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  • Thread starter Thread starter Mal Stockman
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Mal Stockman

I lost a program on my startup task bar and I`d like to put it back on.
I`ve tried numerous google search fixes but none seem to work. I`m using
XP Home. Any help? TIA
 
I lost a program on my startup task bar and I`d like to put it back on.
I`ve tried numerous google search fixes but none seem to work. I`m using
XP Home. Any help? TIA
Click to expand...

Is the program still installed? If yes, where exactly do you want to add it
back to?

If you want to add this program to the start menu, locate the program's
folder. In this folder, find the program's main executable and create a
shortcut for it. Drag and drop the shortcut into your start menu folders.

(Finding the main executable: If you view the program's folder using
Details, the executable files will be shown as "Application" under Type. A
program may have one or two executable files. Only one is the main
executable. You can usually tell by the file's name which one it is.)

If you want an icon for the program next to the clock on the taskbar, the
availability of that icon is governed by the program itself. Check its
menus for settings that relate to startup behavior. You may be able to find
something in its help files that tell how to add the program's icon to the
tray area as well.
 
Hi, Mal.

To find anything in Google (or anywhere), you'll need to use the proper
names for them. There's no such thing as the "startup task bar". There IS
a Startup folder and there IS a Taskbar, but I'm not sure either of these is
what you're having trouble with.

While the Taskbar can be moved and manipulated in several ways, by default
it is a single mostly-blue line across the bottom of the screen. While we
often say Taskbar to mean the whole thing, it actually contains, left to
right:

Start Button - click here to, among many other tasks, find All Programs |
Startup.

Quick Launch toolbar - if activated - containing icons for programs to be
available even if the Desktop icons are not visible.

Taskbar proper, which has an icon for each program currently running, even
if minimized.

Notification Area - which many of us still call the System Tray or SysTray -
this contains icons for many running programs, and the Clock. It can be
customized by right-clicking the clock and choosing Customize
Notifications... from the context menu.

Now, which of these can we help you with?

RC
 
The one I want help with is the task bar proper. I.e. the area next to
(and including) the clock. I think it`s also called the the system tray.
It contains the icons for programs that start up with the computer
startup. I don`t know how I lost the item but I just can`t seem to get
it back. I`ve tried all the fixes I found on Google (by several
different names for the taskbar or systems tray or whatever)and none
seem to work. I have the icon on my desktop and now have to click it to
start the program. I`ve even tried reinstalling the program but never
come across the option to place on the start menu. I just want to get
the icon that`s on my desktop back onto the system tray and have it open
automatically when I turn on the computer.
 
Hi, Mal.

No. You want the Notification Area - also called the SysTray. NOT the
Taskbar, which fills the middle of the bottom of the screen between the QL
and the Notification Area. The Taskbar is where you should see the IE or
Mozilla icon (sorry; I haven't run Netscape in years and don't know what it
looks like now) if you look at the bottom of your screen right now. Go back
and read my first message again.

When a program starts, it may or may not put an icon in the SysTray,
depending on how the programmer wrote the program. Many programs let you
choose whether or not to put their icons there, but some don't.

A program can be started in many ways. One way is by including the program
in your Startup folder. To see which programs are in that folder, click
Start | All Programs | Startup. You can drag'n'drop a program into or out
of this folder, depending on whether you want it to start each time you
start WinXP.

You haven't told us the name of the program you are having trouble with. If
you tell us which program, somebody here will probably recognize it and know
how to make it do what you want. But you probably can put it into the
Startup folder by simply dragging its icon from your Desktop to the Startup
folder. Have you tried that?

RC
 
The program is TalkingCallerID. I`ve used it for some time with it in
the startup menu. I wouldn`t want to get hung up on what the bottom bar
is called or where the icon sits. The bar is the Windows bar and is the
same regardless of the browser being used (or if no browser is being
used). I guess it`s in the notification area. Anyway the programs which
start with computer startup place their icon there after they start. The
programs that start manually also place an icon there while they are
running. All I want to do is start the program with the startup menu. If
I can do that the icon will take care of itself. I`ve tried drag and
drop and have the program in the progtram list but it still doesn`t
start automatically with startup. I`m missing something but don`t know what.
 
Hi, Mal.

It's not really a matter of getting "hung up" on terminology. It's a matter
of communication. So far, it seems, I don't understand what you are asking
and you don't understand what I am telling you. :^{

Once again, left to right across the bottom of the screen, we have the Start
button, the Quick Launch toolbar, the Taskbar itself, and the Notification
Area. Often we refer to the entire line as the Taskbar. I THINK you are
talking about the Notification Area.

Google finds "about 1,900" hits for "talkingcallerid", including a place to
purchase it and at least one review of the program. Perhaps someone here
knows how to make it behave the way you want it to. My guess is that the
secret is in the program itself, perhaps in the initial setup of the
program. You might need to uninstall the program (probably by using Control
Panel | Add or Remove Programs) and reinstall it.

RC
 
I`m sure there is a problem with communication. I have reinstalled TCID
several times. I asked the program manager how to get the program on the
start menu. Answer - create a shortcut and drag to the Startup folder. I
did that and it shows there but it still doesn`t start when computer is
started (and the icon of course doesn`t show where it used to when it
was working properly). I`m giving up and will just start manually.
Thanks for your efforts.
 
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