Windows XP Hacks [Electronic resources] نسخه متنی

Hack 11 Clean Up the Most Frequently Used Programs List

Make this infrequently used tool useful. Ban
programs from the Most Frequently Used Programs List, change the
number of programs on the list, or do away with it altogether to make
more room for the Pinned Programs List.

Windows keeps track of
programs you use frequently and puts them on the Most Frequently Used
Programs List, which appears on the new Windows XP-style Start Menu
(not the Classic-style Start Menu) between the Pinned Items List at
the top and the All Programs link at the bottom. The Most Frequently
Used Programs List is a quick way to access programs you use often.
But the rules for when programs appear on that list and disappear
from the list are murky at best, and there appears to be no logic to
what programs appear there.

There is some hidden logic, however. XP bans a variety of programs
from the list. If any of the following words or phrases are included
in the program's shortcut name, the program will be
excluded from the list: Documentation, Help, Install, More Info,
Readme, Read me, Read First, Setup, Support, What's
New.

Additionally, the following executables are excluded from the list:
Setup.exe, Install.exe,
Isuninst.exe, Unwise.exe,
Unwise32.exe, St5unst.exe,
Rundll32.exe, Explorer.exe,
Icwconn1.exe, Inoculan.exe,
Mobsync.exe, Navwnt.exe,
Realmon.exe, and
Sndvol32.exe.

2.5.1 Banning Programs from the List

There may be other programs
you'd like to ban from the list, not just those that
XP bans by default. Just because you use a program a time or two
doesn't mean that you want it in on the Start
Menu's Most Frequently Used Programs List. You can
ban programs from the list using a
[Hack #68] and go to
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Applications. Underneath this
key, you'll find a series of subkeys, each of which
represents an application. The primary purpose of these subkeys, as
you'll see later in this hack, is to determine
whether the program appears on the Open With dialog box that appears
whenever you try to open an unknown file type. But you can also add a
value to any of the subkeys which will ban programs from appearing on
the Most Frequently Used Programs List.

Look for a subkey that is the executable name of the application that
you want to ban from the listfor example,
visio.exe for the Visio business illustration
program. Once you find the application's subkey,
create a new String value for that subkey, named
NoStartPage. Leave the value blank. Exit the
Registry. You may have to reboot in order for the setting to take
effect and the program to be banned from the list.

2.5.1.1 Another use for HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Applications

While you're rooting around in
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Applications, you may want to
hack the Open With dialog box (shown in Figure 2-6) that appears whenever you try to open an
unknown file type. Each application's subkey in
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Applications controls whether
that particular application will show up on the dialog box.

Figure 2-6. Hacking the Open With dialog box

If you want to ban a particular program from the Open With dialog
box, look for the application's subkey underneath
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Applications, add a
String value named NoOpenWith,
and leave the value blank.

2.5.1.2 Ban programs from the Most Frequently Used Programs List with TweakUI

If you don't
want to muck around in the Registry, you can ban programs from the
Most Frequently Used
Programs list using TweakUI. (To learn how to download, use and run
TweakUI [Hack #8]. Run TweakUI, and
choose Taskbar XP Start Menu. You'll see
the screen shown in Figure 2-7, with a list of
programs and checks next to most or all of them.

Figure 2-7. Using TweakUI to ban programs from the Most Frequently Used Programs List

Each program with a check next to it will be allowed to appear on the
Most Frequently Used Programs List. To stop a program from appearing
on the list, uncheck the box and click OK.

2.5.2 Change the Number of Programs that Appear on the List

By default, the Most Frequently
Used Programs List has room for six programs, but you can change that
default and have more or fewer programs appear. Right-click on the
Start button and choose Properties Customize
General. The Customize Start Menu dialog box, shown in Figure 2-8, appears. To customize the number of programs
to include on the list, edit the "Number of programs
on Start menu" box. You can choose any number
between 0 and 30. Be aware, though, that depending on your screen
resolution and whether you're using large or small
icons, the entire list might not appear if you choose a large number.
No matter how high your resolution is, for example,
don't expect there to be room for 30 programs.

Figure 2-8. Customizing the number of programs on the Most Frequently Used Programs List

2.5.3 Make Room for the Pinned Programs List

The
Pinned Programs List, just above
the Most Frequently Used Programs List on the XP-style Start Menu,
gives you instant access to any program you want. You, rather than
the operating system, decide what programs go there. To add a program
to it, drag the program's icon or filename to the
Start Menu, and when the menu pops up, drag it to the spot on the
list where you want it to appear.

This list makes a lot more sense than the Most Frequently Used
Programs list: after all, you know better than XP what programs you
want within easy reach. So, do what I do: kill the Most Frequently
Used Programs List as a way to make more room for the Pinned Programs
List. When you kill the Most Frequently Used Programs List, there
will be a big blank space between the Pinned Programs List and the
All Programs button. Drag programs to fill that space; the shortcuts
will stay there until you delete them.

You can kill the

Most Frequently Used Programs
List with a Registry hack. Run the Registry Editor [Hack #68] and
go to
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer.
Create a new DWORD called
NoStartMenuMFUprogramsList and give it a value of
1. You'll have to reboot or log
off and back on for the setting to take effect. When it does, the
nice big blank space will be left for you to fill with pinned
programs.