Like Microsoft, Apple Wants to Remove the "Start Button" from OS X

It may not happen in OS X Yosemite, but at some point in the future Craig Federighi and his engineering wizards plan on removing the Apple Menu from the desktop operating system to replace it with a bigger version of Control Center ported from iOS.

If the scenario sounds familiar, that’s because it is. The Apple Menu is more or less the equivalent of the Windows start button.

Note: Before you jump in the comments to correct this claim, note that we’re referring to the start/home concept that these buttons are based on. In reality, the Windows Start menu offers far more functionality than the Apple Menu.

With that out of the way, a number of developers are reporting that OS X Yosemite includes code strings that directly confirm Apple’s intentions to implement a Control Center of sorts in an effort to replace the longstanding Apple Menu at the top left-hand corner of the desktop.

A screenshot leaked in March showing this particular feature was received with skepticism by the Apple blogosphere, with some claiming it was a fabricated image. However, in light of these recent code discoveries (below), it appears that the image was indeed genuine (above).

Code strings found in OS X 10.10 indicate Apple is planning to replace Apple Menu with Control Center

It may not ensue the same backlash as witnessed by the removal of the Windows Start Button, but it will certainly spawn a fair dose of criticism.

Perhaps Apple’s best approach would be to port the iOS Control Center to the Mac without removing the Apple Menu button at first. Another way to work around this problem would be to integrate the Apple Menu functions (About This Mac, Software Update, Sleep, Restart, Shut Down) in the Control-Center-to-be.

On iOS, Control Center is a swipe-up panel that contains some of the most used features and utilities on the iPhone, such as toggles for AirPlane Mode, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth, a brightness slider, Calculator and Flashlight, etc.

On the Mac, Control Center would include far more functions and utilities, mainly thanks to the increased screen real estate, but also because a desktop OS is far more complex and can be used for a plurality of tasks all at the same time.

So now it’s your turn to speak. Would you miss the Apple Menu had Tim Cook & Co. decided to replace it with a Control Center panel? Do you think this change is necessary for the Mac? Let those fingers run loose in the comments section below.