Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated May 20, 2024)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021
When Leo displays the Open dialog box (to open an existing document), Word always displays the available documents in alphabetical order, with subfolders first. Leo prefers to have everything sorted by date. He can click the column to change the sort order but wonders if there is a way to specify his preferred sort order as a default for the Open dialog box.
The Open dialog box is actually provided by Windows, through a system DLL shared by other programs, such as Windows Explorer. Thus, there is no setting in Word that will alter the behavior of the Open dialog box, as Word does not control the dialog box, but only uses it as needed.
The flip side of this is that you can utilize the Open dialog box in the other programs that may call upon it (such as Windows Explorer), make changes in the sort order in those programs, and that sort order should be reflected in the Open dialog box the next time you invoke it in Word.
The upshot of this is that if you use the Open dialog box in one program (such as Word) and sort the files in that dialog box by name, that same sorting will be used when you display the Open dialog box in a different program (such as Notepad). If you prefer in that other program to see the files sorted in some other manner—perhaps by type—you can make the change in that program, but the change will be reflected in Word the next time you display the Open dialog box.
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2020-01-23 01:47:33
Kerri
I was so pleased when I found your comments about changing the default sort order for opening a document in Word as this drives me nuts. My default sort order for Windows Explorer is by date, but I went and made sure this was set to date (having closed Word) [{fig 1}] Unfortunately, when I opened Word and selected Open, the sort order was still by file name [{fig 2}]:(. If I go to open a file in Notepad, the sort order is correct (ie by date), but it's not working for Word (or Excel). Any futher suggestions?
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