14 DAY TRIAL // Windows 10 Preview brought back the Start menu on Microsoft’s desktop platform, in an attempt to restore the full functionality of Windows 7 on PCs with a mouse and keyboard.
The Start menu, however, didn’t come back with the original look and feel, but received a modern touch, courtesy of the Windows 8 Start screen.
The new version of the Start menu comes with live tiles that play the same role as on the Windows 8 Start screen and keep users up to date with what’s happening inside the apps and displaying brief information such as the current weather forecast or details on the music you’re listening to.
Unsurprisingly, Microsoft expected this new version to appeal to many users, but some are simply asking the company to bring back the much simpler look that was previously available in Windows 7, without the modern live tiles introduced in Windows 8.
“Just remove the live tiles”
Some of the users who commented on Microsoft’s Windows 10 announcement asked the company to implement a much simpler version of the Start menu that wouldn’t come with the live tiles and would thus bring back the original functionality of the version included in Windows 7.
“OK, the Start Button & Menu are back. Thank you. Now PLEASE rip out the live tiles. If you REALLY think we should have them, just offer it as a nice, standalone, downloadable extra. After all, they really are great and folk will flock to download them, – er won’t they?” one user wrote on the page.
“It’s great that the Start Menu is back but putting the live tiles in it?! I just hope that there’s an option to hide and unhide those live tiles from the Start Menu once the final build is released,” another one added.
Quick way to get a Windows 7-like Start menu
Even though the Windows 10 Start menu comes with a modern touch, it’s still possible to make it look much simpler and get back the design that was available in Windows 7.
All live tiles can be removed with a simple right click, and once you delete all of them, the Start menu automatically resizes to a simple list of installed apps.
The layout, however, isn’t the same as in Windows 7, and power controls are still placed at the top of the Start menu, but at least you can get a cleaner design without live tiles.
Microsoft, however, has said that many features could change until the final version of Windows 10 comes out, so the Start menu could also get a bunch of other customization options in the coming months.