You've burned a CD full of PDFs, web pages or a presentation, and the person who receives it has to open the disc, hunt through folders and guess which file to start with. Making the disc start on its own usually means learning how AUTORUN.INF works, and that file can only launch programs, not documents. 1st AutoRun Express Pro from Green Parrots Software is a wizard that handles this for you.
Quick facts
- Version: 3.2
- Platform: Windows
- Price: from $39.95 (Personal license, single user)
- Download size: about 1.1 MB
- Trial: a trial version is available to download
Key features
Make a CD run your documents without writing AUTORUN.INF
You tell the wizard where your CD files are and which document you want to start. The program does the rest, so you don't need design skills or any programming.
Open one file or show a menu of several
You can autorun one or more documents, web pages or presentations at once. Or you can show an autorun menu and let the user pick. Menu buttons have customizable text and fonts, and the menu can include web and email links.
Check that the user can open your files
When the disc starts, the program checks whether the computer has software to open your documents. If it's missing, the user can be sent online to download it, or install a document viewer straight from the CD.
Customize the launcher and burn from the program
You can set the launcher icon and file name, background pictures, and version details such as company, product name and description. You can burn the CD from inside the program or test the autorun first without burning. It also supports command-line parameters for documents and drag and drop for files and icons.
Who it's for
It suits you if you distribute documents, catalogs, presentations or web content on CD or DVD and want them to open automatically. The Personal license for a single user covers installing on your own computer for personal, non-commercial use.
Pros and cons
Pros
- Step-by-step wizard, with no autorun file to write by hand
- Works with any document format, plus links and folders
- Very small download
- Burn or test directly from the program
Cons
- Windows only
- The personal license is limited to non-commercial use
- Setting up a project takes a while, because there are plenty of options to configure
What users say
"Creating a new autorun CD/DVD project does take a while, that's true, but you only have to follow a few steps to complete it." (Softpedia)
FAQs
Do I need to know AUTORUN.INF?
No. The wizard creates the autorun setup for you.
Can it run documents, not just programs?
Yes. It runs documents, web pages and presentations, and it can also show a menu to choose from.
Can I try it first?
Yes. A trial version is available to download.
Can I burn the disc from the program?
Yes. You can burn from inside the program, or test the autorun without burning.
System requirements
Runs on Windows. The installer is about 1.1 MB.