Customizing Windows 7 Start Menu via script

[cmgui]

Hi All

I am trying to do this:

1) Write a script to rename the My Music library to something else (e.g. My Menu), remove the existing folders, include my own folder, and choose General Items for "Customize library for".

2) Write a script to show My Music library (now known as My Menu because of step 1 above) as Menu in Start Menu. That is, script has to do what we manually do - Start Menu -> Properties -> Start Men -> Customize -> My Music - Show as Menu.

Searching the web, I found that task 1 above may be possible using the IShellLibrary Interface object which requires Visual .NET C++ or C# which I am not familiar.

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd391719(VS.85).aspx

Is it possible to do task 1 using VBScript or by changing some registry entries?

I cannot find anything on task 2 above. Can somebody advise?

Thank you very much in anticipation

cmgui

 

[linney]

What can you do with these type programs?

AutoIt-- Freeware:

http://www.autoitscript.com/autoit3/

AutoHotkey

http://www.autohotkey.com

 

[cmgui]

Thank you Linney for the reply.

No, the two tools do not do what I want.

In any case, I would prefer to do it using Windows Vbscript or Powershell if possible. Or by .reg file to modify registry. The last resort is to use .NET C++.

Don't really want to use third party tools because that would mean having to deploy and install on every workstation.

 

[TonHu]

What's against it to leave it to the users choice of having those libraries as Startmenu entries?
Because 'everybody' was abusing the QuickLaunch as a way to create shortcuts to their newly installed applications, MS has dropped support for QLB all together from Win7, pinning items to the Startmenu has been 'forbidden' from the start, so why start this whole shizzle again with libraries?

 

[tlpeter]

It is still possible to have a quick launch in windows 7

http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/888-quick-launch-enable-disable.html

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[Servamatic]

The first part of your question can be easily done by right clicking on the library item and adding and deleting folders from the library. I have mine set to a network drive on all my puters so all music for instance is stored on the server instead of locally. This is the beauty of the libraries, you can include any folder you want, and delete any folder as well.

Richard S. Anderson, RCDD

http://www.servamatic.net

 

[TonHu]

Guys, the OP asked about customization of user preferences via a script, not specific features of Windows 7 (I know I can have a QLB, and how to manage my libraries in Windows 7, but thats really off-topic).

The customization of user preferences he request should not be made (by a script or whatever way) 'because some administrator wants that', they are at the users decision to be made or not.

 

[MasterRacker]

TonHu, in a corporate environment, the company owns the PCs. It is perfectly within the right of admins (at the direction of mgmt) to decide and enforce what the users get and don't get.

Jeff
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[Servamatic]

My post was not just for the OP, but there may be others that are curious, so if you don't mind, I added my $0.02.

Richard S. Anderson, RCDD

http://www.servamatic.net

 

[cmgui]

Hi TonHu

Thank you for your replies.

Previously, in Windows 2000 and Windows XP (using Classic menu), we could simply copy our own folder (called e.g., "Company Applications", containing shortcut links to our own applications) into the All Users' Documents & Settings\Start Menu folder and viola, we got a "Company Applications" menu in the start menu (Classic). Our users would simply run a .bat script to copy the "Company Applications" folder to the Start Menu folder. Our users would click the Start button and then go to the "Company Applications" and then select one of the many company applications to launch.

Now we are using Windows 7 on some machines and would be able to have a "Company Applications" item pinned on the right pane of the Start Menu. We would like to 'hijack' the Music library for this purpose. Rename the Music library to "Company Applications" and then include the "Company Applications" folder, and configure the Music library (now called "Company Applications" to "display as menu". We want to be able to do via a script so that our users can simply run the script to set up this menu item on their Start Menu -- just like before.

Thank you.

 

[cmgui]

Okay, i think the 'solution' to this lies in Default user profile. not really what we want -- but guess we have to live with it .... still working on it.

 

[cmgui]

Default user profile won't work for us as it requires the Default user profile to be created before the user first logs in.

http://www.irongeek.com/i.php?page=security/windows-7-copy-default-profile

we want the user to be able to install the customized start menu after he has logged in -- regardless of the no. of times he has logged in.

 

[cmeagan656]

I haven't tried this so I may be out in left field. Is there any way that you can make use of one of the "Public" Libraries to achieve what you're trying to do? A "Public" library would be available to anyone who logged onto a specific computer.

Hope this helps.

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[cmgui]

hi cmeagan656

thank you for the reply.

this is exactly what i am trying to do.
'hijack' the Music library (rename it as "Our Own Apps"),
and point it to our own folders,
and customize the Start Menu to display "Our Own Apps" library as a menu.

the issue here is how to do all these in a script.

 

[cmeagan656]

Sorry, you stated "My Music" not "Public Music". These are two separate libraries and show separately in Windows Explorer. I thought that maybe if you used "Public Music" instead of"My Music" you might be able to get something to work. As I stated, I haven't tried it. It's just an idea that may be totally out in left field.

Hope this helps.

Please help us help you. Read Tek-Tips posting polices before posting.

Canadian members check out Tek-Tips in Canada for socializing, networking, and anything non-technical.