Startup Manager- ContolWhats Loading Up. Jan 19, 2001 Have you noticed you computer slowing down lately? It could be you are loading up several programs whenever you restart your machine that you don't know about, or worse yet, that you don't really need. If you download and try out new software from time to time you are bound to end up with various unwanted programs in your startup menu, win.ini file, or buried in your registry. It also seems that every time I buy a software program and install it; I end up with an unwanted registration reminder or some other unwanted program feature in my startup folder. There are various free startup control programs on the market, indeed if you are using Win98 all you have to do is click on Start and then Run, type msconfig and then look under Startup panel and you can control what starts up and what doesn't. However; if you want a little more control than the msconfig command offers than I can recommend Startup Manager by Brad Stowers. I have been using it for a couple years and am very pleased with its features. Startup Manager identifies programs that are started up when-ever Windows starts by detecting those that are listed for startup data in the following areas: Startup Folder WIN.INI – [Run] WIN.INI – [Load] [REGISTRY] User - Run [REGISTRY] User – RunOnce [REGISTRY] Machine - Run [REGISTRY] Machine - RunOnce [REGISTRY] Machine - RunServices [REGISTRY] Machine - RunServicesOnce The data is then displayed in four columns as follows: Status - Programs listed as disabled(red X) or enabled(green checkmark). Title - Shows the name of the program in question. Command - Shows the command that is executed on startup. Location - Tells you where the program is being started from, i.e startup folder, win.in or registry. You can then use the Startup Manager's Toolbar to easily enable, disable, add, edit, and delete links to apps, utilities, and processes that load when you boot up Windows. Startup Manager comes with a Help file that's an excellent primer on how Windows launches programs during startup. It also comes with a check for update button that allows you to ensure you have the latest version installed. You can download the most recent version of Startup Manager.