Quote:
Originally Posted by BWinmill
Ways to launch programs in (stock) Windows 8.x:
Start Screen, which is the replacement of the Start Menu. It accommodates both desktop and modern applications.
Pin to Taskbar, which is intended for desktop applications (though it can present the iconified form of modern applications).
Search, which accommodates desktop and modern applications as well as control panels and documents.
Windows Explorer (a.k.a. the Desktop), which is useful for desktop and modern applications as well as documents. It also allows for hierarchical organization, which is similar to the Start Menu.
Now I'm not going to claim that any of these are a substitute for the Start Menu, but Windows 8.x does support a lot of different ways to launch your software. Choose what you like, or install a Start Menu replacement if you are attached to that interface.
I also realize that each of these options has its drawbacks. Then again, so does the Start Menu. Just as the Start Menu has advantages, these other approaches have advantages too. For example: the Start Screen supports live tiles, search makes it easy to find infrequently used software, and pinning to the taskbar is a quick way to access frequently used desktop applications.
Incidentally, I would not equate search with typing in commands or suggest that it harks back to the 1980s. It has far more in common with the search command introduced in Windows 7 or Spotlight in OS X than it does with command entry.
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I use Classic Shell which gives you back your start menu well it's an add on but works great but also use Pin to Taskbar alot. I think this was intro in Windows 7 though? I like the jump lists on the pinned apps when they don't get corrupted and I have to restore them. Truthfully I forget about the start screen because I just don't need it after the 8.1 update.