Make Applications Load Faster

[Drew]

Short and sweet.

1) Right click on the shortcut of the program you would like to change. Select the "Properties" menu.

2) In the Target: Field add the /prefetch:1 switch to the very end of the path.

So for for example if I want Photoshop to load faster, it would originally be in the Target field:
"C:\Program Files\Adobe\Adobe Photoshop CS2\Photoshop.exe"

Now you need to change it to:
"C:\Program Files\Adobe\Adobe Photoshop CS2\Photoshop.exe" /prefetch:1
There is a space between the" and the /

3) Select Apply and hit OK.

EDIT : Does not work with all applications.

[army]

And what exactly does it? I mean ... a little bit more technical explanation?

[ahsan16]

Just take a look.

Prefetching

Prefetching is a process unique to XP, which stores temporary settings that help load frequently accessed files and applications faster. However, after a time, the folder gets clogged up and overloaded, much like the temp directory found in all Windows Operating Systems, and needs to be cleaned out every so often. Go to %systemroot%\Prefetch, delete everything in there and reboot. This should be done as often as you normally clean out your temp directories.


Prefetching Specific Applications

Window Media Player has an extra switch included into its shortcut to help load it faster using XP’s prefetch feature. You can try this out on some of your other applications by right clicking on the program’s shortcut and clicking “properties. Add /prefetch:1 to the end of the contents of the “Target” box.

If this switch causes loading errors in programs that you add this to, simply remove the /prefetch:1 switch from the shortcut entry.

[babuks]

Thanks. I have a modified version of windows. When i click on any program related to internet, it open after long wait. I don't know if your suggestion works or not in this field.

[CrEaToR]

tankx... But i thnk this will prefetch programs while startup process which makes Windows slower... Am i right or wrong?

[flawless]

i may try it with a few programs and test times.

[povinho]

yeah by editing windows registry you can do that

[dazappa]

Any way to do that sort of thing with windows 2000? I really don't feel like buying a new computer, or paying $100 for windows xp.

[GiBaTrOn]

it works guys! I tried it it loads about 2 secs faster!

[gbpackers1995]

Does it mess with te registry? If so, I dont want it.