Controlling WinXp Startup's Once and For All!

For 300 points I am taking on all who dare!

I would like to be more knowledgeable and have better control over the WinXpHome/Pro “Startup” programs. I have a single user machine with me as the user/administrator.  Over the course of many installs/reinstalls of the 1) OS, 2) Software products and their iterations and, 3) Interminable Windows Updates many of these changes plant themselves firmly on the “Startup Line”. It makes no difference whether they deserve to be there or not, they just ARE!

The more astute computer user “carefully” guards the installation process and attempts to ward off these intruders, by deselecting or stopping the installation of Quick launch, Desktop or Startup Icons or some combination when appropriate. Often this solves the problem of overtaxed resources, sometimes not.

The methods I’ve become aware of to Stop, Pause, alter, or Remove these culprits seem to vary based on what level of sophistication and familiarity the “Instructor/adviser or Forum” appear to have. Some programs already removed or stopped in the Start sequence seem to have minds of their own, such as Realsched.exe, Justched.exe or Wfxsnt40.exe and its sister Wfxswtch.exe. And, install themselves if you use them once or not at all. Sometimes you can find their home and correct the issue, many times not. These are just samples of those that particularly bother me, others must have their favorites as well!

So for the purposes of this discussion let us make the assumption “Caveat Emptor” for the less adventurous or knowledgeable. I’m looking for serious but usable information.

I have read the suggestions of EE Familiars: Gemarti, PeteLong, Sramesh2K et all and with some variations I have concluded the most common methods I am aware of are:

a) Use MSCONFIG from the Run menu and uncheck the undesired start programs (assuming that they are not required to make the system operate correctly). This however puts you in the Selective Start mode. This appears to be a temporary solution and will invariably come back later. Many advisors offer this solution first & foremost.
Unsatisfactory.

b) Use Services.msc from the run menu and uncheck the undesired start programs (same caveat as above), though many of these changes become undone with the next startup/reboot of your machine. If however, you are knowledgeable enough to select the correct disable sequences in the appropriate panels, you may succeed using this method.
Better

c) Use Regedit from the run menu and go into the correct Registry Tree and search for the culprit here. This is where it gets serious for all of us but the weak kneed. A few Forums and sites suggest reaching into on of the following Trees:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnce
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunOnceEx
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunServices  and so on….

The instructions generally advise deleting the offending registry entry and moving on. How do you determine which registry needs action? One? both?, Which processes?, Is this a case of wearing both a Belt and Suspenders?
Some Advisors argue against deleting the entry, deleting the key, move Icons to Temp folders or suggest putting some sort of “REM” remark to prevent activity from occurring. (Is that possible?)
Others avoid the registry like it’s diseased. The suggestions/recommendations are as varied as recipes for boiling water.

Of course there are always numerous Start-up Utilities that abound on the Internet which offer to accomplish your goals, each espousing its respective virtues, but isn’t that jumping from the frying pan into the fire? Something else to sit in the start-up box?
Am I looking for “one size fits all”? maybe, or better yet  just something that is more to the permanent shade of fixes, yet with the opportunity to be undone in the future.

As a full time member I seek the guidance from the best resource on the NET.
So let it be written, so let it done!
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