Recently, I came across Startup Delayer by r2 Studios, which is a great startup manager.
Before starting with Windows Vista, I used to use Mike Lin’s Startup Control Panel to manage which programs I wanted to have started on boot and which ones to ignore.
On his recommendation, once I switched to Vista, I used the Vista built-in function:
“Windows Vista, after all these years, finally has a very good startup manager built-in; go to Control Panel > Performance Information and Tools, and then click on Manage Startup Programs on the left.”
I may fully switch to Startup Delayer now though, which not only allows me to disable some items, but to make others wait a bit before starting up.
It really isn’t a good idea to overwhelm Windows on startup with many programs to load – especially if you don’t need them right then and there.
My longest delay is now the Sun Java Update checker. There really isn’t a reason why it should run in the first three minutes after me logging in for example.
I have also set my chat program to wait for a minute before it starts as well. I really don’t need to chat right after logging in. I can wait a bit.
Right now I have 11 processes start delayed – that makes for a nicer startup sequence. There are still a few I don’t dare yet to delay. Anti-Virus for example seems to be a good idea to start as early as possible.
And as a side effect, the delayed start also reduces the issues of some taskbar icons not being created at all times because of Windows resource issues.
The program is not for beginners in computing, though. While it is very easy to use, you still have to know or research the programs you work with – especially when disabling them. The program doesn’t help you figure out what the processes are, but it certainly is a great tool to have.
Mark Krieger helps organizations and individuals to create systems for success, both on the IT and operations side and implement strategies for financial well-being. www.makbiz.ca