Apparently, Microsoft is not yet done changing the interface on Windows 8. Screenshots purported to be from Windows 8 Beta (build 8220), dubbed the “Consumer Preview”, posted on the Chinese website PCBeta, showed the taskbar without the Start button orb. In the Developer Preview, Microsoft had flattened the start button in an awkward attempt to match it to the Metro style interface. In the Beta build, the start button did the vanishing act.
According to The Verge, the start orb will be replaced by a ‘hot corner’.
A thumbnail-like user interface will appear in Metro or desktop mode, providing a consistent way to access the Windows desktop and Start Screen in Windows 8 regardless of touch or mouse input. The new interface is activated on hover from the lower-left corner of Windows 8 and includes a thumbnail preview of where you will navigate to after clicking on the new visual element. The same element will appear in touch mode, and we expect it will be activated by a swipe action. If you are in desktop mode then it will show a preview of the Metro mode and vice versa.
I’m not sure what The Verge is trying to say here. From what I get, there will be no start menu, instead we will get some ‘thumbnail preview’ of god knows what.
Microsoft will keep the Super Bar, whose functionality, without the start button or the menu will be reduced to a shortcut dock,. I’m sure there will be a registry key somewhere that will revert the change, so don’t make that sad face.
Microsoft removed the Start Menu and the Start Button completely. If I wanted to do all my office work on a tablet, I would have gone and bought myself a new iPad (which I still might do, if I’m forced to choose between a Windows tablet and an iPad). Why can’t we just leave the tablet market to Apple and the PC market to Microsoft? Don’t get me wrong, I like Windows 8 in general, but what happened to freedom of speech and choices. In Windows XP we had the choice to switch back to the Classic Start Menu and in Windows 7 we have XP Mode.
It looks like in Windows 8, the only choices we have are to tablet or not to tablet. Rizonesoft started a petition to ask Microsoft to at least give us a choice between the interfaces and bring the Start Menu back. Go here: http://www.rizonesoft.com/2012/bring-back-the-start-menu/ for more information about the petition. Please help Rizonesoft accomplish this almost impossible task by signing and sharing this petition.