You'll need this
Startup delayer
This free tool lets you define a priority
list of the order in which booting tools should be loaded into memory. It can
load these utilities over a set amount of time or when it sees your machine
isn't busy. www.r2.com.au
Programs should know their place, sitting on your desktop silently and
unobtrusively until called for. Instead, more and more of them try to run every
time you load Windows, slowing your PC to a halt regardless of whether or not
you want to check for updates, log into your games service, or whatever else
they do.
The more software you have installed on
your machine, the more you’ll notice the problem—to the point that there can be
whole minutes between your desktop appearing and you being able to do anything
with it. Luckily, there are ways to cut through all this. First we'll do a
little spring cleaning. Then you'll find out how a tool called Startup Delayer
can space out the applications you do want to load automatically, letting
Windows handle them quickly, efficiently, and discretely behind the scenes.
1. Make manual tweaks
Boot your PC and, without loading anything,
click the arrow icon in the system tray to see which programs load
automatically. Right-click each one to bring up a menu that it should explain
what they are. Common apps include your graphics card Control Panel, software
update checkers, and antivirus, but every PC will be different.
Some programs, like antivirus software and
Dropbox, need to be loaded and running, and can be left as they are. Other
apps, like Steam, can be loaded when you need them. Right-click each of these
and look for an option along the lines of "Run when Windows starts.'' If
you don't see one, open it, and look in its Preferences/Options menu instead.
2. Get startup delayer
Open your web browser and visit
www.r2.com.au to download Startup Delayer. Launch the setup file, letting it
make a System Restore Point just to be on the safe side, and allow it to run.
It will take a few seconds to scan your PC for applications and give you the
option to load the help file. You can safely skip this part, at least for now.
First, you need to tell Startup Delayer
your priorities. These are based on a sliding scale that goes from loading your
applications as fast as possible (all the way to the left) to only loading the
next one when your PC is effectively sitting idle. As a starting point, we
recommend going with the third or fourth notch from the left.
3. Configure your launch order
By default, all programs are classed as
Normal Startup, which means Delayer loads them as soon as possible. Essential
software like antivirus should remain here, but the rest can be set as Delayed,
meaning they wait until your PC is sitting idle. You can also drag apps into
Disabled if you can't prevent them from loading automatically.
Once they're in the Delayed list, you'll
see that each application is numbered. This is the order in which Startup
Delayer will load them when it finds a quiet moment. To reorder them, simply
select one you wish to move, click on it, and drag it into its new position.
Applications in the "Normal" list don't have a number, all being
loaded at once.
If necessary, you can take charge of
individual applications by selecting them, then assigning either an automatic
(based on how hard your processor/hard drive is working) or timed delay. Both
of these options are listed at the bottom of the screen. You can also hold
Shift or Ctrl to select and delay multiple applications at once.
Restart your PC and see the difference. The
more applications you had running the greater improvement you'll see, but any
machine should feel noticeably faster.
