Bring Order To Start Menu Mayhem
Dear Fred, Thanks for a great newsletter. I wonder if you can suggest an answer to this problem which I think many people must have. When I go to Start-Programs (I am running XP SP2) the programs are displayed but as I have quite a lot of programs many of them are out of sight to the right of the screen. I'm sure there must be a way to overcome this but I have been unable to find it. There does not seem to be a way to scroll through the programs to see the ones out of sight. I have searched the Help and looked on the Internet and on the Microsoft site but no success. Can you please tell us how to overcome this problem which I think must affect many people? Thanks and kind regards, ---Mark Digby
We've covered this before, but it comes up often enough in
reader mail that it bears a fresh take. Let's start by referring you to two
of the most recent LangaList items that directly address what you're trying to
do:
http://langa.com/newsletters/2006/2006-06-22.htm#7
http://langa.com/newsletters/2006/2006-03-30.htm#5
The root cause of this problem is the inconsistent way Microsoft and other companies design software
install programs, and the near-universal result is that we all end up with Start menus
that are disorganized and bloated.
Rather than--- or in addition to--- configuring the menu to scroll through all
this stuff, why not clean house?
A typical Start menu is a nightmare of inconsistent categorization and needless
bloat. Looking at just the Start/Programs menu, some items are organized by
software type--- "Accessories," "Administrative Tools," "Games," etc. Most are
listed by software company name, often with submenus organized around specific
products. Some installation programs place the executable right there on the
Programs menu.
Installation programs are also inconsistent about what kinds of files they place
on the Start menu. Some add only, say, the main program executable, while others
include uninstall programs, read-me files, Help files or others.
Some installation routines place items on the Start menu of the user account
active during installation, while others place them on the Start menu for all
users.
Rather than accepting the disorganized mess that Windows and third-party
software has created on your Start menu, it makes sense to choose an
organizational schema meaningful to you, and impose order on your Start menu.
For example, you could organize according to application type. You might simply
place links to all the executables you use right there on the Programs menu. The
important thing is to customize and streamline the Start menu for maximum speed
and ease of use.
Each Start/Programs menu is nothing more than a collection of shortcuts. You can
access these shortcuts through the Windows Explorer.
To get started, find your Documents and Settings folder. Inside, you'll likely
find a folder for each user, plus an "All Users" folder and an "admin" folder.
Each of these has a Start Menu folder inside and each of those has a Programs
folder. By changing the nested folders and shortcuts in the Programs folders,
you'll change the Start/Programs menu.
Note that the Start/Programs menu you see is probably a combination of the Start
menus in the "All Users" folder and the specific user you're currently logged in
as. If you're the only user of a specific PC, you might choose to centralize
Start menu items in the "All Users" Start menu to keep future Start menu
maintenance simpler.
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