StartApp V1.1 Copyright 1993,94 by Andreas Furrer ================================= StartApp lets you start your applications - standard - normal - maximized - minimized - hidden It also lets you specify the position and/or the size of the application and lets you start the application on top. The main advantage of StartApp is that it substitutes the library SHELL.DLL with its own library, so every time an application starts a new application using SHELL.DLL (most newer Windows programs use SHELL.DLL) the application is started in the mode you like. This means you can start the application with Program Manager, File Manager or another tool and every time the application is started in the mode you have defined. Also all applications that are launched during startup are started as you like. Now you can hide the icons of some tools that are started at the beginning of Windows, set the windows of some tools to always stay on top, and so on. Another advantage of substituting SHELL.DLL is that you can also set a special start mode for files. For example, if you want Windows Help to start maximized on most occasions, but you want it at a special position when you open the file XYZ.HLP, you can have an entry for both WINHELP.EXE and XYZ.HLP. For this you have to create entries for WINHELP.EXE and XYZ.HLP and set the mode you like for each. Now if you open XYZ.HLP you get the mode for XYZ.HLP and if you open WINHELP.EXE you will get the mode for this. But note: if you open XYZ.HLP with the command 'WINHELP XYZ.HLP' you will get the setting for WINHELP.EXE and not for XYZ.HLP. If you want to have the settings for XYZ.HLP, the command line is only 'XYZ.HLP.' Installation ============ The installation od StartApp is very simple: 1) Exit Windows. 2) Rename SHELL.DLL in your WINDOWS\SYSTEM directory to SHELL_.DLL 3) Copy the version of SHELL.DLL in the StartApp package and the files STARTAPP.CPL and CTL3D.DLL into the WINDOWS\SYSTEM directory. If you already have a version of CTL3D.DLL in this directory that is newer than the version included in the StartApp package, do NOT overwrite the file you have. Uninstallation ============== To uninstall StartApp, delete SHELL.DLL and STARTAPP.DLL in your WINDOWS\SYSTEM directory and rename SHELL_.DLL to SHELL.DLL. Configuration ============= If you start Control Panel you will see a new icon: StartApp. Double- clicking this icon brings up the configuration dialog of StartApp. In the left listbox you will see all applications for which a special start mode has been defined. On the right side you can switch between the start modes: - Standard (no changes to the default start) - Normal (not maximized and not minimized) - Maximized - Minimized - Hidden You can also set an application on top and not on top. The checkbox 'On top' has three states: - unchecked: the application is set not on top even if it normally starts on top - checked: the application is set on top - gray: StartApp doesn't change the on top attribute of the window. In the fields 'Normal Position' and 'Normal size' you can set the position and/or size of the main window of the application when it is displayed in the normal mode (not minimized or maximized). If you don't want to set one of the fields you can leave it empty and StartApp will use the default value set by Windows. If you want to enter the position and/or size with the mouse you can push the button 'Get position and/or size'. Now you will see a dialog where you can choose if you want to enter the position of the window, the size of the window, or both. If you choose Ok, the dialog will be invisible and you can choose the position and/or size with the mouse cursor, after which the configuration dialog will become visible again. With 'New' you can create a new entry in the listbox and with 'Delete' you can delete an entry. Limitations =========== - StartApp will only work with applications that use the new ShellExecute function of SHELL.DLL. This should be most newer applications. Older applications will use the old WinExec function and will not work with StartApp. - StartApp will not work with the Windows Help system if you open a help file in an application by pressing (or whatever) or selecting a help menu item. But if you start WinHelp or you open a help file with Program Manager, File Manager, or another tool, it will work with StartApp. Freeware-Note ============= You can use and distribute STARTAPP freely, as long as the following files are not changed and you distribute all files together - shell.dll - startapp.cpl - startapp.txt I wrote STARTAPP for fun and not to make any profit. That's why STARTAPP is free and you don't have to pay more or less high registration charges. I think it is a bad habit that more and more program authors want to have money even for the smallest programs. For informations about my other FREE Windows tools see the file SOFTWARE.TXT (or the German version SOFTWARE.TXG). Long live Freeware! If you have problems, comments, suggestions or you detect any errors, please E-Mail to s_furrer@ira.uka.de (c) 1993 by Andreas Furrer Version history =============== 1.1: - Added a version information so StartApp will now work correctly with Microsoft Access. - Changed the documentation - Thanks to Jeff Johnson for correcting my errors. 1.0: First version of STARTAPP.