h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

So, I've got Windows on my machine here. I use it. I learnt with it. The computer is a means and not an end and as I am not interested in all the fiddly bits and workings, I am quite happy.

What I use an awful lot is the Start menu to open recently and requently used documents. Now the "documents" bit has disappeared from the start menu (just as I'd set the one at home to remember the documents, much against the protests of my 14-year-old who shares the computer!) Neither I nor any of my family or friends can figure out how to get it back in again. Including the 14-year-old who claims it wasn't him.

So, short of re-installing my Office programmes and injecting a truth serum into my son - what do I do?

I *think* what you need to do is

right click on the "task bar" at the bottom of the screen and click on the "properties" option of the menu you get

you get a dialogue box entitled "task bar and start menu properties"

click on the "advanced" tab and "check" or click in the box marked "expand my documents". click "apply" then "ok"

- if that doesn't work, find someone else to ask

If you're using Windows XP, you should be able to click on the Start bar, and go to Settings>'Taskbar and start menu' (or Start>'Control panel'>'Taskbar and start menu' if you have the Windows XP start menu rather than the classic menu).

From there, Click the 'Start Menu' divider at the top of the dialog window and then click on the 'customize' button (from whence a window will pop-up with a list of checkboxes at the bottom, allowing you to change what you can and can't see on the start bar, including the Recent Documents / My Documents submenu. If it's already enabled and just not displaying, try turning it off and on again - this should fix it.

On Windows 2000, simply click Start>Settings>'Taskbar and start menu' and then on the 'Advanced' dialog box at the top of the screen.

Windows 95 doesn't let you specifically turn off start menu items, and I don't have a Windows 98 system handy to check, so you'll have to explore if you're running Windows 98; Start>Settings>Taskbar should still be where the options menu is.

Hope this helps!

- njan

bleh, simulpost.. (kinda)..

After translating that lot into German, I can safely say I had already tried that as well as ***all*** the settings in the "Tweak UI" box. However, in the "Advanced" box (Windows 2000 BTW) I don't have anything that translates as anything like "expand my documents". I can click on "Add" and then it just opens the Explorer for me - and nowhere in there is there a directory of "recent documents".

The "recent documents" folder is gone? Really? You can do that?

You might try looking in the recycle bin, to see if it got deleted. If it's there, you might try right clicking on it and selecting "restore." Other than that, I don't know where it might have gone off to.

I'd try your 14 year old son again. He can't hold out forever.

The only way I know of to make things like that disappear from the Start menu is to use TweakUI (or a similar tweaking utility) or, if all else fails, to hack the registry (not a step to be considered lightly!)

In TweakUI, the setting is in the IE tab.

The only real file folder on the start menu is the Programs folder; all the rest are stored in various bits of the registry so it's not possible move them to the Recycle Bin.

Errr... good question, that.... Running Win98 (SE) I can testify that there is no "Documents" folder on this one. Not that I ever missed it until just now...

TC, the relevant *links* to the files are in the .../Windows/recent/ folder. You'll might to set Windows to display all hidden files by going through the following [German terms ]
Startmenü -> Einstellungen -> Taskleiste -> Programme im Menü "Start" -> Erweitert... -> Ansicht -> Orderoptionen -> Ansicht -> Versteckte Dateien - alle anzeigen

Easy, eh?
Now you can display the contents of the "recent" folder with the Explorer and the links will take you to the relevant files.

Not as good as new, but at least that should work... does work on my machine at least.

Oh, or you just use something like the software called "Hacker Utilities" http://www.utilities.de/info.htm... look the the screenshot! Right Hand, it says "Dokumente" and the box is not ticked. Just tick that one (once you've installed the app) and the documents will re-appear. Works fine here. Now I'll untick that box again.
Only difficulty is that the app might not run under win2000

Under 2000 the Documents option on the start menu refers to the Recent folder located under the current user's profile.

Look under \Documents and Settings\ where is the login name used.

If this folder does not exist it has been deleted and should be in the recycle bin, unless that has been emptied. Alternatively it may have been moved. You could try use the Find or Search command.

The various flavours of Windows are all quite different.