Manage programs in Windows XP

Most computers are delivered with an array of program icons on the Windows Desktop. Each icon with an arrow in its bottom left corner is a shortcut to a program, and double-clicking the icon launches the program. For those who don’t like double-clicking or just find it tricky, it’s also possible to right-click an icon and select Open: the result is the same. As new programs are installed on the computer, the number of icons on the Desktop grows until it becomes difficult to find the one you need. The Desktop shown here is rapidly reaching that state.

One way of tidying up unruly icons is to right-click anywhere on the Windows Desktop and then hover the mouse pointer over Arrange Icons By. When a side menu opens, click on Auto Arrange. This lines up the icons neatly on the left of the screen, as shown here. However, many experienced Windows users prefer to savagely thin out the Desktop icons or even dispense with them altogether. To remove an individual icon, right-click it and select Delete (be sure only to delete items that you know you won’t need).

To remove several icons at the same time, hold down the left mouse button, drag a box around those you want to remove and then hit the Delete key. Confirm that you want to send the selected icons to the Recycle Bin by clicking Yes. This is generally safe because deleting the Desktop program icons does not delete the underlying programs: the icons are merely shortcuts that point to where programs are safely stored on the computer’s hard disk. But if you have saved a document or other content directly to the Desktop, think carefully before deleting it.

Ditching some or all of the Desktop program icons clears space for more useful purposes such as viewing several windows at the same time, but it also means having to find other ways to start the missing programs. The most obvious method is the Start menu. Just click on the Start button and when the Start menu opens, click to select the program you need from the list on the left. If you can’t see the program you want there, hover the mouse pointer on All Programs to view the entire inventory on the right.

On the All Programs menu are two types of entry: single programs and program groups. Single programs are like those in the left-hand column of the Start menu, but program groups (distinguished by a folder icon) are containers that store groups of shortcuts related to a common theme, such as Communications or Entertainment. To access items inside a program group, simply hover the mouse pointer over the group to view its contents and then select the desired option. As seen here, some program groups contain further program groups, which can make finding a program unnecessarily complicated.

A good way of simplifying the All Programs menu is to move program groups contained within other groups to the top level of the All Programs menu. For example, to move the Communications group from its default position inside the Accessories group, hover the mouse pointer on the Accessories group and then left-click the Communications group, keeping the mouse button held down. Drag the Communications group leftwards to the main part of the All Programs menu (its position is indicated by a black bar), and then release the left mouse button to drop it into position.

To reorder the groups on the All Programs menu alphabetically, right-click on any program group and then click Sort By Name. Alternatively, if you’d like the program groups in an order of your own choosing, simply drag the groups into position in the same way the Communications group was repositioned in Step 6. Program shortcuts may also be dragged from one group to another. To rename program groups or single program shortcuts, right-click them and then select Rename.

Rather annoyingly, the programs listed on the left-hand side of the Start menu are in a state of constant flux because Windows XP keeps changing them to reflect the programs that have been run most recently. To change this behaviour and build a permanent list of your favourite programs instead, right-click the Start button and click Properties. On the Start Menu tab click the Customize button. In the Customize Start Menu dialogue box, change ‘Number of programs on the Start menu’ from 6 to 0 and click OK, then click OK again.

When the Start menu is reopened, the only entries remaining are Internet (Internet Explorer) and E-mail (Outlook Express), and these too can be suppressed if, in Step 8, you remove their ticks from the Show On Start menu section. To repopulate the Start menu with a fixed list of programs, locate a program in its program group, and then right-click on its shortcut and select Pin To Start menu. Items can be removed from the Start menu by following the same procedure and selecting Unpin from the Start menu.

Programs pinned to the Start menu can be started without even using the mouse: just tap the Windows key to open the Start menu and then tap the first letter of the program you wish to run: tapping a Windows key followed by I will launch Internet Explorer. To take full advantage of this facility you’ll need to rename any program shortcuts that start with the same letter (right-click the shortcut and choose Rename). Alternatively, you could add unique numbers to the beginning of each name and use those instead. You may pin as many programs to the Start menu as your monitor can comfortably display.