[buells1]

How can I make programs boot in a certain order? I want Firefox to boot last so it is showing on the screen.

[Art Vandelay]

You can't. Login Items launch simultaneously. What you can do is set all the others to be hidden.

[carterx]

i do something similar by using Apple Remote Desktop here at work with the labs so not sure if a login script can be created or not.

Basically by using "Send UNIX Shell Command" with Apple Remote Desktop I can be in a lab, send a pre saved command to enter username, wait .5second, enter password then have it "keystroke" enter, then on login I have it wait 30 seconds to the open an app in system preferences, then 10 seconds later opens up another app in the background.

This works great for me but unsure if this can be made into one script perhaps someone else can help with the script.

[besson3c]

Create a simple shell script:

#!/bin/sh
open /Applications/app1 && open /Applications/app2 (etc.)

give it executable permissions and run it

[Art Vandelay]

You still won't guarantee which one is frontmost with that script.

[CharlesS]

Then finish the script with:

osascript -e 'tell application "Firefox" to activate'

[Art Vandelay]

You'll probably need a delay in there to be sure everything is finished loading before telling Firefox to activate. Otherwise, a slow loading app can still end up being frontmost.

[besson3c]

Why not, Art? My script opens this apps in serial, not in parallel.

[Art Vandelay]

Just because you launch apps in serial, it doesn't necessarily mean they finish loading in that same order. Some apps will bring themselves frontmost when finished loading.

[besson3c]

I was thinking that the open command didn't return until the app was launched and responsive, but it looks like it returns once the launch of the app has been invoked. Therefore, you're right. It looks like piecing together CharlesS' Applescript command and some more Application or my shell script will do the trick though.

[turtle777]

Originally Posted by Art Vandelay 

You can't. Login Items launch simultaneously. What you can do is set all the others to be hidden.

Mail will never be hidden, right? It's that ancient OS X bug.

-t

[- - e r i k - -]

Originally Posted by turtle777 

Mail will never be hidden, right? It's that ancient OS X bug.

-t

As far as I can tell still no go in Snow Leopard for that one either.

I do have a security certificate dialog that always need to be OK'd every time Mail opens though, so that might interfere with it.

[Simon]

Originally Posted by turtle777 

Mail will never be hidden, right? It's that ancient OS X bug.

That's not a bug! It's there by design! Mail may never be hidden at launch! How dare you!

[CharlesS]

Holy crap, this thread just gave me the idea of the way to actually get Mail to hide on login.

Do launch your login items via the script. And then, do this:

osascript -e 'tell application "System Events" to set visible of process "Mail" to false'

[Simon]

Blasphemy!

[Art Vandelay]

Originally Posted by CharlesS 

Holy crap, this thread just gave me the idea of the way to actually get Mail to hide on login.

Do launch your login items via the script. And then, do this:

osascript -e 'tell application "System Events" to set visible of process "Mail" to false'

You'll want a delay on that one too. Mail does hide but then unhides once it checks for new mail.

If you take your accounts offline, it will stay hidden.

[CharlesS]

Originally Posted by Art Vandelay 

You'll want a delay on that one too.

Which can be done easily enough.

[Art Vandelay]

Quite right, didn't mean to imply it wasn't.