I just got an idea. You could use your firewall app and make it thoroughly universal - like alltray - by allowing the user to set the app to be launched and toggle icons on the command line.
tasmod - your firewall check should make it into 214 o9f Lucid (I Hope)
Is it possible you can look at the time and date (bottom right) and make it run
the date and time wizard on right click?
Good that you are learning and doing useful stuff simultaneously