Windows 10: alt+tab not returning to previous windows after opening a word file

Hello,Windows 10.I open a Word file from Windows Explorer.Then I press alt+tab to return to Explorer. That is the previous windows right?But it opens another Word file.This is confusing.I work.It CONFUSES me to have in front of my eyes a Word doc and its content that are not in my mind instead of the Explorer Window where I have things to do.There are other erratic behavior with alt+tab.How can I stop this behavior.Strictly previous window.Thank you.

:)

 

Alt + Tab in Windows 10 does not Toggle to Previous Screen


Are these windows of the same program or windows of different programs?

On my Preview Eval 10547 build running in a VM I have the exact same behavior as I've had in all previous versions of Windows.

I have a Word doc, my email program, Chrome and CCleaner open. Hitting Alt + Tab auto switches from the current in focus program to the next on the list and also holding Alt after the first press of the Tab key shows a thumbnail of all open programs. So I see Word, Chrome, Thunderbird and CCleaner windows as thumbnails. Hitting the Tab key again cycles through those open windows. Once I let go of the Alt key the one I have chosen become the current In Focus window. Hitting Alt + Tab again take me back to the last In Focus window.

I do have Classic Shell installed so that might of changed something from the default of Windows 10.

 

Opening programs changes Alt+Tab Order

The problem I'm having is that when I open a new file in a program that is already open, all of the windows of that type are brought to the foreground with the new one in front (theres a more detailed explanation at the bottom if this is not clear). This
becomes an annoying problem when I try to use alt+tab because now the order of my programs is completely messed up and takes switching between multiple windows over and over again. I've never had this problem in windows 7, 8, or 8.1 so I think it may be a
new feature in windows 10. This has really been annoying me and really hinders productivity. I have been unable to find any solutions for it. Please Help!

Detailed explanation:

Say that I have 4 windows open: one browser, word file A, and word file B, and one pdf. I am working between the PDF and the browser and am happily alt+tabing to switch between the two. The order of my alt+Tab list is : browser, pdf, word A, word B.

Next I need to open another word document (word C) for reference or later use. I open the document, but when the file opens in word, the window with word A and the window with word B come to the foreground, then word C comes up as my active window. Now the
order of my alt+tab list is: Word C, Word A, Word B, browser, pdf.

This means that I have to alt+tab 4 times and then 5 times to bring the browser and pdf back to the foreground. I want to make it so that when I open word C, it opens as the active window and does not bump the other word documents up as well. The alt+tab
order should be: Word C, browser, pdf, word A, word B.

 

Alt + Tab in Windows 10 does not Toggle to Previous Screen

After some further investigation, it seems that at least in my case the issue is specific to Excel. If I have two Excel spreadsheets open and a third window of another program, and I'm currently viewing the other program, hitting Alt+Tab flips to one of the Excel spreadsheets. But when I hit Alt+Tab again to flip back to the other program, I see a very brief glimpse of the thumbnails of all open windows, but I'm still on the Excel spreadsheet. I have to hold down Alt and hit Tab to fully view the thumbnails and then Tab a second time to get back to the other program.

I have Excel 2010, which I used when my computer had Windows 7 just as recently as yesterday afternoon, and there was no problem with using Alt+Tab at all, even when more than one Excel spreadsheet was open. Although I've installed Windows 10, I'm still using Excel 2010, so I figure it must be some interaction between Windows 10 and Excel.