Microsoft (MSFT) intended Windows 8 to be a revolutionary change inits operating system, but something went awry along the way. Rather than take astand with a radically new “modern” interface, Microsoft compromised with a hybridOS that combined the old desktop with a new modern start screen and appecosystem. And then the company infuriated customers by arbitrarily stripping out coreconventions of the desktop like the Start menu. According to Microsoft punditPaul Thurrott, it might be coming back.
Last week, Paul Thurrott announcedthat the next version of Windows 8 — sometimes referred to as “Threshold” orWindows 8.2 — will have some important updates to appease traditional Windowsusers. In particular, it is expected to restore the Start menu and modern appswill run in windows on the desktop.
At this point, you might be confused — Windows 8.1, alreadyavailable, has restored the traditional Start menu on the desktop, hasn’t it?Not exactly. In the wake of Windows 8’s release in October 2012, usersdemanded that Microsoft restore the Start button. Microsoft did exactly that inWindows 8.1, but of course what users really wanted was the Start menu, not justa button to launch the new (and reviled) modern Start Screen.
So today, the only way to get the traditional Start menu isto use of the many Start menu replacement apps, like Start8,Classic Shell, or Start Menu 8. All that is now expected to change in2015 when Microsoft releases the next iteration of Windows 8.
Read also:
Has Microsoft finally admitted Windows 8 was a colossal blunder? (Computerworld (blog))
Microsoft's Windows 8 Is The Perfect OS That Nobody Wants (Co.Design)
Plex Media Server arrives on Windows Phone 8, free for Nokia devices for the … (Engadget)
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