Blocking the First Sentence from File Info

Suppose you want to type a Word document and save it, password protected. Suppose further that you intended the first sentence to capture the intended reader's attention, but you didn't want the entire world to read it.

You chose "Save As" so that you could use the Tools dropdown and the Security Options to set a password. You notice that most of your inflammatory first sentence has been placed into the filename field by default as Word always does, so you highlight the incriminating phrase and gave your document a new, innocuous name. You save it to the desktop.

Now minimize all windows and go to the desktop. Hover the mouse pointer over the icon for your new file. Up pops a window that shows the type, author and size, and, for good measure, right there in plain text for the world to see, most of the first sentence of your document—no password required!

What you are actually seeing when you hover the mouse over the icon is the document's title. This title is displayed automatically, unless you have an older version of Windows that doesn't display information balloons about files. While you can hack the Windows registry to turn off the balloons, it is easier to just get rid of the title within Word. Follow these steps if you are using a version of Word prior to Word 2007:

1. Open your document.
2. Choose Properties from the File menu. Word displays the Properties dialog box.
3. Make sure the Summary tab is displayed. (Click here to see a related figure.)
4. Clear anything that is in the Title field, or replace the field contents with text you want displayed when the mouse is hovered over the document icon.
5. Click OK.
6. Save your document.

If you are using Word 2007, follow these steps:

1. Open your document.
2. Click the Office button and then click Prepare and, finally, Properties. Word displays the Document Information Panel at the top of your document, just below the ribbon.
3. Use the Document Properties drop-down list (top-left corner of the Document Information Panel) to choose Advanced Properties. Word displays the Properties dialog box for the document.
4. Make sure the Summary tab is displayed.
5. Clear anything that is in the Title field, or replace the field contents with text you want displayed when the mouse is hovered over the document icon.
6. Click OK.
7. Close the Document Information Panel.

The Title property is set automatically when you first save a document. Word puts the initial document text (up to the first punctuation mark) in the Title property, and uses the same text as a suggested file name. Changing the file name when you save the document does not result in the Title property being changed; you must do is separately, as described above.

So that you don't forget to change the Title property when first saving a document, it is a good idea to configure Word to prompt you for the properties. Here are the steps that will work pre-Word 2007:

1. Choose Options from the Tools menu. Word displays the Options dialog box.
2. Make sure the Save tab is displayed. (Click here to see a related figure.)
3. Ensure the Prompt for Document Properties check box is selected.
4. Click OK.

If you are using Word 2007, there is no longer a corresponding setting. (I guess Microsoft figured you wouldn't need to be prompted for the document properties.)