A very handy trick Windows Vista users can take advantage of is the ability to launch programs via the desktop right-click menu. This article explains exactly how to do it.

This tweak is extremely useful for launching your most common applications as it can be much faster than typing items into the Run dialog box, using Quick Launch or tracking down items in your Start Menu. Additionally, doing this allows you avoid adding extra shortcut icons (clutter) on your desktop.

The downside is you can only access this menu when you right click empty space on your desktop, so if you have other applications open you would have to minimize or close them first. Other than that, this is a quick and clean way to launch many of your common applications.