Application Autostart Locations/methods for Windows (XP, Vista, 7) and Linux (GTK, KDE, ...)

Question

I am developing a cross platform application that needs to auto start upon user login (not system start). What are the common locations/methods in invoking auto start for Windows/Linux.

For example, are the Windows registry locations for auto start compatible across all versions of windows (XP, Vista, Windows 7, etc).

And what about Gnome, KDE?

I am looking for the most general method which will work across many versions of Windows as possible.

Answer 1

For Windows, the easiest way is to put a shortcut in the Startup folder in the Start menu. Not very sophisticated but you have no worries about compatability.

Answer 2

For gnome, ".desktop" files can be placed in ~/.config/autostart/

here's a sample, ~/.config/autostart/glista.desktop:

[Desktop Entry]
Type=Application
Name=GLista - Simple todo list manager
Exec=glista
Icon=system-run
Comment=
Name[en_US]=GLista
Comment[en_US]=Super-simple to-do list manager
X-GNOME-Autostart-enabled=true

By the way, the interface for managing startup applications can be found on the "System - Preferences - Startup Applications".