Windows 8.1 - the Start Menu Isn't Really Back

Posted: October 17, 2013

[caption id="attachment_11600" align="alignright" width="579"]Image: PCWorld[/caption]It's the day many have waited for - the release of Windows 8.1 and the return of their beloved Start button. The only downfall - the Start menu button doesn't actually work like the Windows 7 version. There are several options that will bring back the classic Start menu, if you just have to have it.

[caption id="attachment_11600" align="alignright" width="579"]Image: PCWorld[/caption]It's the day many have waited for - the release of Windows 8.1 and the return of their beloved Start button. The only downfall - the Start menu button doesn't actually work like the Windows 7 version. There are several options that will bring back the classic Start menu, if you just have to have it.

Richard Baguley, tech writer for over 20 years, reviews five options to give your Start menu back.

Five tools to bring the Start menu back to Windows 8.1

When Windows 8.1 ships tomorrow, the Start button returns with it—but if it’s the Start menu you miss, you’ll still need one of these utilities. They bring back the classic pop-up menu that Windows 8 summarily removed, and they add extra features and customization that Microsoft never thought of. Most are free, and the only one that costs anything is well worth its extremely low price. Whether you make the jump to Windows 8.1 immediately or wait a bit, there’s really no point in waiting to enjoy these enhancements to your Windows experience. 

Just give me the Start menu

Clicking the Start button just puts you into the Windows 8.1 Start page—but fortunately, programs that bring back the classic Start menu still work. The simplest of the programs I tested are Stardock’s $5 Start8, IOBit’s free Start Menu 8, and ReviverSoft’s free Start Menu Reviver.

All three produce decent facsimiles of the Start menu, but Stardock’s Start8 does the most accurate job of reproducing it. Start8 is still very useful under 8.1, offering a choice of the Windows 7 look-alike Start menu or the new Windows 8 Start page.

It’s easy to switch between the two approaches. You don’t get the same amount of control that you get with other menu programs, though. You can’t configure the look and feel of the menu very much, and you can’t create custom shortcuts.

Read the entire article Five Tools to Bring the Start Menu Back to Windows 8.1 at PCWorld.