The research Microsoft cited was surprising, to put it mildly the company said that few people actually used the Start menu. Microsoft claims that abandoning the classic Start menu wasn't a casual decision - that real and substantive issues were involved, and the changes were inspired both by user telemetry and the changing face of computing. It's designed to serve the legacy desktop and notebook market, as well as the emerging touch-driven tablet market.
Why the Start menu was stopped By now most everyone knows that Windows 8 was built for a hybrid user base. Even before Windows 8 was released to manufacturing, various third parties were marketing add-ons that promised to restore a little (or a lot) of the classic Start menu goodness to Windows 8.
And Microsoft has been adamant that the old Start menu is gone for good.īut where Microsoft doesn't go with Windows, others almost always do. Remember all the "Classic File Manager" replacements from that time? All true, but Windows 8's Start menu has thrown many people - seasoned veterans, early adopters, and new users alike - for a curve. Defenders of the new full-screen, touch-based app launcher and notifications dashboard claim that Windows users were just as antsy about the original Windows 95 Start menu. NOTE 2: You can add/remove items to Start Menu using “Special Items” and “Customize Start Menu” tabs in Start Menu Settings window.Search as you might, you won't find a single bigger source of ire in Windows 8 than the new Modern UI (aka "Metro") Start menu.
NOTE: This skin will also work in Windows Vista and Windows 7.
You might need to log off your system or close and restart Classic Shell Start Menu to enjoy Windows 7 look-like Start Menu and Start button in Windows 8.
It’ll open a browse dialog box, select “ Settings.xml” file present in downloaded ZIP file and click on OK button.Ĩ. It’ll show a drop-down list, select “ Load from XML File…” option. Now the important part! Click on “ Backup” button given just before OK button. Now go to “ Skin” tab and select “ SevenVG” skin from the list.ħ. You can open it either by going to “All Programs -> Classic Shell -> Start Menu Settings” option or by right-clicking on Start button and selecting “Settings” option.Ħ. Now open Classic Start Menu Settings window. If you installed Windows in any other drive, replace C: with the correct drive letter according to your system.ĥ. Here C: is the system drive where Windows is installed in your system. Copy SevenVG.skin and Start_Button.png files to following folder: Once you download the above mentioned ZIP file, extract it and you’ll get following 3 files in it:Ĥ. PS: You’ll find the download link in the right-side section of the above mentioned page.ģ. After installing Classic Shell, download our Windows 7 look-like skin for it:ĭownload Windows 7 Skin for Classic Shell
First of all download and install Classic Shell if you are not using it:Ģ. To enjoy this skin, you just need to follow these simple steps:ġ. We have tweaked the skin a little bit to perfectly match Windows 7 Start Menu.įollowing is a preview of this skin in action: This skin has been shared by our good friend “ Gaurav Kale” who is also a part of Classic Shell development team. Today we are going to release a free skin for Classic Shell which will provide Windows 7 look-like Start Menu and Start button in Windows 8. If you are using Classic Shell in Windows 8 to get Start Menu and Start button back but not happy with its Start Menu UI and Start button look, here is something interesting for you.ĭid you know Classic Shell’s Start Menu is highly customizable and supports 3rd party skins and you can change Start button image using its Settings?
On the other hand, Classic Shell provides a classic Start Menu and its own custom Start button in Windows 8. Start8 provides a combination of new Start Screen and classic Start Menu in Windows 8. ViStart already provides a Windows 7 look-like Start Menu and Start button in Windows 8.
We have shared a few freeware such as ViStart, Start8 and Classic Shell which help you in getting back Start button and Start Menu in Windows 8. Actually the new Start Screen has replaced the old Start Menu and Start button has been replaced by a hidden square thumbnail which appears when you move your mouse cursor to bottom-left corner of screen. We all know that Microsoft has completely removed “ Start button” and “ Start Menu” from Windows 8.