Tip #4435 - Vista Navigation Pane
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Q:
What exactly is the navigation pane in Windows Vista? What am I supposed
to be using it for? Any information you can give me would be great.
Thanks!
A:
Sure thing! I'm sure you're not the only Windows
Vista user out there who has wondered that very same thing. The navigation
pane is a little something new Microsoft threw into Vista and I think
once you figure out how to use it, you'll be glad they did. It's a
very easy way to keep all of your files organized and put in place.
So, without further ado, I bring you Vista's navigation pane!
I think a good
place to begin is actually finding the navigation pane, what do you
think?! To get to it, just double click on the Computer
icon on your desktop. It's located on the left hand side of that window.
Across the top, you'll see tabs for Organize, Views, Explore and so
on. Below that, there are two sections broken up into Favorite
Links and Folders. Under Favorite Links,
there are a few entries there for Documents, Pictures, Music, etc.
and under the Folders section, you'll see some of the folders you
work with on a regular basis. Here's a sample of what it looks like:
Let's start with
the Favorite Links section. By default, you have the Documents, Pictures
and Music links, but you can add as many others as you'd like. If
you have a few other files you use on a daily basis that you'd like
to have easier access to, you can add them to the navigation pane.
That way, you don't have to go through a line of folders and files
to find the single one you need. You can just click on your Computer
icon and they'll be there! For example, maybe you're working on a
big project and you need quick access to one of your Word documents.
Just add it to your Favorite Links and it will be right there waiting
for you each time you need it. Or, maybe you have some pictures you're
editing and you need to be able to open them fast. Add them to your
Favorite Links and voila. The options are endless!
To add a file
to your Favorite Links, all you have to do is drag
and drop it into your navigation pane. It's as easy as that! Once
you have all the files added that you want, you'll also want to check
out the Recently Changed link. If you click on that,
it will show you which files you have created or modified in the last
30 days. So, if you make a change to one of your files, you can look
it up right there. There is also a Searches link
and you can use that to look up any searches you've performed on your
Vista computer. You can use it to quickly find files, no matter where
they are on your hard drive. It's just an easy way to find exactly
what you need, without having to look in a million places. You can
even add custom saved searches to your Favorite Links if you'd like.
Now, if you prefer
the traditional way of looking through your folders to find the files
you need, you can resort back to using the Folders link on the navigation
pane. You can even resize it to fit the whole pane if you don't like
the idea of the Favorite Links section. It's up to you, depending
on the way you like to do things. Either way, Microsoft has done a
really good job of giving you more options when it comes to navigating
through your data. The navigation pane is a great way to keep all
of your files organized and it just couldn't be easier to use. So,
if you're a Vista user, I recommend giving this a try today. You never
know, it could be your next best favorite thing!
~ Erin
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