Mouse Extender A Mouse Driven Program Launcher
Mouse Extender is a free software program for Microsoft's Windows operating system that adds program and folder launching options to the mouse.
Most program launchers are started by either clicking on a program icon or by pressing a hotkey. Activation displays the interface of the program launcher, and users may use it to launch applications, open folders, start system tools, or change the system state.
The free software program Mouse Extender offers an interesting alternative which at its core changes how the program launcher is launched on the system.
Mouse Extender
Instead of having to press a hotkey or click on an icon, the program launcher is started with the click of the middle mouse button. This does mean that it can be displayed everywhere on the screen with just one mouse-click.
This could obviously lead to problems for applications that use the middle-mouse button for other tasks. That's why the developer built in an option to exclude applications from triggering the program launcher.
Mouse Extender displays icons to start the control panel and to restart and shutdown the computer system by default. It is furthermore possible to add programs, files or folders to the launcher interface.
The easiest way to add programs is to right-click on the interface and select the option to add running programs to the program launcher. The programs need to be running and cannot be minimized for this. Files and folders can be added through the file browser. Each program, file and folder is represented by an icon that is shown in the interface.
A click on the icon will launch or open the selected item. It is possible to keep the program launcher on top all the time unless the minimize or close buttons are activated. Other options that are available include changing the number of icons per row, hiding the system buttons and adding programs to the list of excluded programs.
Mouse Extender offers an interesting twist in the program launcher niche. The only aspect that might need work is the memory usage of the program. More than 40 Megabytes of computer memory could turn many users away from the otherwise excellent program launcher. The portable software program is available for most versions of the Microsoft Windows operating system. It requires the Microsoft .NET Framework.
