Stop Quicktime From Loading For Good
By Jeffrey | April 4, 2007
I tend to be a little OCD about my tech equipment. I like to keep them organized, clean (both on their hard drives and externally), and I spend more time tweaking them than I do actually using them.
I am even prone to redoing my computer from scratch probably once every couple of months.
Of course, doing so requires the obligatory reloading of all my backed up music, photos, and software - including iTunes, which brings along the requisite QuickTime. There’s only one problem.
Why won’t it go away?
Quicktime is a nasty little reaver that, for some reason, feels that it must always be running - even when I tell it not to.
In fact, it’s been said that the secret to stopping Quicktime is one of the hidden truths of the universe. No, I don’t know who said it, but I’m sure somebody said it…once…
Anyway, here’s what you have to do:
Step 1: Killing It Internally
Open up your Quicktime Player. Now navigate over to Edit >> Preferences >> Quicktime Preferences. Once that is loaded, click on the Advanced tab. Near the bottom, uncheck the option to Install Quicktime icon in system tray.
It should look something like this:
You’re done, right?
Nope. It seems Quicktime doesn’t like to follow directions, even its own. So let’s move on.
Step 2: The All-Powerful MSConfig
Actually, it’s pretty weak. There are a multitude of ways programs can continue to load on start-up without showing up in MSConfig, as we shall soon see.
In the meantime, we might as well make use of it.
Click on Start, then Run (or just the Search box, if you are using Vista). Type msconfig into the box and click OK.
When it comes up, click on the Startup tab. The programs displayed in here will differ for everybody, but Quicktime should show up somewhere. Make sure the checkbox to the left of it is not selected.
Something like this:
OK, now you’re done? Nope.
Remember what I said about programs being sneaky about starting up? Quicktime is one of those, so let’s go deal with its final hiding spot.
Step 3: The Registry
Be careful messing around with your Registry. Changing the wrong value, or even a right value, can damage your Windows installation. Worse case scenario, it will refuse to boot.
I know you want to stop Quicktime from loading, but that seems a little extreme! Needless to say, make a backup of your Registry first before changing anything.
To access it, head down to your Start / Run (or the Search box, for Vista), but this time type regedit and click OK.
The Registry Editor should now load up in all its glory.
To find the key we need open up HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE >> SOFTWARE >> Apple Computer, Inc. >> Quicktime. Now click on the folder named ActiveX.
Your window should appear similar to this:
Now, in the box on the right, double-click on QTTaskRunFlags under Name. In the dialog box that pops up, change the 2 under Value data to a 0.
It should look like this:
Now click OK, and close the Registry Editor.
Finished
That’s it! That pesky Quicktime should no longer be wasting resources when you boot into Windows.
Topics: Guides |
[...] It runs extremely slow compared to other media players, won’t let you play video full screen, and it infests the system with hidden processes that are nearly impossible to kill - see this guide here. [...]
Posted by: Install iTunes Without Quicktime at SavvyGeek on November 29th, 2007 at 10:10 am