How to add a shortcut that is effective when you start your PC.
In Windows 7, Microsoft says: Run a program automatically when Windows starts
If you always open the same programs after starting your computer, such as a web browser or an e‑mail program, you might find it convenient to have them start automatically when you start Windows. Programs or shortcuts placed in the Startup folder will run whenever Windows starts.
- Click the Start button Picture of the Start button , click All Programs, right-click the Startup folder, and then click Open.
- Open the location that contains the item you want to create a shortcut to.
- Right-click the item, and then click Create Shortcut. The new shortcut appears in the same location as the original item.
- Drag the shortcut into the Startup folder.
The next time you start Windows, the program will run automatically.
Note: You can also make an individual file, such as a word-processing document, open automatically by dragging a shortcut of the file into the Startup folder.
In Windows XP, start by opening My Computer, either by Start >My Computer, or double-clicking the My Computer icon on your desktop. Now double-click the Local Drive (C:) icon, [you may get a window saying "these files and folders are hidden". Just click on the "view these now" link.] Next, locate and double-click the Documents and Settings folder.
Open the folder that matches your User Name, then open the Start Menu Folder and then open the Program folder, and finally open Startup.
Even if your User Account has no programs at all listed in the Startup folder, that doesn’t mean that no programs launch at boot. These programs (antivirus, firewall, etc.) will run no matter who is using the machine, so they’re listed in the All User’s Startup folder.
In Vista, it is similar to Windows 7: the Startup folder is listed in Programs, accessed from the Start button. Click Start >Programs and scroll down until you see the folder labeled Startup. Double-click it to open its contents window.
Adding a shortcut is easy – right-click in the Startup folder, and select New/Shortcut. In the window which opens, enter the desired URL – in this case, http://www.miscelpage.com/ddm.shtml and then click Next. Finally, give this entry a unique name. (The name you use doesn't matter, as long as it makes sense to you should you wish to delete it later. You can use poweron, or miscelpage, or ddm, or whatever you'd like.) Click Finish.
And that’s it. You’re done. Next time you power up your PC you'll be automatically pointing to the web. If you don't have a web connection established yet, as you power up, you'll receive a 'Not Found' message. Simply click on Retry, after the connection is enabled, to access this web page.
Caution: too many programs being invoked at Startup will clog your PC performance. This tip provides a means of starting your PC and enabling web access dynamically. Adding more programs in this manner must further slow down the Startup process. If your System performance suffers as a result of this procedure, removing the offending Startup task is easy: right click on the task in the Startup folder and select 'Delete'.
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