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Launcher for Start.exe?

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Rapscallion
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Launcher for Start.exe?

I know this may seem like a dumb request... but I would like a launcher for the launcher ;-). The reason is that I like to pin PAM to my Windows7 TaskBar. Unfortunately since I run PAM from a removable drive, and at times I do not have the drive plugged in when Windows boots. Sometimes Windows either deletes the pinned shortcut, or the shortcut loses it's icon. What I would like is to have a launcher that can stay on my personal PC's so that the pinned shortcut will always be there.

I know that in most situations this would not be something that would be usable (drive not using same drive letter consistently etc.) But on my personal PC's I set the drive letter of my portable drives so they always use the same letter when I plug them in.

Any suggestions?

Merry Christmas, and Happy New-Year!

EDIT: After testing solutions provided in this thread, I have come to realize that my request for a launcher for Start.exe was not the correct request. I should have led with with my exact issue, not not my guessed solution. What I would like is a way to have a shortcut that can be used to launch the Menu or display the menu if it is already started.

barky
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just add a desktop shortcut

right click on the start.exe & create a shortcut .... can create a few of them for different drive letters & I've found only a connected drive will show a portableapps icon

Rapscallion
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Thanks...

Thank you for the feedback. That might work, however I prefer to keep my desktop clean, hence the need/want for a pinned shortcut. I like to pin the shortcut just right of the Windows start icon. Then both menus are next each other.

Cheers Smile

It amazes me that on the internet you can be anything you want, and yet so many people still choose to be idiots.

Ken Herbert
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The shortcut doesn't have to

The shortcut doesn't have to be on the desktop for it to work. You could create them practically anywhere you want and pin them to the taskbar.

dangles35
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You could create a .bat file

Instead of having multiple shortcuts, you could create a batch file that goes through all the different possible drive letters and create a shortcut to that and make the shortcut have the icon.
Just go to notepad and type:

start x:\Start.exe
start y:\Start.exe
exit

(Replace x and y to the possible drive letters as in e or g.)

And save it as .bat
(Remember to save as ALL FILES, not text file.

Note: Try to have as little start commands as possible (Although you can have as many as you want, just add another line and put the start command) as you will get an error message for each of the start commands that don't have the program in it e.g it is in e and you have e, g, f, you will get an error for g & f.

Ed_P
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add a tweak here and a tweak there....

@echo off
if exist z:\Start.exe start z:\Start.exe
if exist y:\Start.exe start y:\Start.exe
if exist x:\Start.exe start x:\Start.exe
etc.
exit

No more error messages.

Ed

Rapscallion
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Using a shortcut/bat appears to

Using a shortcut or batch file appears to work at first, however I have noticed that if I use the shortcut/Batch five times to start the platform, I get five PortableAppsPlatform.exe processes running.

It amazes me that on the internet you can be anything you want, and yet so many people still choose to be idiots.

Ed_P
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picky, picky, picky

Try this:

@echo off
pskill Start.exe > nul
if exist z:\Start.exe start z:\Start.exe&exit
if exist y:\Start.exe start y:\Start.exe&exit
if exist x:\Start.exe start x:\Start.exe&exit
etc.
exit

(Also note the &exit added to the end of each start line.)

Pskill is a small little freeware app. You can read about it's abilities here:

http://www.softpedia.com/get/System/System-Miscellaneous/PsKill.shtml

However, terminating the PA menu while PA apps are still running may leave temporary PA changes to the host permanently in the host.

Ed

AndrejT
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Joined: 2012-01-11 07:50
It is possible to start directly after putting USB into PC?

With previous version of platform (now 10.0.1) was this possibility and now I must start it manually. Why?
In windows options after recognising USB is no more platform start possibility.
(I have icon on my desktop - allways as I put the same USB into the same port it has the same letter - therefore it is simple).

Simeon
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Microsoft

disbabled that feature on all platforms for security reasons. There is an older autorun utility but I think t doesnt work anymore.

"What about Love?" - "Overrated. Biochemically no different than eating large quantities of chocolate." - Al Pacino in The Devils Advocate

AndrejT
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Why?

I am maybe stupid, but if it is a security risk to run portableplatform on all platforms, why and about what are these pages?
What do you do if you wish to run portableplatform if it is mentioned as security risk and you prefer not to do that?

If above statements are stupidity, why it is not possible to automatically after putting an USB into PC to run postableplatform?

Most antiviruses controls new USB after connecting and I see really only one difference between running portableplatform after my click on icon after putting USB into PC and running portableplatform after putting USB into PC and thats the one un needed click.

Simeon
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elaboration

Microsoft disabled autorun from USB drives because more and more viruses started using this feature to distribute themselves. It wasnt targeted at portableapps directly. Autorunning the portableapps.com platform isnt a security risk at all, its convenient. Thaty why the autorun utility I linked to was created.

"What about Love?" - "Overrated. Biochemically no different than eating large quantities of chocolate." - Al Pacino in The Devils Advocate

Zach Thibeau
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there isn't a security risk

there isn't a security risk with the PortableApps.com Platform, the risk is what Microsoft thinks in general of anything autorunning from a usb thumb drive, it's not one thing specific (though in a sense it is since cd autorun still works)

your friendly neighbourhood moderator Zach Thibeau

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