Dashboard KickStart – Eliminate the wait for Dashboard widgets to load

January 29, 2006


Dashboard KickStart fixes a major problem with the pause between you actually activate the Dashboard and the time the widgets become useful.

Dashboard KickStart works by opening up the Dashboard at system login, so that when you launch the Dashboard, your widgets will already be loaded and fully useful.

Setting up Dashboard KickStart couldn’t be easier. All you have to adjust is when you would like for Dashboard to be ‘kicked’ after login or waking up from Sleep.

Version 2.1 includes some minor adjustments in the maximum allowed time to kick the Dashboard and some other small changes. Dashboard KickStart used to be called Dashboard Starter, but changed its name in version 2.0. Dashboard KickStart is available for a free download from Alwin Troost.nl or MacUpdate.

5 Responses

  1. login man says:

    Can’t you already do this under the accounts system preference, just like any other .app?

    January 29th, 2006 at 4:06 pm

  2. Appleologist says:

    Yes, I am pretty sure you can, but Dashboard KickStart gives you options as such as choosing the duration of time after log-in for Dashboard to startup.

    The reason why Dashboard KickStart is better than placing the Dashboard in the Login Items is because Dashboard KickStart opens the Dashboard for a second, then closes it. If you do it the other way, the Dashboard will hang over your screen. Dashboard KickStart was made to eliminate the wait for the Dashboard widgets to load on the initial launch.

    January 29th, 2006 at 5:04 pm

  3. Packager says:

    This is a really really BAD implementation. This app is distributed as a .pkg, with incorrect ownership and permissions on the installed file hierarchy (they are set to “755, 501:501”, but should be “775, root:admin”). In addition, it remains in memory, constantly stealing (admittedly, very few) cycles, listening for changes to the Dock.

    A better approach is to use the much-smaller, and much-better-implemented “DashboardStarter” – which can be found at http://www.bronsonbeta.com/. There’s no reason to use an application which is 10x the size, and which inexplicably remains open, when an alternative which is considerably more straightforward is available.

    January 29th, 2006 at 11:21 pm

  4. Ryan M says:

    I agree with Packager. I use DashboardStarter and it works much better.

    January 30th, 2006 at 3:17 pm

  5. X says:

    Dashboard Kickstart is just the new version of dashboard starter. says so above

    January 30th, 2006 at 6:19 pm

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