Displaying Path Names in the Menu Bar

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated December 28, 2024)
This tip applies to Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003

There is a way to display a full path name on Word's menu bar:

Right-click anywhere on a toolbar. This displays a Context menu for the toolbars.
Choose Customize from the Context menu. Word displays the Customize dialog box.
Click on the Commands tab.
In the Categories list, choose Web.
Drag the Address command (the first one in the command list) to the right of the Help menu on the menu bar. This action positions the Address drop-down list at the end of the menu bar.
Click on Close.

Normally, the Address drop-down list is used if you are working with the Internet-aware side of Word. However, when you are working with plain old documents, the control shows the current path and document name of the document that is currently active.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (1249) applies to Microsoft Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. Learn more about Allen...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Applying Bullets from the Keyboard

Most people use the toolbars to apply bullets to paragraphs. If you want to apply them using the keyboard, then you can ...

Discover More

Saving and Using a Form

After you have created your custom form, you will need to save it so that you can use it as often as needed. Word makes ...

Discover More

Modifying Behavior of the Open Dialog Box

The Open dialog box is one that few of us think about, but you can control how it behaves with a little bit of macro ...

Discover More

The First and Last Word on Word! Bestselling For Dummies author Dan Gookin puts his usual fun and friendly candor back to work to show you how to navigate Word 2019. Spend more time working and less time trying to figure it all out! Check out Word 2019 For Dummies today!

More WordTips (menu)

Opening a Backup File

If you have Word configured to save backup copies of your document, you may want to actually load one of those copies at ...

Discover More

Setting a Document Naming Convention

Want your document file names to follow a specific naming convention? Word doesn't provide a direct way to set up your ...

Discover More

Using a Standard Format in a Suggested File Name

Many companies (and some individuals) use specific formats for naming their documents. If you want Word to recognize your ...

Discover More

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

View most recent newsletter.

Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

Notify me about new comments ONLY FOR THIS TIP

Notify me about new comments ANYWHERE ON THIS SITE

Hide my email address

What is five more than 7?

There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)

This Site

Got a version of Word that uses the menu interface (Word 97, Word 2000, Word 2002, or Word 2003)? This site is for you! If you use a later version of Word, visit our WordTips site focusing on the ribbon interface.