For some reason, Windows 7 does not have a built-in way to adjust the number of Recent Items listed on the Start Menu. Mark Kaelin shows you how to do it yourself with a registry tweak.
I like Microsoft Windows 7 very much and have installed it on all my personal computers; however, there are a few things that baffle me about the way the operating system interface can be configured.
For example, the Recent Items listing on the Start Menu has a default value that you cannot change without performing a Windows Registry hack (Figure A). If you want to change the number of recent programs or the number of recent items in jump lists, they have controls in the customization panel (Figure B). But there is no such obvious configuration panel for Recent Items.Figure A
Recent Items are listed on the Start Menu.
Figure B
Customize the Start Menu.
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Registry Edit
Standard disclaimer: The Windows Registry File is vitally important to the proper operation of the Windows operating system. Please back up the file before you make any registry edits. In Windows 7, click on the Start button and type regedit in the search box. Click on the regedit.exe file in the list of items and answer the UAC prompt. Once in the registry editor (Figure C), navigate to this key:HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer