NWA-PCUG Newsletter Article, December 2011
Windows 7 Jump Lists
By Vinny La Bash,
Regular Contributing Columnist, Sarasota PCUG, Inc., FL
May 2011 issue, Sarasota PC Monitor
labash (at) spcug.org
(click to email author)

There are those who say that Jump Lists are new to Windows 7, and there are those who say Jump Lists are nothing more than hyped-up extensions of the My Recent Documents menu which began in Windows 95. There is truth in both viewpoints.

Previous to Windows 7, the My Recent Documents menu listed the newest file version of its application. If a Word document was created at 7:00 am followed by a Spreadsheet edited at 8:00 am, followed by a drawing revised in Paint shortly thereafter, all three would be listed in reverse chronological order on the same list.

In Windows 7, each of those files would be on a separate list, each list comprised of files created by its own specific application. If you right-click on the Word icon for example, you see a list of the most recent Word documents that were created or edited by Word. A right-click on the Excel icon would reveal a list of the most recent Excel spreadsheets. The same holds for Paint, Adobe Photoshop, or PowerPoint.

Windows XP had the right idea, but the concept wasn’t taken far enough. If an application that runs on Windows 7 is capable of generating files it will have its own Jump List. If you use one application heavily, it’s very handy for that application to possess its own jump list. The Excel Jump List does not contain files generated by other applications, it shoes only Excel spreadsheets.

Jump Lists act like application specific Start menus. You can find them on the application icons that appear on the Taskbar after the application is open. They also reside in the Start menu in the recently opened programs area. The Jump Lists on the Start menu appear a bit different than those on the Taskbar, but they function in exactly the same way. If you “pin” an application icon to the Start menu or the Taskbar you will get a Jump List by right-clicking on the icon.

Jump Lists have several defaults, the application’s shortcut icon is displayed, you can close one or all windows that happen to be open, you can pin or unpin, see a list of up to ten recent files, and specific tasks associated with the application. If you bring up the Jump List for Internet Explorer 8, there is an item that let’s you do InPrivate Browsing.

Right-click on any of the files listed in the Jump List. You can remove the file from the list, pin it permanently to the list, save it in another location, rename it, copy it, print it or even send it to another location.

An application’s Jump List can be found in more than one location. If you open a Jump List from the Start menu and then open the same application’s Jump List from the Taskbar or any other location, you will see exactly the same list of items. That’s the kind of consistency that makes sense.

Different Jump Lists from the same application will show you the same thing, but a Jump List from Internet Explorer 8 will show something different than a Jump List from Media Player. IE 8 doesn’t show recently played songs, and Media Player won’t show you recently visited web sites. What you see on the list depends on the program.

Let’s look at some odds and ends about Jump Lists that may prove useful. By default, the Internet Explorer icon in IE 8 is pinned to the Taskbar. When you wish to pin another application to either the Taskbar or the Start menu right-click on the application’s icon, no matter where it is located, and pin it to either or both locations. You can unpin just as easily so don’t worry about doing something you can’t undo.

You can take an item from a Jump List and drag and drop to a new location such as the Desktop or a folder. Drag and drop to an email message and Windows will automatically attach it for sending.

If you unpin an item from a Jump List don’t be perplexed if it reappears on the list the next time you open it.

You can’t pin folders to the Taskbar because they are considered Windows Explorer items, but you can pin Windows Explorer to the Taskbar and folders will appear as items in the Jump List.

It can be useful to clear a Jump List for security or personal reasons. You don’t have to unpin each item individually.

To clear a Jump List: 1. Open Control Panel.
2. Click Appearance and Personalization.
3. Click Taskbar and Start Menu.
4. Click the Start Menu tab in the dialog box.
5. Clear the checkmark in the Store and display recently opened items in the Start Menu and Taskbar check box.
6. Click Apply.
7. Recheck the box you cleared in step 5, unless you want the Jump List always empty.
Note: If you wish to change the number of items in your Jump Lists click the Customize button and follow instructions.
8. Close any open dialog boxes.

Some programs display useful tasks in their Jump Lists. Tasks on a Jump List can’t be added to or removed.

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