Recent Items showing first 15 rather than most recent 10

Suddenly the Recent Items list accessible from the Start menu is showing the first 15 items in some large alphabetical list of items accessed in the past. Previously it had been showing the most recent (I'm sure) 10 (I think) in alphabetical order, which is the way I understand it's intended to work.

Now, for example, if I empty the list and then access 16 files beginning with the first 16 letters of the alphabet, in order, the 16th doesn't show up at all, even though it was the one most recently accessed. When I look in \Users\{user name}\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Recent, the entries are sorted by date in descending order, so that the file beginning with the 16th letter is at the top, even though it doesn't even appear in the Start menu Recent Items list.

I first noticed this problem after I found a PC Magazine article on the best free software, downloaded a bunch, and installed three: BinaryFortress fileseek, IObit Uninstaller, and SlimWare SlimCleaner. I expect that one of them made some subtle registry tweak which I have to change back. I'm least suspicious of fileseek, and most suspicious of SlimCleaner. My hunch is based on the degree of utility function each is alleged to have.

Any ideas?

Thank you.

Uninstall IObit Uninstaller, and SlimWare SlimCleaner.

IObit does not have a good reputation. It is sad that PC Mag suggested any app by IObit.

Replace SlimWare SlimCleaner with CCleaner. Any tool that uses the term Optimizer smells of "snake oil" to me.

As far as solving your recent list issue. Let's see what other members have to say about that.

I uninstalled IObit Uninstaller (irony here) and SlimCleaner. The uninstalls left a couple of .db files in Program Files (x86)\Slimware and many more files in Program Files (x86)\IObit; I deleted both folders. I ran CCleaner (I already had it, and other Piriform products, which I like well enough to have paid for) on the registry; it found 4 entries which it deleted.

Then I used regedit to look for instances of "iobit" and "slimcleaner", and found 6-8 of each. Some (such as "IObit" subordinate to "Software") look like obvious candidates for deletion.

In other cases (such as an item with one of the search arguments as its value), it's not so clear what to do. Set the item's value to null, or delete the item, or delete the next higher level item? Or sometimes one and sometimes another? Or leave well enough alone?

On the subject of a Clean Install... I expect that would be a significant amount of work, with lots of desirable settings lost, to repair something annoying, but apparently (so far anyway) relatively minor.

On the subject of a Repair Install... How does the program know the difference between an undesirable registry tweak made by IObit or Slimware, and a desirable one I caused by by some option I chose somewhere?

Thank you.

Yesterday evening, two plus days after I noticed the problem, it's gone, and the Start Menu Recent Items list is showing the files I expect. This time I have no ideas about what might have made the changes necessary to repair the damage.

so is it normal for startmenu's recent items to display most recent at the top, and not alphabetically?

just created a new user profile, even that obeys the illogical sort (alphabetically) recent-items-menulist