Requesting tiny application: Clear Recent Start Menu Items - Windows Mobile Apps and Games

If you're like me, you've soft-resetted your device more times in one month than there are days in a year.
So, after a nice extended boot sequence with the new Windows Mobile 5.0, you click on the Start icon, only to wait nearly 30 seconds while it grabs all the icons from the various programs you have recently loaded, plus the ones you have stored permanently in your Start Menu. Of course, if you have recently launched Skype, you'll know it has to sift through nearly 4 or 5MB for that tiny icon data located at the end of the executable. Why Microsoft hasn't learned to cache icons permanently in a file is beyond me.
My temporary solution? With Resco Explorer, I launch a REG file in my \Windows\Startup folder that sets these registry entries:
Code:
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Shell\TaskSwitch]
"6"=" "
"7"=" "
"8"=" "
"9"=" "
"5"=" "
"4"=" "
"3"=" "
"2"=" "
"11"=" "
"10"=" "
"1"=" "
"0"=" "
Of course, I get prompted to the effect of, "Do you want to import these registry entries...?" to which I have to click "YES." Then I have to acknowledge its confirmation that it did so by clicking "OK."
It's annoying at best, but so is the Recent Start Menu. I personally wish it wasn't there.
Is there anyone here able to make a tiny executable that will quietly delete the above registry entries? When placed in the StartUp folder, it will have wiped out all the recently loaded programs and keep the Start Menu nice and clean.
I have contacted Resco, PHM, TweakUI, and the other registry editing developers, none of which have either gotten back to me or claim that it's a "security issue" that they leave the confirmation in there.
All I want is a clean Start Menu. Can anyone help with a tiny executable, or better yet, find a way to remove the Recent Start Menu Items section from the Start Menu completely? Of course, making these registry changes will only take effect before the Start Menu is called for the first time after a soft reset, so it has to be placed in the StartUp folder.
Aaaugh, these tiny annoyances.
Another possible application is to make a tiny executable that simply launches another program. For instance, I'd like to keep a 2KB file that will launch Skype for me. I'll keep THAT file as a shortcut in the Programs Folder, while any other instance, such as launching Skype from the Contacts menu, will still launch the original executable. It's the fact that the Windows Mobile OS has to pull the icon data from each executable on the first run after a soft reset is so damn annoying.
If anyone can make a generic executable that can be easily hex edited to incorporate any executable's filename and manipulated by Microangelo or any other icon editor to copy and paste the icon data from the original executable to the launcher executable, that would be awesome. Imagine WM only having to look at a 2KB file for the stupid icon instead of each 500K-5MB file for it.
You guys following me on this one? Is there a brave and bright soul who can do these things?

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Here you go:
Code:
#include <windows.h>
#include <windowsx.h>
int WINAPI WinMain (HINSTANCE hInstance, HINSTANCE hPrevInstance,
LPTSTR szCmdLine, int iCmdShow)
{
HKEY Software,Microsoft,Shell,TaskSwitch,tmp;
RegOpenKeyEx(HKEY_CURRENT_USER, L"Software", 0, KEY_ALL_ACCESS, &Software);
RegOpenKeyEx(Software, L"Microsoft", 0, KEY_ALL_ACCESS, &Microsoft);
RegOpenKeyEx(Microsoft, L"Shell", 0, KEY_ALL_ACCESS, &Shell);
RegOpenKeyEx(Shell, L"TaskSwitch", 0, KEY_ALL_ACCESS, &TaskSwitch);
RegDeleteValue(TaskSwitch, L"0");
RegDeleteValue(TaskSwitch, L"1");
RegDeleteValue(TaskSwitch, L"2");
RegDeleteValue(TaskSwitch, L"3");
RegDeleteValue(TaskSwitch, L"4");
RegDeleteValue(TaskSwitch, L"5");
RegDeleteValue(TaskSwitch, L"6");
RegDeleteValue(TaskSwitch, L"7");
RegDeleteValue(TaskSwitch, L"8");
RegDeleteValue(TaskSwitch, L"9");
RegDeleteValue(TaskSwitch, L"10");
RegDeleteValue(TaskSwitch, L"11");
}
Executable (arm only), Makefile:

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Works for me
Good work!
This worked first time for me.
Would somebody be willing to put this in the wiki?
Baz

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chinnybob said:
Here you go:
Code:
#include <windows.h>
#include <windowsx.h>
int WINAPI WinMain (HINSTANCE hInstance, HINSTANCE hPrevInstance,
LPTSTR szCmdLine, int iCmdShow)
{
HKEY Software,Microsoft,Shell,TaskSwitch,tmp;
RegOpenKeyEx(HKEY_CURRENT_USER, L"Software", 0, KEY_ALL_ACCESS, &Software);
RegOpenKeyEx(Software, L"Microsoft", 0, KEY_ALL_ACCESS, &Microsoft);
RegOpenKeyEx(Microsoft, L"Shell", 0, KEY_ALL_ACCESS, &Shell);
RegOpenKeyEx(Shell, L"TaskSwitch", 0, KEY_ALL_ACCESS, &TaskSwitch);
RegDeleteValue(TaskSwitch, L"0");
RegDeleteValue(TaskSwitch, L"1");
RegDeleteValue(TaskSwitch, L"2");
RegDeleteValue(TaskSwitch, L"3");
RegDeleteValue(TaskSwitch, L"4");
RegDeleteValue(TaskSwitch, L"5");
RegDeleteValue(TaskSwitch, L"6");
RegDeleteValue(TaskSwitch, L"7");
RegDeleteValue(TaskSwitch, L"8");
RegDeleteValue(TaskSwitch, L"9");
RegDeleteValue(TaskSwitch, L"10");
RegDeleteValue(TaskSwitch, L"11");
}
Executable (arm only), Makefile:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hey man , great work
Can i include this great app on a himalaya rom ?

