One very well hidden feature of MS-Word is the Work menu. It has been around at least since Word 97, but by default it doesn’t appear on the standard menu bar, and doesn’t seem to be documented in the Help file. You can add it, however, by going to Tools, Customize Commands, and scrolling down to ‘Built-in-Menus’ on the category list. In the Commands list, drag ‘Work’ out of the dialog on to the menu bar. Having caught your Work menu you may wonder what it’s for, as it contains just one command – ‘Add to Work menu’. Click on this and the current document will be added to the Work menu. When you click on a file name, that file will open, so don’t share the same folder. As with the recent files listed in the File menu, there’s a limit of nine entries and the system works on a first-in-first-out basis, so a tenth item bounces the first off the list.
It isn’t particularly smart, as even if you use it to open the same file many times, that file will still get bumped down the list towards oblivion as you add new files. The trick here is every so often to reclick on ‘Add to Work menu’, which will then promote the current file to the top of the list.
Astute readers will also notice that there is no built-in command to remove a document from the list, other than by bumping it off the end. One way is to press Control + Alt + hyphen (on the main keyboard). The cursor will change to a bar, and if you then click on the Work menu, then on an item, it will be removed. However, be very careful with this trick as it will also remove commands from any menu.
While we’re on the subject of menus, you don’t have to use the standard Microsoft layout. If you think that Spelling and Grammar (for example) should be on the Edit menu, this is easy to achieve. Just go to Tools, Customize. With the dialogs open, click on the Tools menu to open it. Drag the Spelling and Grammar command off the menu and onto the Edit menu. The latter will open and you’ll be able to drop Spelling and Grammar in whatever position you choose.
Too much rearrangement will cause a lot of confusion, though, if you have to call for technical support, or try to follow instructions in articles. So here’s a mantra for Word support staff. Right-click anywhere in the tool bars or menu bar and choose Customize. Highlight the Menu Bar entry in the list. Click Reset and confirm, then close the Customize dialogs.
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