Start menu question

i have a very easy question 4 some 1, when i go 2 my start menu open all programs and find the start programs, (this is in the menu area 2 ok) i click on it and it says empty. is that supose 2 be the list of the programs that start up first?

Hi jasond19,

That's one way of adding programs that will start when you startup your computer - and anything put there properly will start at startup - but it is not a complete list of programs that start when you startup (and may even be empty though many programs start at startup). Remember, this area contains shortcuts to open programs and that's pretty much all it is (though it can sometimes have other uses depending on what the program installed there). Here's a tutorial on how to add programs to startup (including that method): http://www.vistax64.com/tutorials/79612-startup-programs-enable-disable.html.

To get what you're looking for, go to Start / Search box and type msconfig.exe and enter and then double-click on the program icon that appears. Then click on the Startup tab and you will see the programs that start when you startup - there may be many listed, but those that start are the ones that are checked. You can use this to remove programs that aren't required and thus improve performance by reducing the resources (RAM and virtual memory) being used by those programs or processes that you don't need to start every time you startup. It's OK to adjust the Startup programs without hardly any risk (though you should be sure to leave on your security software and anything you actually do use), but for now stay away from adjusting any of the other tabs as unchecking the wrong box can have some serious consequences that may be very difficult to resolve and may even require a re-installation. You can go back to the others once you learn more about that program and what it does (and what the programs or services or entries in the other tabs actually do and the consequences of checking or unchecking one of them).

I hope this helps.

Good luck!

I had the same issue and cause was some malware that made my programs menu "hidden" the way to fix it is to go "folder and Search Options" then select show hidden files. Navigate to C:/users/<username>/app data/ then highlight and right click on the three folders inside Local, local low, and roaming. Uncheck the "hidden" box and bam! Your Program menu is no longer hidden.