Section 1.21. Customizing the Start Menu: All Versions


1.21. Customizing the Start Menu: All Versions

It's possible to live a long and happy life without ever tampering with the Start menu. In fact, for many people, the idea of making it look or work differently comes dangerously close to nerd territory.

Still, knowing how to manipulate the Start menu listings may come in handy someday, and provides an interesting glimpse into the way Windows works. And tweaking it to reflect your way of doing things can pay off in efficiency down the road.


Note: Thanks to the User Accounts feature described in Chapter 23, any changes you make to the Start menu apply only to you . Each person with an account on this PC has an independent, customized Start menu. When you sign onto the machine using your name and password, Windows Vista loads your customized Start menu.

1.21.1. Start Menu Settings

Microsoft offers a fascinating set of customization options for the Start menu. It's hard to tell whether these options were selected by a scientific usability study or by a dartboard, but you're likely to find something that suits you.

To view and change the basic options, right-click the Start menu; from the shortcut menu, choose Properties. Now the Taskbar and Start Menu Properties dialog box opens, as seen in Figure 1-10.

Figure 1-10. Top: On this first screen, you can turn off the new, improved Vista two-column Start menu design to return to the single-column Classic Start menu design of Windows versions gone by. Click Customize to get to the good stuff. (The Privacy checkboxes refer to the lower-left section of the Start menu, which lists the programs you use most often, and the Recent Items submenu, which lists documents you've had open . Turn these off if you don't want to risk your supervisor coming by while you're up getting coffee, and noticing that your most recently used programs are Tetris Max, Myst IV, Tomb Raider, and Quake.)
Bottom: Here's the Customize Start Menu dialog box .


When you click the Customize button, you see the dialog box shown at right in Figure 1-10.

1.21.1.1. In the scrolling list

Here you're offered a random assortment of Start-menu tweaks, neatly listed in alphabetical order; they affect the Start menu in some fairly simple yet profound ways. Here, among other things, is where you'll find the show/hide switches for commands on the right side of the Start menu.

  • Computer, Control Panel, Documents, Games , Music, Personal folder . Beneath each of these headings, you'll find three options. The middle one, "Display as a menu," is extremely useful. It means that instead of simply listing the name of a folder (which is what "Display as a link" means), your Start menu sprouts a submenu listing the contents of that folder, as shown at bottom in Figure 1-11.

    Figure 1-11. Left: When "Display as a link" is selected for Control Panel, you can't open a particular Control Panel program directly. Instead, you must choose Start Control Panel, which opens the Control Panel window; now its up to you to open the program you want .
    Right: Turning on "Display as a menu" saves you a step; you now get a submenu that lists each Control Panel program. By clicking one, you can open it directly. This feature saves you the trouble of opening a folder window (such as Control Panel or Documents), double-clicking an icon inside it, and then closing the window again .


    ("Don't display this item," of course, removes the folder in question from your Start menu altogether. That's a good point to remember if you ever sit down at your PC and discover that, for example, the Control Panel appears to have disappeared.)

  • Connect To, Default Programs, Favorites menu, Help, Network, Printers, Run command, Search . All of these items are things that can appear in the right-hand column of the Start menu. They're things that you can hide or show, at your whim. Just turn off the checkboxes of the items you consider clutter.

    For example, if you've absorbed the fact that pressing the F1 key opens the Windows help program, you may as well reclaim the screen space occupied by this command in the Start menu by turning it off here.

    FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTION
    Opening the Control Panel Window When You Can't

    OK, I'm with youI turned on "Display as a menu" for the Control Panel, so now I can open any Control Panel program directly from my Start menu. Trouble is, now I can't open the Control Panel window itself! Nothing happens when I click the Start Control Panel command. How do I open the Control Panel window?

    Ah, there's a troublemaker in every class.

    Open the Start menu and then right-click Control Panel. Choose Open from the shortcut menu. You're back in business. nostalgia corner



    Note: The Favorites menu referred to here is a list of your favorite Web sitesthe same ones you've bookmarked when using Internet Explorer (page 376). Thereafter, you can use the Start menu to launch Internet Explorer and travel directly to the selected site.
  • Enable context menus and dragging and dropping . Turning on this checkbox has two benefits. First, it lets you customize your Start menu simply by dragging icons onto it, as described in the next section. Second, it lets you right-click Start-menu items, which produces a useful shortcut menu containing commands like Rename and Remove from This List. (If this checkbox is turned off, right-clicking Start menu items has no effect.)

