KeybStar

Sure enough Windows provides a great deal of flexibility by default, but perfectly handling all areas of interest can be rather difficult if you're not aware of capabilities. This is where specialized third-party applications come in handy, and with the help of KeybStar, you can easily launch custom applications through hotkeys.

One of the application's main advantages is portability, which means you don't have to go through a setup process to make it work. As such, it's easy to store it on a USB flash drive in case you want to use it as a portable launcher for other applications you carry around to use on other computers.

As soon as you launch the application it minimizes to the tray area, so don't worry if nothing shows up on screen. Interacting with the icon brings up the main window, which is essential to add shortcuts and configure hotkeys. When done, you can leave the program to quietly sit in the tray area.

What the application actually does is let you assign a custom hotkey to nearly any kind of file, including executables. However, management is only done through the main window, and you can't drop files over the window to get them ready, but using the browse dialog for selection isn't a great effort either.

Once the file is selected you can go ahead to associate a hotkey command. On the bright side of things, you can include all special keys, such as Shift, Ctrl, and Alt, and even suppress the original action, in case it's already assigned somewhere else. You can add as many items as you need.

Note that there's no built-in option to make it run with Windows to have hotkeys ready by the time you reach the desktop. However, this can be bypassed by placing a shortcut inside the system Startup folder.

Taking everything into consideration, we can state that KeybStar can feel a little rough around the edges, at least as aesthetics are concerned, but it delivers as promised. It quietly sits in the tray area, and you can combine all kinds of keyboard buttons, and even ignore the original action for enhanced comfort.