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Do whatever you want with it.
It's public domain.

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chinnybob said:
Here you go:
Code:
#include <windows.h>
#include <windowsx.h>
int WINAPI WinMain (HINSTANCE hInstance, HINSTANCE hPrevInstance,
LPTSTR szCmdLine, int iCmdShow)
{
HKEY Software,Microsoft,Shell,TaskSwitch,tmp;
RegOpenKeyEx(HKEY_CURRENT_USER, L"Software", 0, KEY_ALL_ACCESS, &Software);
RegOpenKeyEx(Software, L"Microsoft", 0, KEY_ALL_ACCESS, &Microsoft);
RegOpenKeyEx(Microsoft, L"Shell", 0, KEY_ALL_ACCESS, &Shell);
RegOpenKeyEx(Shell, L"TaskSwitch", 0, KEY_ALL_ACCESS, &TaskSwitch);
RegDeleteValue(TaskSwitch, L"0");
RegDeleteValue(TaskSwitch, L"1");
RegDeleteValue(TaskSwitch, L"2");
RegDeleteValue(TaskSwitch, L"3");
RegDeleteValue(TaskSwitch, L"4");
RegDeleteValue(TaskSwitch, L"5");
RegDeleteValue(TaskSwitch, L"6");
RegDeleteValue(TaskSwitch, L"7");
RegDeleteValue(TaskSwitch, L"8");
RegDeleteValue(TaskSwitch, L"9");
RegDeleteValue(TaskSwitch, L"10");
RegDeleteValue(TaskSwitch, L"11");
}
Executable (arm only), Makefile:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So you mean, after I run this file then I have to softreset right?
What I got from you is I have to softreset all the time when the recent program has full.
Anyway to disable it? like in PPC2002, I can disable it in my PPC2002 Tosh E740. But I cant do that in my wm2005 (O2 Atom)
Thanks.

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Hi chinnybob and BeyondtheTech,
This is my favourite Program that I first install after every Hard Reset
Nice Job .. ～♪
Cheers,
Nette。_・☆

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my 8125 keeps complaining it not a signed app

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I went about it a different way.
I created a Folder called Applications in the Windows \ Start Menu folder.
I then moved all the icons (except a favorite app) out of the Programs folder and into Applications.
I then used Resco File Explorer and changed the Properties of the Programs Folder to Hidden.
Voila! Recent Programs disappear! No need to clean out the registry.
The reason I leave a favorite app in the Programs folder is because the Menu bar will state 'Recent Programs' greyed out as a place holder where the Recent Items used to sit. Having a default app there forces at least one to stay. I left Resco File Explorer's shortcut.
Hope this helps!

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wm6
this doesnt seem to work anymore on WM6...can someone possibly update the program?

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mrgino said:
this doesnt seem to work anymore on WM6...can someone possibly update the program?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There is a program called "startclean" thats an .exe and only about 2k that clears the program list. You can also do this with the "cleartemp" app among other things.

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nice and simple, thanks chinnybob

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MemMaid
MemMaid 2.0 can do this.
Start MemMaid. Go to Tweaks -> System Tweaks.
Scroll to the bottom, and select "Clear Programs History on reset"
I always install MemMaid 2.0 as my first application after a hard reset, and then "Optimize for Extreme Speed". That really makes a difference! (More than optimizing with SKTools)

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Hey when i try to run the exe it says its not a valid application....

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Does this work for smartphones too? I don't have a reg entry called "taskswitch"?!

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This will clear the recent list and perform the soft reset...
#include <windows.h>
#include <Pm.h>
#include <Winreg.h>
void wmain()
{
//This will ask you if you want to perform the soft reset then it will clear the recent programs list and reset
if(MessageBox(NULL,L"Soft Reset?",L"Reset?",MB_YESNO) == IDYES)
{
RegDeleteKey(HKEY_CURRENT_USER,L"Software\\Microsoft\\Shell\\TaskSwitch");
SetSystemPowerState(NULL,POWER_STATE_RESET,POWER_FORCE);
}
}
I'm still looking for a way to clear the recent programs list without doing a soft reset??????????????

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mrgino said:
this doesnt seem to work anymore on WM6...can someone possibly update the program?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Forget that exe, use #9 method, won't take you more than a minute.

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Just like another program called Clear Temp ...