Jumping Around Folders

If you work with multiple workbooks at the same time, you know that traversing folder (directory) paths in the Open dialog box can be tedious. For instance, let's assume you have a workbook you are working on. You open a second workbook, this one in a different directory. (You find it and open it after clicking your way to it in the Open dialog box.)

Now it comes time to open a third workbook. When you display the Open dialog box, Excel assumes you want to start from where you opened the previous workbook. What if you want to actually open it from the same directory in which the first workbook was located? Of course, you can again use the Open dialog box to traverse back to the original directory. An easier method may be to do the following:

1. Display the first workbook.
2. Press F12. Excel displays the Save As dialog box, starting from the directory in which the workbook was originally loaded. (This is the directory you want.)
3. Close the Save As dialog box by immediately pressing Esc or clicking on Cancel.

Now when you use the Open dialog box, Excel starts in the folder you were last in, which was the one displayed in step 2—the one you want.