{mosgoogle}When you invoke the program, there are a series of tabs across the top. The 4 that you should be concerned about are labelled, "Startup (user)", "Startup (common)", "HKLM/Run" and "HKCU/Run". These represent 4 different methods by which your computer can run programs when the system first starts. There are 3 other tab, which are not as important and are self-explanatory anyway. Note that the tabs may be on 2 levels depending on the windows size. I usually drag the window and make it wider so that all the tabs fit natly across on the page in a line.

Going through each of the 4 tabs, look at the checked items that will run. To stop them from running, uncheck the box. If you are unsure about a program, uncheck it and see what the effects are. You can always revise this later if something stops working. As an exercise, run the Windows Task Manager (by hitting the Ctrl, Alt and Del keys simultaneously) and note down how much memory is taken up by your system on a fresh start. The figure is listed on the status bar of the Task Manager under "Mem Usage". After unchecking all the unwanted programs, restart your system and compare the number and see how much less memory is being used. This is the amount you have saved and all things going well, you'll notice that your system is snappier and definitely less cluttered.

You will soon find that some programs do not like being unchecked. Yes, you guessed it, the two that I mentioned above, "Windows Messenger" and "Quicktime Task". They will reappear every time you delete them. Worry not for there is another way for those running Windows 2000 or Windows XP Pro on the NTFS File System.