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Delayed program startup at login

 
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I've found a common problem with apple computers is startup applications, accumulate wonky preference files, meaning one day you start up your computer and it instantly crashes or freezes.

As an easy remedy this problem, there could be an administrative option to have 3rd party programs programs start up for you automatically, but only a minute or two after the rest of the O/S has effectively loaded. That way, if a begins to repeatedly crash. One has a few minutes to rectify the problem. In a way such a start up would contain the benefits of both a regular startup and a safe boot, and thus be the best of both worlds.

bob, Apr 19 2011

Delay start-up items to make them quicker http://old.timmargh...ms_to_make_them.php
[tatterdemalion, Apr 19 2011]

[link]






       I've never experienced that problem, and I've used Apple Macs for nearly 20 years now. Maybe I am unaware. I regularly run "repair permissions". Don't know what it's doing, but it seems to find "stuff" and fix it.
xenzag, Apr 19 2011
  

       If only it were that easy. I prefer to banish most programs that have the audacity to inject startup bits into my launch routine, but they don't really do a good job of identifying or organizing themselves into logically separated chunks that I can turn on or off at the flip of a switch.   

       Maybe the cloud has an answer.
RayfordSteele, Apr 19 2011
  

       you need to do a clean boot, then repair permissions. You may also need to go the extra step of doing a system refresh. It's still brilliant compared with the same system on a windows machine.
WcW, Apr 19 2011
  

       My complaints are about Windows machines. Not every program that wants a place in startup is shown in the startup folder, in fact, I'd say that most aren't. Usually for me it involves toying around with the msconfig utility, where they like to deposit only semi-decipherable line items in a half-dozen .ini files.   

       This cluster of software glut for software's sake needs to be greatly simplified.
RayfordSteele, Apr 19 2011
  

       21 quest the start-up items are only a small fraction of the programs that can be in the system registry.
WcW, Apr 19 2011
  

       The problem with removing programs from a windows machine is that they rarely reset the registry, and don't remove .dlls that they installed. This leads to a case where they leave behind extensive system overhead even without the program.   

       Macs, on the other hand, tend to keep all, or almost all of their program information with the program, and clean it out at once.   

       And in the final case, it's very simple to do system refresh on a Mac, it's a royal pain to do one on windows.
MechE, Apr 19 2011
  

       the windows software management system (install shield) was supposed to manage all that. Just a mess.
WcW, Apr 19 2011
  

       Easily done in Windows using batch files. Appears to be doable on Mac using Applescript [link] (with which I am not familiar and therefore cannot vouch).
tatterdemalion, Apr 19 2011
  

       Several people pointed out that this problem may be resolved by using keyboard shortcuts to enter a safe mode so on may repair permissions, and I totally agree that this is an option. However you have to have to be computer savvy enough to know the procedure. Its my hope that 2-3 minutes delay between applications being booted, would buy average users some time to fix the problem.
bob, Apr 20 2011
  

       I just followed the link, and the script tatterdemalion linked to does what i described!   

       I suppose my idea could be m-f-d however it wont be official until this script is integrated into an operating system by default.
bob, Apr 20 2011
  

       Easily done =/= batch files. It's this kind of thinking that needs addressing in the windows PC industry. Easily done = drag and drop the whole program and all files associated with it at one time into the trash bin. 95% of the computer market doesn't want to look under the hood.
RayfordSteele, Apr 20 2011
  

       [RayfordSteele], 95% of the computer market is not going to need to be able to do this task, or even identify that it's a potential solution to a problem. If someone is savvy enough to know they could use this, I think having them write a batch file is probably not going to be much of a challenge for them. I agree with your greater point but I don't think it applies in this case.   

       [bob], I'm glad it's what you were looking for.
tatterdemalion, Apr 21 2011
  

       Someone's probably already clocked this, but for Windows machines, Norton 360 software allows you to manage your start-up and set certain programs to delay their start-up until the computer has fully loaded up all the essentials. It's rather handy for those bits and bobs that you don't need the minute you turn on your computer such as the Abode software and iTunes helper.
DeniqueCoelum, Apr 23 2011
  
      
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