App Launcher with Scheduler

good
key review info
application features
  • Launch apps on a schedule
  • (2 more, see all...)

A process manager’s purpose is mainly that of giving you details on the programs that are responsible for sluggish Windows booting. Although you may not suspect it, when some programs install on your system they automatically add a startup component so that whenever you may need them they are already half loaded into your system’s memory and snap to full execution in a jiffy.

Leaving these apps aside, there are some programs you rely on when starting your day in front of the computer. The Internet is an essential information pool so you need a web browser to navigate the web pages. Email is also an important component so the client delivering and receiving message also has to run. The list can continue with whatever you need for you to work at peak performance: instant messenger, audio player, feed reader, etc. Starting all these generally represents the daily routine of any computer user.

Instead of wasting time clicking shortcuts around in order to get your day started, you can use a simple application that does this for you. Start My Day is an easy to use program designed to help you schedule when certain application should start. It is free of charge, so you can enjoy it to its fullest.

To get an idea on how easy to handle is Start My Day, you will know how it can be used just by taking a look at the application window. There is the action bar in the upper part of the screen. On the second row you have the settings and the types of targets supported by the application: executable programs, web links and music.

The principle driving Start My Day is extremely simple: schedule a time for all the targets to be launched and the application will do it for you. Settings panel carries all customization of both the scheduler and the program itself. There is the possibility to add the application to start with the operating system so that it can start the items you add according to set schedule.

The schedule itself lacks complexity as it does not offer the possibility to open the calendar and pick a day to schedule the launch of the defined items at a certain time. It is limited to planning launch tasks on user-defined days of the week, at a specified time. Thus you can set the alarm clock (it won’t ding on you) at a time and simply select the days of the week you want the action to be performed (Saturday and Sunday are not selected by default). A more elaborate approach would have been a plus for Start My Day.

If you want to stop the launch of the selected elements you will have to put the application into manual start mode. This annuls the scheduler and greys out its options, leaving nothing but the current time display and the options that enable the scheduler and loading Start My Day with Windows.

There is nothing complicated about these settings, but just in case you want to revert to the defaults, the developer placed a button to eliminate all the changes you’ve made to the area. All user alterations to the area will be eliminated the next time Start My Day is started.

The list of commands this application launcher makes available is no rocket science either. It is a simple pack that lets you add, remove, purge the elements of all the tabs, run them all (which comes in very handy) or just the selected one. As far as loading the app with whatever you want to be launched (EXE, URL and MP3 are the only extensions supported), simply go to the category and hit “Add” button in the upper part of the interface.

If you want to avoid pressing “Run” button to execute a single task you can double tap one of the elements in the category and it’ll be instantly launched (you can double-click the empty space to the same effect if the item is selected). However, if the window is empty and you double click it, the program will generate a little error.

Another glitch we bumped into occurred when we set a portable edition of Firefox to be launched at a specific time. The browser was launched with no problems, but another application was also started: Windows Media Player. On the same note, adding web links to Start My Day is not a comfortable activity as the app only supports Internet shortcuts and does not allow you to simply type in the web address you want it to open. In the case of music data the program will not open the files in the default player, but instead load them into Windows Media Player.

The Good Start My Day provides all the settings and options it encompasses in one simple, easy to use interface. It allows you to schedule the launch of Internet shortcuts, programs and music files to a convenient hour of the day.

The application lets you launch the items both individually as well as all of them at once, thus saving you a lot of clicks and boot time waiting.

The Bad Feature-wise Start My Day can be improved a lot. Adding web pages to be launched is not done in the most comfortable way possible, and there are still some glitches to be taken care of.

When we set portable Firefox to be executed Start My Day also launched Windows Media Player, which is used for playing the MP3s you add to the list, despite the fact that it is not the default audio player.

The Truth

Even with the flaws it currently presents, Start My Day still represents a good alternative to launch your daily programs automatically without crowding the startup and thus putting slowing down Windows boot process. It supports only essential file formats and the scheduler is not among the most elaborate of all, but compensates through its ease of use.

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user interface 4
features 3
ease of use 5
pricing / value 3


final rating 3
Editor's review
good
 
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