Gerrit Velthuis
Level 1 (84 points)
Desktops

Q: skipping startup items

I remember that (in the OS9 era) the Mac could be started up without loading/opening the start-up items (in the user-defined list) by pushing some key combination at startup.

Every morning my Mac starts up automatically with the main programs I use during the day (Mail, Safari, Soho, Photoshop, Agenda, Contacts etc.).

Sometimes, when I have closed down the system at night and I remember I forgot to send a mail, at start-upI have to wait till the Mac has walked through the whole procedure again, while I only need Mail for a few minutes.

Is there a key combination that takes care of skipping the start-up items.

I couldn't find one in all kinds of help files and apple-docs.

 

I read somewhere that the shift key would do the job, but trying that, gave me a (very slow) progress bar  at start-up.

It took the Mac about 10-15 minutes to run through the startup procedure; not exactly what i was looking for.

 

Besides that, the iMac feels sluggish after that last "experiment"

iMac, OS X Mavericks (10.9.5), 8 Gb RAM - 1,5 Tb harddisk

Posted on Feb 11, 2016 3:45 AM

by Gerrit Velthuis,Solvedanswer
Gerrit Velthuis Gerrit Velthuis
Level 1 (84 points)
Desktops
A:

Thanks Drew

Holding down shift from startup, puts the Mac in safe mode, which caused the long startup (thanks Limnos) .

Holding down **** the moment the bleu screen appears disables automatic login; then after logging in, holding shift should disable startup items.

I guess that's the best procedure for the moment.

Posted on Feb 11, 2016 8:40 AM

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Gerrit Velthuis

Q: skipping startup items

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  • by Limnos,Helpful

    Limnos Limnos Feb 11, 2016 8:40 AM in response to Gerrit Velthuis
    Level 9 (53,705 points)
    Mac OS X
    Feb 11, 2016 8:40 AM in response to Gerrit Velthuis

    I don't think there's a way to do it quite the way you want to do it, just for one startup:

     

    Automatically re-open windows, apps, and documents on your Mac - Apple Support

     

    Holding down the shift key at startup under OSX starts in Safe Mode which disables some features. It also runs a directory check which is why it took so long to start.

     

    Try safe mode if your Mac doesn't finish starting up (formerly: What is Safe Boot, Safe Mode? (Mac OS X)) - http://support.apple.com/HT201262 - "You can use safe mode to help you resolve issues that might keep your Mac from completely starting up."

     

    Safe Boot takes longer than normal startup - http://support.apple.com/kb/TS1884 No longer available

  • by Drew Reece,Helpful

    Drew Reece Drew Reece Feb 11, 2016 8:40 AM in response to Gerrit Velthuis
    Level 5 (7,490 points)
    Notebooks
    Feb 11, 2016 8:40 AM in response to Gerrit Velthuis

    Does this Mac automatically login to your account?

     

    Shift will disable system wide startup items in safe mode if you hold it at startup.

     

    If you hold it before logging in (after you enter the password & hit return) it will disable login items only.

     

    You will have to take a wild guess at when the login is happening with auto login enabled, I think it is after the large grey Apple has been onscreen.

    http://lifehacker.com/5795904/temporarily-disable-your-macs-login-items-with-the -shift-key (sorry I can't see official Apple docs on this).

     

    P.S. A slow start-up is a symptom of a slow hard disk. A SSD may improve performance. Some users get excited about how fast OS X boots after fitting an SSD, it will help in other areas too. Sadly iMacs are tough to open, so you may war a professional or Apple store to fit an SSD if you decide to do so.

  • by Gerrit Velthuis,Solvedanswer

    Gerrit Velthuis Gerrit Velthuis Feb 11, 2016 8:40 AM in response to Drew Reece
    Level 1 (84 points)
    Desktops
    Feb 11, 2016 8:40 AM in response to Drew Reece

    Thanks Drew

    Holding down shift from startup, puts the Mac in safe mode, which caused the long startup (thanks Limnos) .

    Holding down **** the moment the bleu screen appears disables automatic login; then after logging in, holding shift should disable startup items.

    I guess that's the best procedure for the moment.