Use Recent Items to find a file you just worked on

Use Recent Items to find a file you just worked on

To find a file you just worked on, use Recent Items (called My Recent Documents in Windows XP) in the Start menu.

In previous versions of the Windows operating system, Recent Items showed a list of your recently used files on the right side of the Start menu. You could open a file from this list by clicking it. In Windows 7, Recent Items no longer appears on the Start menu by default, but you can add it. To add Recent Items to the Start menu:

1. Right-click the taskbar, and then click Properties to open the Taskbar and Start Menu Properties dialog box.

2. Click the Start Menu tab. Under Privacy, select the Store and display recently opened items in the Start menu and the taskbar check box.

3. Click Customize. In the Customize Start Menu dialog box, scroll through the list of options to find the Recent Items check box, select it, click OK, and then click OK again.