A new version of the third-party Start Menu app is now available for download

Mar 11, 2014 12:43 GMT  ·  By

Start Menu X continues to be one of the top third-party Start Menu apps on the market, especially because users still need this kind of software solutions to make the most of Microsoft’s modern operating system, so updates are essential for quite a lot of people out there.

A new version of the application was officially released today, bringing some new improvements, as well as bug fixes that are supposed to improve the overall experience with the app.

Start Menu X 5.12 allows users to hide icons in the notification area, which means that you are finally allowed to better manage the icons showing up in the System Tray and thus organize your space better, even when running this particular Start menu app.

At the same time, the new build is fixing a bug causing a sub-menu to stay on the screen, which was quite annoying for many users running the app.

Third-party Start Menu apps continue to experience quite a big success on both Windows 8 and Windows 8.1, even though the latter comes with its very own Start button. Instead of launching the Start Menu, however, the Windows 8.1 Start button only gets users to the Start screen, making almost no difference for desktop users.

Microsoft might tackle this issue completely in the next full Windows release, which is expected to be Windows 9 in early 2015. People familiar with the company’s development plans have indicated that Redmond is planning to reintroduce the Start Menu in Windows 9 as a way to get closer to users and make the modern operating system a bit more familiar for desktop users.

Word is that the Start Menu would only show up on desktop computers, while on touch units, such as tablets and other devices, the Start screen would continue to be the main way to access installed apps.

In the meantime, third-party Start Menu apps are still enjoying quite a terrific success and, even though Microsoft is making some changes to improve its platform, consumers are still turning to such software solutions to make the entire operating system a bit more intuitive and easy to work with.

Of course, Start Menu X continues to be one of the top apps in this particular software category, so every single update is quite important for users. Overall, there’s no doubt that this new build comes in handy, so download Start Menu X 5.12 for Windows 8.1 right now to see what’s new.