Useless Knowledge

Something you have no need to know. How I send attachments to colleagues.

I don't know why it has gotten so complicated but it has.

Typically I complete a file in a MS Word folder. Then I go to my email page, write a cover letter for the article, and attach the file thereto. Ah, easy. Right?

Well, the attaching turns out to be complicated, or at least multi-part.

To attach (in the manner my co-workers want) I hit the "Insert" tab above the email.

That causes a new set of tabs to appear, and I hit "Attach File" there.

That produces a drop-down menu, and I hit "OneDrive".

That creates another box, most of which is a list of recent files completed or added to the folder. On the left hand side of that box is a column giving me other actions in the event the file I want isn't showing.

Often, the one I want (when its completion is very recent) is not yet showing. I don't know whether patiently waiting would work. I seldom do that well. So I fiddle a bit with the menu on the left side of the box. When my fiddling impulse is satisfied, I come back to the Recent files. Amazingly enough, the fiddling seems to work. The new item will be displayed.

So ... I can just click it and the file is now attached to the email, right? Still not quite. I click it and I've now earned myself the appearance of a tab that says "Share Link". But I'm well advised to notice that on the rightward end of that tab is a shorter tab with a downward arrow on it. And I don't really want to share the LINK.

I click on that arrow and get one final dropdown menu. This one gives me a choice between Link or Attach. I click on Attach and -- at last! -- the document has been attached to the email.

Such is life in the 21st century. And no, you'll never get back the time you spent reading this.

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