I’ve never noticed it at home.
I do use the QuickLaunch bar, although even with it, only 3 icons stay visible. (For me, one of those is the indispensable ‘show desktop’ icon - much easier than closing the half-dozen windows I usually have open.) But I’m thinking more of stuff that you don’t use often enough to bother with the QuickLaunch (e.g. Character Map), but you’d still like it to show up when you get there.
If you get properties on your Start button, go to the Start Menu tab, then click Customize…, you’ll be able to check the box for showing your browser and e-mail app. That’ll get you the line you can drag things above.
One more thing–If you want to have more icons in Quick Launch, unlock your Taskbar (on the right-click menu) and you’ll be able to drag it to a different size.