Hello lucyfur,
Thank you for your question.
For the more advanced user, you can type "msconfig" at the Start Menu
/ Run prompt and choose the Startup tab to select which programs you
wish to run at startup. This assumes that you know what the programs
that are listed really are, since they are sometimes listed by their
executable name and not program name. Most often, you can easily
figure out what programs are referred to in this list, however, some
might be a bit cryptic. You will find a good page on this utility at:
http://www.pacs-portal.co.uk/startup_content.htm
"Virtually all applications you install using the default installation
these days decide that they should start-up when Windows starts. If
you allow these to take control, you can end up with a situation where
(unless you have sufficient memory installed) every other program
slows down to be unusable.
The reason for this is that all of these programs use a portion of the
system memory and resources which leaves a smaller percentage for
other programs once they're opened. On my old system for example,
prior to tweaking I had 33 programs running at start-up with the
system resources at 59% and Windows took an age before it was ready
for use. Post tweaking I had a mere 10, with system resources back to
92% and Windows was up and running within a minute.
HOW CAN I IDENTIFY THESE PROGRAMS?
Win9x/Me/2K/XP users:
Use the "System Configuration Utility" (MSCONFIG) to identify startup
programs. MSCONFIG is available for all Win9x/Me/2K/XP users (Win95/2K
user can use the respective versions from here).
You invoke it by clicking Start then Run. In the Open box, type
msconfig.exe followed by enter. Once displayed, click on the "Startup"
tab. You will see a list of items and the 2 columns that we're
interested in are "Name" (WinME) or "Startup Item" (WinXP) and
"Command". For Win98 the columns aren't named but the one on the left
is the equivalent of "Name" and the one on the right is the equivalent
of "Command"..."
It is a good tutorial.
Depending on which Operating System you are using, you might find that
the resources gained by unchecking some of these files will be a great
value. You will find a great resource for what runs (or might run) at
startup and what can be safely eliminated (and what can not) at thsi
page:
http://www.azpchelp.com/StartupListA-F.htm
And another here:
http://www2.whidbey.net/djdenham/Uncheck.htm
And here:
http://www.5starsupport.com/info/startup.htm
These lists will help you determine what is required, what is not and
what is optional and why. You can find many lists like this by
searching Google for "startup programs".
If you really do desire a startup manager, you can find quite a few at
the CNET Downloads list:
http://download.com.com/3120-20-0.html?qt=startup+manager&tg=dl-2001
CNET > Downloads > Windows > Search results for startup manager
Sorting by user rating, here a few of the most highly rated:
Windows Startup Manager 2.0
http://download.com.com/3000-2094-7300823.html?tag=lst-3-2
This program can give any program more memory, power, and stability.
It manages all programs launched normally during system start-up. You
can create profiles and select them during start-up, and run any
program as the only thread of the system, even without the shell. A
protection system allows you to decide which programs children can
run. The program does not fully support KPS.
Custom StartUp 2.00
http://download.com.com/3000-2342-4891010.html?tag=lst-3-3
Custom StartUp is designed to help you to manage which programs will
be launched when Windows starts, without the need to edit the Registry
or the Win.INI file manually. The program is also designed to allow
you to back up configurations and restore them later. This option is
useful when you want to test several start-up configurations. Custom
StartUp has new dialogs for warnings, which show more information
about the displayed warning. Also, from the pop-up menu (which shows
when you click a start-up item with the right mouse button) you can
open the folder that contains the program. You can also save and print
reports.
Startup Manager 1.0
http://download.com.com/3000-2094-8940756.html?tag=lst-3-5
"This useful program allows you to modify what programs are or are not
loaded when you startup windows. Simply check the corresponding
checkbox and thats it! Features: -Enable/Disable a program from
starting when windows starts. -Restart your computer directly from
Startup Manager to test your actions."
I also searched NoNags to see what could be found there for Startup
Managers and located:
http://www.ded.com/nonags/index.html
Starter
Starter v5.6.1.19 for Win9x/NT4/ME/Win2k/XP (450 kb)
From NonagsPLUS (Members) (450 kb)
Updated: Dec 22, 2002
Homepage http://codestuff.mirrorz.com/
Author:CodeStuff
Description:Highly configurable and easy to use utility for managing
your windows startup. One can choose which programms are allowed to
run when Windows is starting up. Disable an annoying application in
one click of mouse! Terminate an unwanted or hanging process, even a
Windows service. Freeware among a lot of analogues.
Startup Control Panel
Startup Control Panel v3.0 for Win9x/NT4/ME/Win2k/XP (582 kb)
From NonagsPLUS (Members) (582 kb)
Updated: Jan 01, 2002
Homepage http://go.to/aksoftware/
Author: Anders Kjersem
Description: Startup Control Panel is an application to control what
programs get started when windows loads... It can disable items
started from the start menu and the windows registry. (For Current and
All Users on NT/2000/XP)
And
Startup Control Panel
Startup Control Panel 2.6 for Win9x/NT4/ME/Win2k (37 kb)
From NonagsPLUS (Members) (37 kb)
Updated: Jan 29, 2000
Homepage http://www.mlin.net/
Author: Mike Lin
Description: Startup Control Panel is a nifty control panel applet
that allows you to easily configure which programs run when your
computer starts. It's simple to use and won't burden your system. A
valuable tool for system administrators!
As you can see, there are many utilities for this function and they
range from free to $30 and more. But, you may just find that the built
in MSCONFIG program and a handy guide or two is all you really need.
If you desire to test even more of these utilities, you can follow the
results of this Google search:
"startup manager" + windows
://www.google.com/search?q="startup%20manager"%20%2B%20windows
There are over 8,000 hits fo rthis search and just the first page will
bring about a number of other utilites not mentioned above:
Advanced Start Up Manager
http://www.rayslab.com/startup_manager/startup_manager.html
Windows Startup Manager
http://www.pcworld.com/downloads/file_description/0,fid,7608,00.asp
Kissco Startup Manager
http://www.startupmgr.com/index.asp
And many, many more.
I trust my research has uncovered a good selection of these utilities
to consider as well as an understanding of what is already built into
the operating system. If a link above should fail to work or anything
require further explanation or research, please do post a Request for
Clarification prior to rating the answer and closing the question and
I will be pleased to assist further.
Regards,
-=clouseau=- |
