We can disable Recent items list which shows the list of recently opened files. It can be done in the following way in Windows Vista.
- Right click on Start button in the task bar
- Select Properties
![](http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_1UkMMBGA8eQ/SWXvkHgjDUI/AAAAAAAAAVY/fEPkM8rQbrA/s400/startmenu_properties.jpg)
- Under Privacy section uncheck “Store and display a list of recently opened files”
- Click Apply and OK