To move a message from one Outlook folder to another, you have to scroll through the list of folders (in the Navigation Pane). That’s not a problem in a short list. However, a long list is another matter - scrolling to find a specific folder can be a bit of a nuisance, especially if you move a lot of messages around. Fortunately, there’s an easy way to find and access a folder:
- First, select the active folder in the Navigation Pane by pressing [Shift]+[Tab] or simply clicking the folder.
- Once the active folder is selected, enter the first character in the target folder’s name. There’s no control to enter the character into - just start typing. For instance, if you want to select the Inbox, type i.
- With the new folder selected, press [Spacebar] or [Enter] to open the folder.
Unfortunately, this technique is a bit limited. First, it finds only expanded folders. Second, it finds the first folder in the list that starts with the input character. For instance, if you’re looking for Projects, this method might select the Pending folder when you enter p. If you type pr, Outlook will select the Pending folder and then the next folder in the list that begins with r. If there isn’t one, nothing happens; Outlook won’t look for a folder that begins with the letters pr, as you might expect. To get to Project, enter p twice. The first p will select Pending, the second will select Project.
A long folder list might be the sign of an important person, but it’s also a bit of a nuisance to navigate. This quick keyboard trick will help you navigate your long list of folders.
