No, the start menu is not useless

Windows hasn’t changed much since it was first created all the way back in 1985.  They introduced the taskbar in 1995 with Windows 95 along with the topic of this post: the start menu.  The start menu has been an iconic part of the Windows interface, I love it here’s why.

How I use the start menu

I use the start menu not to launch my essential programs, but more than a shelf for the apps that haven’t “earned” a place on my taskbar.  Ironically, most of most of the apps in my taskbar are also in my start menu, mostly for easy access in tablet mode.  For me the start menu is invaluable, I stash all my web apps, creative tools, and non-essentials such as the news app.

Here’s the start screen from Windows 8.

 Without the modern start menu I wouldn’t have a place to store essential programs and apps that I can't fit on the taskbar.  Live tiles are…..kind of defunct, very few are useful and most of my apps don't support it. In conclusion, the start menu is an essential part of the Windows and I plan to continue to use it for as long as it exists.  Being honest, I miss the old metro design of the start screen in Windows 8.  I really wished Microsoft’s vision for the future would have worked where I could have Windows on all the devices in my life.  Alas, that was a vision of a bygone era, a new era is arriving, and with that era a new start menu.

The future of the Start menu

  I understand why Microsoft is moving away from live tiles and tiles in general in the alternative version of Windows “Windows 10x”.  Various leaks and demonstrations have shown a redesign of the start menu revolving around static icons along with an integration with the search menu.  I direct you to Windows central’s scoop on the story for pictures and much more in-depth explanation, here are the link:"https://www.windowscentral.com/windows-10x“.  From what we’ve seen, this new start menu will have no tiles and really no space to store app icons.  I want to make sure everyone knows that Windows 10x is not replacing regular Windows 10, rather it will bring Windows to new form-factors such as foldable and dual-screen devices.  Microsoft has recently announced that Windows 10x will come to more traditional form-factors soon, but that still doesn’t mean that it’s the “new” version of Windows.  I cannot “upgrade to Windows 10x because It’s not meant to be an upgrade to existing Windows 10 users.


That being said, it seems the start menu in Windows 10x has an app tray, that app tray is tiny so I can't see it being a shelf for apps.  Instead, I hope it can be more like Android 10 where it adapts and changes to offer different apps depending on the time, day, and recent usage patterns.  I honestly don’t know what awaits for the future of the start menu, but I can’t wait to see what it becomes.





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