I was not asking to be spoon fed. I spent several days bouncing around
various documents, web sites, forums, news groups, etc. trying to find
something that would point me in the right direction. Mostly what I found
was a huge pool of unconnected information. It is often difficult to discern
if the informaton you are reading pertains to Vista, to XP, or even to
Windows 3.1.
I did ask some specific questions.
1. Is there a way to make Windows XP automatically log the user off when he
terminates an application that was automatically loaded on logging in? I
have found many references to setting up the automatic log in, with more
options than I could have ever imagined. So, I can pick one and go with it,
but there doesn't appear to be any information about which of the options
might be more or less secure, which options are likely to be around in the
future, which might go away, etc.
2. My second question was asking for a road map regarding recommended
practices for starting up and shutting down applications. I can spend weeks
reading through numerous posts about what does and doesn't work, often with
no way to tell what expertise the poster has. There are numerous instances
where Microsoft has provided guidance regarding recommended ways of doing
things. I was looking for a place to start my research. It sounds to me
like there are no documented suggestions, so I am forced to pick a direction
and hope it doesn't lead to a dead end. I had hoped that someone could help
me avoid some known pit falls.
Thanks for your input.
jfh
--
jfh
"Twayne" wrote:
>> I was looking for a lot deeper answer. Turning of the welcome screen
>> is just the tip of the iceberg. For instance, there is a posting
>> that describes 13 different ways that a program can be started (see
>> Startup in this discussion group). I am trying to figure out what
>> the advantages and disadvantages of those 13 places to start a
>> program might be. I am looking for guidance beyond the obvious (some
>> places start programs on boot, some places start programs on login,
>> etc.). I am also looking for guidance on ways to minimize what the
>> user can do, besides play with the specific program we want him too.
>> I know how to do many of these things, but I am looking for expert
>> help to make sure I don't unintentionally break something, or leave a
>> gapping security hole.
>>
>> Am I on my own?
>>
>> thanks,
>
> You might be unless you can make your questions a lot more specific.
> That's a complex area and with lots of IFs, caveats and dependencies.
> And besides that, the "simplest and most reliable fashion" is something
> that is wide open to interpretation and personal opinions depending on
> what a person's computer is set up to do (or not do).
>
> There just is no one size fits all answer. Your best bet is to pick an
> area and start studying it. Most any area you pick will lead you to the
> others and research will be rather easy to broaden as you go along. The
> Registry is probably one of the more complex but also most all
> encompassing of the areas for you to start with. Then begin applying it
> to whatever case you want it to fit. You'll begin to come to some
> accurate answers for your own situation. You'll also then be able to
> ask much more specific questions and probably receive much better
> responses too.
> One thing you're not apt to get here is anyone who will take you by
> the hand and instruct you on all the details and nuances of your case.
> Posters are expected to have done their own prior research before coming
> to a newsgroup; being able to demonstrate that you've done that will get
> you some much better answers. You'll find you just can not be spoon fed
> the answer to such a wide open question. What you've done so far is
> akin to going to an automotive engineering newsgroup and asking how to
> build the perfect car without so much as providing the manufacturer,
> brand or any other details about it.
>
> HTH
>
>
>>
>> jfh
>>
>>> I'm not sure what you mean exactly. Try disabling the "Welcome
>>> Screen" from the "User Accounts" control panel.
>>>
>>>
>>> John Hughes wrote:
>>>> Bear with me as this may get a bit long.
>>>>
>>>> I am working on integrating a Windows XP based application into an
>>>> aircraft training simulation. The XP computer will only need to
>>>> run the specific applications needed as part of the training
>>>> scenario. The plan is that the system will boot, wait for the
>>>> trainer to signal that the training scenario is ready to run, then
>>>> execute the application. When the scenario is complete, the
>>>> application will terminate, and the system will go back to waiting
>>>> for the next scenario. We want this to be as transparent to the
>>>> users as possible, all they should see is there GUI interface, when
>>>> the trainer is running. I also need to be able to shutdown the
>>>> system on command from the trainer.
>>>>
>>>> I have a pretty good idea about the various options for logging in,
>>>> starting an application automatically, etc. Back in the WindowsNT
>>>> days, I could set up the system so that if the user terminated the
>>>> running application, he was automatically logged off, so he never
>>>> saw the WindowsNT GUI, just the application. My first question is,
>>>> "Is there a way to make Windows XP behave this way?"
>>>>
>>>> My second, more general question is, "Is there some guidance
>>>> regarding best practice for where you do various things with
>>>> respect to startup and shutdown?" For instance, you can use the
>>>> group policy editor to build computer startup and shutdown scripts.
>>>> You can also define user login and logout scripts. Is there some
>>>> recommended way of deciding where to do various operations?
>>>>
>>>> I am looking for any suggestions regarding making things operate in
>>>> the simplest and most reliable fashion.
>>>>
>>>> thanks,
>>>>
>>>> --
>>>> jfh
>
>
>
>
