Trick is to create a simple MS-DOS Batch file. Explore the rest of this article for more information on how you can do it step by step.

Steps

  1. 1
    Open Notepad ("Start" menu > "Run" > type notepad > press Enter).
  2. 2
    Click on "File" > "Save As...", and name the file with a batch file extension (ie: "startmyprg.bat"). Save the file somewhere easily accessible such as your desktop. The .bat extension is a must in the name.
  3. 3
    Type in the first line of the newly created file: @echo off
  4. 4
    Following lines should begin with "start", and contain a name of the executable file (.exe or .com) you want to include. For example: To run calculator, from your Windows "Start" menu, go to "Accessories", right click on calculator and select properties. Copy the shortcut path by highlighting it and pressing Ctrl-C. It should be similar to %SystemRoot%\system32\calc.exe
  5. 5
    Find all the programs you want to include. In this example, calculator and paintbrush are added, batch file will look like:

    @echo off
    start %SystemRoot%\system32\calc.exe
    start %SystemRoot%\system32\mspaint.exe
  6. 6
    Click on the "File" menu and select "Save" and close the file, your job is done.
  7. 7
    Go to the folder where you saved the file (the desktop in this example) and launch your newly created file (startmyprg.bat in this example) and enjoy.

Community Q&A

  • Question
    Can I open software programs without double clicking? If yes, how?
    Community Answer
    Community Answer
    There are a few ways. 1. Highlight the programs and press Enter. 2. Highlight all of them, right click and press Open.

Warnings

  • Works in Windows operating system only.
  • N.B. The path to the programs must be in old DOS style (unbelievable but true) i.e. c:\progra~1\... instead of c:\program files\... or use quotes(" ") around the path if it contains a space.

About This Article

wikiHow is a “wiki,” similar to Wikipedia, which means that many of our articles are co-written by multiple authors. To create this article, 13 people, some anonymous, worked to edit and improve it over time. This article has been viewed 57,929 times.
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Co-authors: 13
Updated: June 3, 2021
Views: 57,929
Categories: Windows