Start Menu Frequent Programs

Start Menu Frequent Programs is a small-sized application that tells you which Start Menu applications you access most often. It's wrapped in a portable package and doesn't contain complex options, making it suitable for all types of users looking for this information.

The program is written in Visual Basic .NET and doesn't have any software dependencies. However, before proceeding any further, you should know that it doesn't work on Windows versions past Windows 7. Although it runs without any issues, it cannot access the Start Menu information.

The Start Menu programs are automatically detected at startup and listed in the main window, where you can view the session and run count, along with the last accessed date and time. They are sorted by run count by default but you pick any other criteria by just clicking on the corresponding column.

When it comes to program options, it's possible to refresh data displayed if any modifications have been made since the last Start Menu Frequent Programs startup, reset all settings to their factory values as well as open the currently selected entry in its corresponding registry location in Registry Editor (regedit).

Moreover, you can disable User Assist, which is used for getting the Start menu shortcut information, prevent the tool from auto-checking for software updates, hide the registry column as well as change the menu style and matching items color.

Since installation is not necessary, you can save the program's executable file to a USB flash drive and effortlessly run it on any computer to find out the info about Start Menu applications. We haven't come across any stability issues on Windows 7 in our tests and Start Menu Frequent Programs had minimal impact on the computer's performance. Too bad that it hasn't been made compatible with newer Windows versions.