  • Highlight newly installed programs . Whenever you (or some techie in the building) installs a new program into the Start menu, it shows up with colored highlighting for a few days. The idea, of course, is to grab your attention and make you aware of your expanded software suite. If you could do without this kind of reminder, then just turn off this checkbox.

    NOSTALGIA CORNER
    Options for the Classic Start Menu

    If you've turned on the Classic (single-column) Start menu as described on page 26, clicking the corresponding Customize button shown in Figure 1-10 offers its own dialog box full of options.

    The Add, Remove, and Advanced buttons , for example, let you add or remove any icons you like (disks, folders, programs, documents) to the top part of the Start menu for easy access. Sort sorts them, and Clear expunges the list of recent items you've had open (presumably for privacy reasons).

    Many checkboxes in the scrolling list match the options described on these pages. The rest either control which commands are listed in the menu (checkboxes beginning with the word Display) or turn certain commands into submenus (checkboxes beginning with the word Expand). This is a very handy feature when applied to the Control Panel, for example.

    Finally, note the option called Use Personalized Menus. When this checkbox is turned on, Windows watches you and studies your behavior (that is, even more than usual). If it notices that you haven't been using certain Start menu commands, Windows hides them, making the menu listing shorter.

    The button at the bottom of the All Programs menu indicates that theres more to the list than you're seeing; click it to see the full menu.

    Some people find it disconcerting that Personalized Menus changes the Start menu frequently, making it difficult to get used to the positions of familiar items. Other people find that this feature makes the All Programs menu and its submenus easier to use, because it frees them from hunting through commands that they don't use much.


  • Open submenus when I pause on them with the mouse pointer . When this checkbox is turned on, you don't actually have to click a submenu to view its options.

  • Search communications , Search favorites and history , Search programs . These checkboxes let you tell Vista which items you want searched whenever you use the new Search command. Turning some of these off means faster searches and, presumably, better results, since you won't be wading through data that you're already sure doesn't contain what you're looking for.

    "Communications" means your email and chat transcripts; "favorites and history" refers to your Web bookmarks and History list in Internet Explorer; and "programs" means the names of your programs. (So what's left? All your documents, for starters.)

  • Sort All Programs menu by name . Yep, here it is, the new Vista feature that the world's compulsives have been waiting for: a self-alphabetizing All Programs list. (All right, that was uncalled for; truth is, having the list in A-to-Z order can make life easier for just about anyone .)


    Note: If you opt to turn off this option, you can always make the All Programs list snap into alphabetical order on your command, as described in the Tip on page 51.
  • Use large icons . You don't need a book to explain this one. It affects the little icon that appears next to each Start menu item's name (in the left columneither the regular Start menu or the All Programs list). Bigger icons are pretty, but of course they limit the number of items the list can hold.

1.21.1.2. Below the scrolling list

Below the massive list of checkboxes, two additional controls await in the Customize dialog box:

  • Number of recent programs to display . The number here refers to the lower-left column of the Start menu, the one that lists programs you've used most recently. By increasing this number, you make the Start menu tallerbut you ensure that more of your favorite programs are listed and ready to launch. If this item is dimmed, it's because you've turned off "Store and display a list of recently opened items" (page 37).

  • Internet link, E-mail link . Use these checkboxes and pop-up menus to specify whether or not you want your Web browser and email program listed at the top of the left-hand Start menu columnand if so, which ones.

  • Use Default Settings . If you've fiddled these checkboxes and buttons to death and made a real mess of your Start menu, one click on this button puts everything back the way it was when it came from the mind of Microsoft.

1.21.2. Adding Icons to the Start Menu

Usually, when you install a new program, its installer automatically inserts the program's name and icon in your Start All Programs menu. There may be times, however, when you want to add something to the Start menu yourself, such as a folder, document, or even a disk.

