Solved unfettered start-up inclusions

[urbanspaceman1]

Hello Folks,
I wonder if someone can help me with this irritating occurrence: I use a program called Real-Downloader to download videos from Youtube etc (it may not necessarily be the best option and suggestions of alternatives will be gratefully received) and every time I use it I find it has put itself in my auto-start-up list. I duly untick it and I'm none the worse off ,but it is not the only software that tries to get itself launched at start-up. Is there a way of preventing this from happening and constraining the list to those mandatory programs that I've got down to a mere handful?

 

[andrew129260]

YouTube downloading is not allowed to be discussed here. It is a forum rule.

 

[urbanspaceman1]

I used that as an example; are you saying that any mention of any downloading of any video is verboten? I am prepared to accept that rule as I can understand what murky waters they are. I've had many live performance videos of my bands posted by others on YouTube without my permission; personally, I appreciate the attention but I appreciate that many don't.

 

[andrew129260]

There are many free programs that do not inject themselves at startup, one is web based downloads (google it) other is programs like avc free and free studio.

Careful though during the install, they offer pups so be aware what you are installing. But they do not stay in your startup list or always run in the background.

 

[urbanspaceman1]

So, can I assume from this that it is not possible to prevent programs from doing this. Seems to me it should be available to all who want it.
I have a similar problem with apps caching themselves on my phablet (Samsung/Android) or launching in the background, no matter how many times I stop them. Am I simply getting on board a train that has been on the lines for a long time already and the world feels as I do?

 

[andrew129260]

There are ways to prevent the program from adding in startup yes.

You can disable it in msconfig, or use a program like ccleaner can even delete the startup entry. but if you reinstall or update the program it may come back. Most programs offer in the settings a way to avoid it starting up with your pc. I say any program that does not offer that option and has no business starting with your computer should stay off your machine.

 

[adamf]

download this Autoruns for Windows and disable any startup items you don't want as they can be stored in various different places as you can see...

 

[andrew129260]

If you want a program to monitor your startup list, you can try win patrol. It monitors changes to your pc like startup items which you can then block or allow.

 

[urbanspaceman1]

Thank-you Adam, this needs serious consideration; it's a couple of steps beyond my general experience I think, I'm not quite sure really. I don't have any autoruns I don't want or need ,thanks to Black Viper's exhaustive listings - at least I assume that's what I do in the Services menu - but Real (it's a product of long standing: Real Player has been in use for many years) puts itself in my start-up list every time I use it and never appears in my Services list. It's surprising just how many reputable applications inject themselves into Startup just so they can launch a split second faster. My SSD launches Photoshop CS6 in 3 seconds: I've timed; it but maybe folk with HDD and older machines enjoy the benefit even though memory is eaten up and boot-up time extended.

 

[adamf]

Services is one place things start, yes. Things also start though task scheduler, registry keys like Run and runOnce, inclusion in your Start-up folder...

Anyway you can disable it if you want but mostly people over stress abut these things. A service doing nothing will use no CPU and be paged out if the OS wants to do something more interesting with its memory. Most Black Viper is snake oil - the point of a modern OS is you don't need to micro-manage these things - it is done for you.

 

[gregrocker]

On my installs in msconfig>Startup and >Services (after checking Hide all MS Services) I uncheck everything except the AV and any Sync. Nothing else needs to start up. If it's something personal like a messenger that you can't do without starting with Windows then that's your choice, but in general most that write themselves into these places are doing so to spy on you to build consumer databases.

Those that write themselves back in can often be adjusted in their program Preferences under Updating or elsewhere. If they continue to force their way in then I uninstall the program because it is obnoxious and likely up to no good.

 

[urbanspaceman1]

Yes, Mr Rocker, that is generally how I feel too. In MSconfig there are only the items I definitely require from startup. Again, I have to assume - because no-one has actually indicated otherwise - that you cannot set constraints on the Startup list. As Real is not especially adept or efficient at downloading video-clips I will embark on a search for an alternative program. As you said, and as I feel, it's not acceptable behaviour. I've just given a laptop running 7 to my local techie:;it belongs to a lady friend who allows her modern OS to police itself and has ground to a complete halt as a result. He has cleaned out a few years worth of junk and charged her for the service which is quite acceptable except that she has been struggling more and more for the last couple of years as her system gradually got more and more sluggish. I like a tidy desk.

 

[gregrocker]

Did you check in the Real Preferences to see if there is an Updater to turn off?

 

[urbanspaceman1]

Hi Greg, yes, indeed I did. As I said, it's not especially good at downloading so I'll try to find a better alternative. Thanks for your input.

 

[urbanspaceman1]

I still think we should be able to lock off our OS from bloatware and unsolicited start-up injections.

 

[gregrocker]

I think that's the reason I've always uninstalled Real Player within a few days. But any other legit program should have a way to turn it off and if not I would not have it.