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Technique 7: Streamlining Excel Program Startup
3. Release the mouse button to create a new Excel To make Microsoft Office Excel 2003 a permanent
button on the Quick Launch toolbar, as shown item on your computer’s Start menu, follow these
in Figure 7-3. steps:

1. Launch Excel and then immediately close its
program window.
You must manually start Excel in order to add
its menu item to the Recently Opened section
• Figure 7-3: The Quick Launch toolbar after adding the of the Start menu. To launch Excel, double-click
Excel desktop shortcut to it.
the Excel desktop shortcut or click the Excel
button on the Quick Launch toolbar. If you have
You don’t have to double-click the Excel but- neither, you have to do this by choosing Start➪
ton that you add to the Quick Launch toolbar
All Programs➪Microsoft Office➪Microsoft Office
to launch Excel. You only need to click it once, Excel 2003. (Doing that should give you a real
just as you would any of the buttons on the
incentive to complete the rest of these steps!)
numerous Excel toolbars.
2. Click the Start button on the Windows taskbar
or press Ctrl+Esc to open the Start menu.
You may have to enlarge the Quick Launch
toolbar to display all its icons. To do this, posi- 3. Right-click the Microsoft Excel 2003 item on the
tion the mouse pointer on the right edge of Start menu and then choose the Pin to Start
the bar (marked by a double line of dots) and Menu option, as shown in Figure 7-4.
drag the double-headed arrow pointer until
all the icons are shown. If the double-headed 4. Click anywhere outside the Start menu or press
arrow pointer doesn’t appear, the taskbar is Esc to close the menu.
locked. Right-click the taskbar and then clear
the Lock the Taskbar item on the pop-up
If a Microsoft Excel 2003 item doesn’t appear
menu to unlock it. After enlarging the Quick on your Start menu after following these steps,
Launch toolbar to display all its icons, you can
the Number of Programs on Start Menu option
once again lock the taskbar by selecting this has been set to 0. Right-click the taskbar and
item.
then select Properties. Next, select the Start
Menu tab in the Taskbar and Start Menu
Properties dialog box and then click the
Pinning Excel to the Start Menu Customize button. Finally, enter a value greater
than 0 (and not more than 30) in the Number
of Programs on the Start menu text box
What if you’re one of those users who never display before you select OK.
the Quick Launch toolbar on the Windows taskbar
because you don’t want to waste all that precious
After pinning Microsoft Excel 2003 to the Start menu,
taskbar real estate on a few crummy launch buttons?
you can always launch Excel by clicking the Start but-
Well, for you, I suggest making Excel a permanent
ton on the taskbar (or by pressing Ctrl+Esc) and then
part of the Start menu. That way, you can always
selecting this menu. This menu item now appears in
launch Excel by clicking the Start button (something
the permanent programs section of the Start menu
you can’t remove from the Windows taskbar) or by
(which is the top-left portion of the menu) along
pressing Ctrl+Esc and then selecting the Microsoft
with the other permanent programs, including your
Office Excel 2003 menu item on the Start menu.
Internet and e-mail applications.