Application Launchers Revisited

Back in Feb of '09 there was a thread on Application Launchers here. At the time I was a satisfied user of jettoolbar. However, since then I have experience annoying bugs and (unfortunately) it seems as if jettoolbar is no longer being suported by it's developer, CowonAmerica.

So now I would truly appreciate recommendations for a substitute application launcher (or dock) program for WinXP. I definitely prefer a mouse-based (rather than keyboard-based) launcher, and one that isn't 'heavy on resources'. Free is always great, but I don't object to paying for a really good launcher.

TIA,
Aaron

 

RunIt

Runs great on WinXP (aka NT4)

 

Thanks for the recommendation, but can you tell me why you like it so much?

 

Hi Aaron,

I would recommend RocketDock and here's why:

Along with the animated 'eye-candy' that it adds to your desktop, it definitely brings enhanced funtionality. You can add/drag any icon on your desktop into the dock and it can eliminate use of all other desktop icons as well as the Start menu. You can have your running apps (windows) minimize to the dock rather than the task bar (if you wish).

It doesn't require very much in the way of system resources, yet it does its job very fast.

It is being actively developed, and support is truly excellent.

If you find that you don't like it, it will uninstall cleanly.

It's free and it's fun!

JA

 

Ill second Rocket Dock. I use it exclusively and have for the last 2-3 years.

 

What is the added benefit of Rocketdock or any other app launcher? Never used one...

 

I don,t use any but try Launchy.

 

Agree, take some time to set it up properly. After that is is so easy, you never have to use your start menu or desktop anymore.

 

As far as I can tell without actually installing it, Launchy is a keyboard-based launcher. As I originally stated, I prefer a mouse-based launcher.

Thanks anyway.

 

Than PowerPro is the only way to go, because it supports left, middle and right mouse button.
That means 10 buttons toolbar = 30 apps (or other commands).

Left click on InWatch = InstallWatch; Middle = Regshot; Right = NT File Monitor

You can also make menus which support left and right mouse button launch.

PowerPro supports Windows 95/98/NT/2000/XP/Vista/7 and it's free.

 

Take a look at Free Launch Bar: http://www.freelaunchbar.com/. It is mouse based, is a tiny installation, uses no resources, and is free. Popup menus can be set to expand with either a mouse click or a mouse hover.

The free version does not help you much with setup instructions, but you can get screenshots and a video demo at the paid version site: True Launch Bar http://www.truelaunchbar.com/.

 

PowerPro does indeed seem to very powerful, but how much of a drain is it on cpu/memory?

Also, can you create a tabbed toolbar with it (sort of like jettoolbar's tabbed-groups)?

Thanks!

 

@Aaron - check this one [URL="http://app.etizer.org/]Appetizer[/URL] - it could be the one you're looking for. I have used it for a long time, it's light, simple and intuitive to use - and free...

 

Extremely light, but you can only simlate tabbed toolbar. If you need tabs than try FSL Launcher, JetStart, Fast Launcher, ProgramLaunch, ... also visit http://www.techsupportalert.com/best-free-program-launcher.htm.

 

@Jo Ann~ Tried RocketDock (very nice), but dismissed it because it doesn't support tabbed docks. I've been told ObjectDock Plus (pay-version) does support tabbed docs, so I may just try it.

@CatFan~ For whatever reason, those launchers won't install properly on my system!

@mhf~ Appetizer also doesn't appear to support tabbled docks/groupings...

@Pliskin~ Of those that you last suggested, ProgramLaunch seems to be the best fit, so I'll try it out - thanks!

Aaron

 

What do you mean by tabbed? Im fairly certain they have an addon for it on their webpage.

http://rocketdock.com/addon/docklets/1791
http://rocketdock.com/addon/docklets/22757
http://rocketdock.com/addon/docklets/20707

You can also try out Fences by Stardock for a grouped docking solution:

http://www.stardock.com/products/fences/downloads.asp

 

Hi whitedragon, I did checkout what you are referring to, but from just the images alone I don't understand what functionality is provided by those 'docklets'. Is there any place that describes their functionality?

I will checkout Stardock's Fences...

Thanks,
Aaron

 

I dont personally use them, but from what I understand you basically group things into folders and those folders sit on the dock. When you click the icon its a popout and lists everything within the folder almost like a tab.

 

Yes, on the contrary, Appetizer does support groups and groups within groups (but no tabs).

 

You could try the paid programs from winstep.

http://www.winstep.net/nexus.asp
http://www.winstep.net/xtreme.asp

Personally I like rocketdock better than the nexus freebie which from my point of view is bloated although I must admit it had a lot of features on it. Installs a service as well.

 

Aaron,

Did you get an error message when installing Free Launch Bar?

Free Launch Bar does not install an actual program, but installs a few files that allow you to replace Windows Quick Launch bar. Once you have run the setup file (freelaunchbar32.exe or freelaunchbar64.msi) you should be able to right-click on the Quick Launch portion of the task bar and select Free LaunchBar from the Toolbar option.

 

I didn't get an error message but it didn't seem to function as it should after I right-clicked, selected FreeLaunchBar, etc.

 

Well it's not at all clear to me how it supports application-groups.

Ok, I now see how that's done via menu selection - seems cumbersome to me...

 

Regarding the Free Launch Bar program:

I prefer the Free Launch Bar over the True Launch Bar; it’s just cleaner, and the free part helps. That being said, there is no setup help to be had with the program, so let me see if I can step you through an example.

I assume you have shortcuts and perhaps some folders on your Desktop, so I’ll show an example of turning your desktop items into a LaunchBar.

After running the Free LaunchBar setup file, you should be able to right-click on the Taskbar and select “Free LaunchBar” from the Toolbars menu

Right-click on the Quick Launch part of the Taskbar, you should see a new option “Switch Toolbars” -- (if you don’t see it, try right-clicking on top of the Quick Launch icons in different places until it shows up)

Select “Switch ToolBars”, then select “Manage Toolbars”, then select “New”

Select “Desktop” then click “Apply” then “OK”

Right-Click the Quick Launch bar again, reselect “Switch Toolbars”, then select “Desktop”

At this point, if everything went as planned, your Desktop items should show up in the Quick Launch area. From this you can see how the program works, and then set it up the way you want.

Once that is done, you can right-click again and select “FLB Settings” and start to customize things.

 

CatFan, I'm beginning to grasp how FLB works... Application groups are created by means of a pop-up menu associated with an icon in the taskbar - is that correct?

My menu group icons have a down-arrow to their right for opening the menu. How do I ge them to open by hovering the mouse over the icon?

Finally, the icon-name (text) that I want to display under each new menu group appears cut-off (truncated). Can I make the text-size smaller with large icons? ...if so, how?

Thanks,
Aaron