14 DAY TRIAL // Can you imagine Windows without Quick Launch and System Tray areas? Although we might think that the desktop space is enough to store all the shortcuts that we need, these Taskbar menus can store plenty of additional items and can be accessed a lot easier - especially the System Tray menu that can double its original size to show the current shortcuts. Quick Launch area is where you can store the shortcuts that are used more often. There are many applications that provide the same functionality as Quick Launch and System Tray and Launch Express is one of them.
Launch Express is a small utility (less than 1MB) that was designed to help you store, organize and launch any shortcut. You will be able to start an application, access folders and files and even launch a URL address, all with just a few mouse clicks. The basic idea behind Launch Express is to replace the Quick Launch area and improve the way shortcuts are launched. After installation, the shortcut bar will contain the items from Quick Launch, and one of the best parts of this application is that it supports all kinds of shortcuts, from a simple file to a URL address.
Right click on an empty area in the main window and from the menu select the shortcut type to be added. For every shortcut enter a title, the parameters, "Start in folder path" and select how to run the application. To create a URL shortcut enter only the title and the URL address. Launch Express gives you the possibility to organize the shortcuts in groups and sort them using separators. For example: create a group for Internet related shortcuts and another one for office related items. However, a problem appears when attempting to move a shortcut from one group to another. This operation can not be done. However, you can switch the position of the Shortcut groups or you can merge them.
An interesting situation appeared when I tested all the imported shortcuts from Quick Launch area. Among others, I had a shortcut for C:Program Files folder that did not respond, so I ran a little test. First I created a shortcut to desktop for C: drive and then I added the shortcut to Launch Express. The shortcut works just fine, it opens or expends the drive, but if you create a shortcut to desktop for a C:Windows folder and drag and drop that shortcut to Launch Express, it doesn't work.
To call Launch Express, you must use a key combination or the middle or wheel button of the mouse. In case there's an application that uses the middle mouse button running, Launch Express can be set not to appear, by adding that application to "excluded programs" list.
The user interface of Launch Express is very simple and easy to use. The shortcut bar and icon appearance can be adjusted from the Options window. Here you can set the transparency level, add a background picture and also change the current skin.
Launch Express supports drag and drop, so that you can easily add new shortcuts. Because it does not have any "On Top" option to enable, the way to drag and drop shortcuts is to select the item and, while dragging, call Launch Express using the hotkeys. Another way to add new items is by using the command line parameters. The command line syntax is described in the help file. One good thing that I noticed while testing the software on Vista OS was that it opens the URL address in the default browser.
The software comes with a 30-day trial period and costs $19.95. To compare the features that Launch Express provides with Window Quick Launch, I must say that Launch Express adds URL address shortcuts and groups. Although it cannot open shortcuts from portable drives the software can be useful if you have many shortcuts to organize and sort.
The Good
The software will let you launch any URL address besides Bookmarks and Favorites and will do that using your default browser and not Internet Explorer. Shortcut groups feature can help organize and manage the existing items.
The Bad
The Always on Top option is missing and after the groups are created and you add shortcuts to them you cannot move shortcuts between groups. The price is a little high for the existing features and another aspect that needs to be mentioned is that Launch Express cannot open a system folder or a portable shortcut.
The Truth
Launch Express is an alternative to Window Quick Launch and System Tray areas, which comes with a 30-day trial period and can help you organize, manage and launch shortcuts. It does not provide sophisticated features and it can be customized very easily.
Here are some snapshots of the application in action:
