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How to use the Windows inbuilt Application Launcher
By Martin English | August 28, 2008
When was the last time you actually used Internet Explorer as the default browser on one of your Windows computers ? Why bother? Well, instead of installing a program launcher like Launchy you may just want to use the features Windows has already given you to work with.
One of the most usefull feature of Internet Explorer is the favorites menu. Most of us forget that you can add local programs, drives, and folders to your favorites as well.
Since the Favorites menu appears on any explorer pane with the standard menus, you can add things like your downloads, documents, portable applications, c:\windows\fonts, or anything else you use on a daily basis.
For example, I’m an inveterate fiddler, and download and demo lots of little applications, so I have links to appwiz.cpl, my C:\Program Files\revouninstaller \revouninstaller.exe and my C:\Documents and Settings\myuser\My Documents\My Downloads. It’s a lot easier than trudging through my folders to get at them.
If you customize your start menu to display your favorites as well, you’ve got a single location to make navigating your directories less bothersome.
Topics: Microsoft, Productivity, software | 4 Comments »
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August 28th, 2008 at 10:41 am
I use the address bar very similarly. I have shortcuts on my desktop names how I’d like them (eg. Remote Desktop is rdc) so I just jump into the address bar and type rdc and I have my remote desktop window. This also works very well for putty (if you have the executable on your desktop) as you can type putty into the address bar and be taken straight there. Increased my productivity 2 fold once I started using it.
August 28th, 2008 at 11:13 am
August 28th, 2008 at 5:19 pm
I use a combination of yLaunch (my own launcher app, which can run multiple related progs from a macro) and a self-hiding Windows Toolbar. In XP, just create an empty folder on the desktop (e.g. Toolbar) and then drag it to the side of the screen. Set it to auto-hide, and then drop other desktop icons onto it. It’ll pop out from the side like a KDE panel, and you can run relatively often-used bits and pieces from there.
August 29th, 2008 at 8:31 am