1.21.2.1. The "free" sections of the Start menu

In the following pages, you'll read several references to the "free" portions of the Start menu. These are the two areas that you, the lowly human, are allowed to modify freelyadding, removing, renaming, or sorting as you see fit:

  • The top-left section of the Start menu . This little area lists what Microsoft calls pinned programs and filesthings you use often enough that you want a fairly permanent list of them at your fingertips.

  • The All Programs menu . This, of course, is the master list of programs (and anything elsedocuments, folders, disksyou want to see listed).

These two legal areas are highlighted back in Figure 1-3.

In other words, most of the following techniques don't work when applied to the listings in the right column, nor the lower- left quadrant of the Start menu, where Vista lists your most recently used programs.

1.21.2.2. Method 1: Drag an icon directly

Microsoft wouldn't be Microsoft if it didn't provide at least 437 different ways to do this job. Here are three of the world's favorites:

  1. Locate the icon you want to add to your Start menu .

    It can be an application (see the box on page 51), a document, a folder you frequently access, one of the programs in your Control Panel's folder, or even your hard drive or CD-drive icon. (Adding disks and folders to the Start menu is especially handy, because it lets you dive directly into their contents without having to drill down through the Computer window.)


    Tip: Adding an application name to your All Programs menu requires that you find the program file , as described on page 51. To do so, either use the Search command described in Chapter 3, or just dig around for it in any Explorer window. You'll find your program files in the Computer Local Disk (C:) Program Files folder.

    Drag it directly onto the Start button .

    If you release the mouse now, Windows adds the name of the icon you've just dragged to the bottom of the "pinned items" list (Figure 1-12, right). You're now welcome to drag it up or down within this list.

    Figure 1-12. Left: You can add something to the top of your Start menu by dragging it (from whatever folder it's in) onto the Start button to open the Start menu, and then dragging it directly into position. (Once the Start menu is open, you can also drag it onto the All Programs linkand once that menu is open, drag it anywhere in that list.)
    Right: When you release the mouse, you'll find that the item is happily ensconced where you dropped it. Remember, too, that you're always free to drag anything up or down in the "free" areas of the menu: the circled area shown here, and the All Programs list .


    Alternatively, if you keep the mouse button pressed as you drag onto the Start button, the Start menu itself opens. As long as the button is still pressed, you can drag the new icon wherever you want among the items listed in the top-left section of the menu (Figure 1-12, left).


    Note: If this drag-and-dropping business doesn't seem to work, it's because you've turned off "Enable dragging and dropping," as described in the previous section.

    Similarly, if you drag to the Start button and then onto the All Programs command without releasing the mouse, you can place it exactly where you want in the Start All Programs menu. (If Vista doesn't let you drag it anywhere you like, it's because you've turned on "Sort All Programs menu by name" as described earlier.)


    Tip: If "Sort All Programs menu by name" is not turned on, your All Programs list may gradually become something of a mess.If you want to restore some order to itspecifically, alphabeticaljust right-click anywhere on the open All Programs menu and choose Sort by Name from the shortcut menu. (This command doesn't appear if "Sort All Programs menu by name" is turned on.)
1.21.2.3. Method 2: Use the Add Listing wizard

If you've placed your Start menu into the single-column Classic mode, the same drag-and-drop routine works for adding new programs. But you can also use one of Microsoft's wizards for the same purpose. Right-click the Start button; from the shortcut menu, choose Properties; and use the Add, Remove, and Sort buttons.

1.21.2.4. Method 3: Use the Start Menu folders

Windows Vista builds the All Programs menu by consulting the contents of two critical folders:

  • Local Disk (C:) ProgramData Microsoft Windows Start Menu Programs folder . This folder contains shortcuts for programs that are available to everybody who has an account on your machine (Chapter 23).

  • Local Disk (C:) Users [your name] AppData Roaming Microsoft Windows Start Menu Programs folder . This invisible folder stashes shortcuts for the programs that you have added to the Start menuand they appear only when you have logged into the machine.

Therefore, instead of the fancy icon-adding wizards and drag-and-drop schemes described above, you may prefer to fine-tune your Start menu the low-tech way. Just open the relevant Start Menu folderand you don't have to do any burrowing into invisible folders, either. See Figure 1-13.

Figure 1-13. To edit your All Programs menu, you can edit its source folders .
To begin, right-click the Start button; from the shortcut menu, choose either Open All Users (to view the list of programs for the masses) or Open (to see the list of your personal programs). Those commands take you directly to the deeply buried Programs folders described above .
Open the Programs folder before you .
You can add shortcut icons to, remove them from, or rename them in your All Programs menu just by manipulating the shortcuts in this folder .


1.21.3. Removing Icons from the Start Menu

When it comes time to prune an overgrown Start menu, there are three different sets of instructions, depending on which section of the Start menu needs purging.

  • The left-side column and All Programs list . Right-click the item you've targeted for extinction , and then, from the shortcut menu, choose either "Remove from this list" or "Delete."

    In both cases, you're only deleting the shortcut that appears on the menu. Deleting items from the Start menu doesn't actually uninstall any software.

  • The right-side column . Open the Properties Customize dialog box for the Start menu (page 44), and then turn off the checkboxes for the items you want expunged.


1.21.4. Renaming Start-Menu Items

Although few people realize it, you can rename anything in the Start menu's left side. Click the Start menu to open it, right-click the command you want to rename, and choose Rename from the shortcut menu. The name of the command sprouts a little editing box. Type the new name and then press Enter.

1.21.5. Reorganizing the Start Menu

To change the order of listings in the "free" portions of the Start menu, including the All Programs list, just drag the commands up and down the lists as you see fit. As you drag an item, a black line appears to show you the resulting location of your dragging action. Release the mouse when the black line is where you want the relocated icon to appear.


Tip: If you change your mind while you're dragging, press the Esc key to leave everything as it was.

You can drag program names from the lower-left section of the Start menu, toobut only into one of the "free" areas.


Tip: A reminder: If you can't seem to drag program names around in the All Programs list, it's probably because you've told Vista to auto-alphabetize this list (page 48).
1.21.5.1. Add folders to hold submenus

As noted earlier, some of the items in the All Programs list are actually folders. For example, clicking Games reveals a submenu that lists all the games that come with Windows (see Figure 1-14).

Figure 1-14. Some Programs-menu items have submenu folders and sub -submenu folders. As you move through the layers , you're performing an action known as "drilling down." You'll see this phrase often in manuals and computer booksfor example, "Drill down to the Calculator to crunch a few quick numbers ."


In past Windows versions, clicking such folders made them sprout submenus , some of which had submenus of their own, and on and on. In Vista, folders no longer expand horizontally that waythey expand vertically, as shown in Figure 1-14.

It's worthwhile to know that you can create Programs-menu folders of your own and stock them with whatever icons you like. For instance, you may want to create a folder for CD-ROM-based games, eliminating those long lists from the All Programs menu.

To add a folder to the All Programs menu, follow these steps:

  1. Right-click the Start menu button . From the shortcut menu, choose Explore.

    The subfolders you are about to create in the All Programs menu will show up only when you are logged on. (If you want to make a change that affects everybody with an account on this computer, choose Explore All Users from the shortcut menu instead.)

    In any case, the Start Menu Explorer window appears.

  2. Open the Programs folder .

    Its contents are arrayed before you, as shown in Figure 1-15.

    Figure 1-15. Notice that some of the items in Programs have folder icons; these are the folders that hold submenus. If you click Programs (in the left pane) before creating the new folder, you'll create a folder within the body of the All Programs list. To add a folder whose name will appear above the line in the All Programs menu, click Start Menu (in the left pane) before creating a new folder .


  3. Choose Organize New Folder .

    Or, if your right mouse button hasn't been getting enough exercise, right-click a blank spot in the right pane, and then choose New Folder from the shortcut menu.

  4. Tip: You can even create folders within folders in your Start All Programs menu. Just double-click to open any of the existing folders in the Programs folder, and then repeat from step 3.
    All Programs menu, already sorted into alphabetical order.

    Now you can put your favorite file, folder, disk, or application icons into this new folder. To do so, drag an icon onto the Start All Programs menu, and then, without releasing the mouse, onto the All Programs link, and then into the new folder/submenu you created.




Windows Vista. The Missing Manual
Windows Vista: The Missing Manual
ISBN: 0596528272
EAN: 2147483647
Year: 2006
Pages: 284
Authors: David Pogue

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