Windows 8 to miss the traditional Start Button orb

Posted on February 7, 2012 by iGennie Technical Services

This time when you open your Microsoft Windows you may miss the traditional “Start” button that was dedicatedly visible at the left hand corner of your desktop. Off late it is reported that Microsoft has decided upon shunning this widely used Windows “Start” button from its Windows 8 “Consumer Preview”.

All Microsoft Windows users are well acquainted with the “Start” button and its menus which they often happen to click on to navigate to various programs and applications as and when needed. 15 years ago the users were introduced to this “Start” button and menu along with the introduction of Windows 95 which might be no more to be seen by the end of the year when the long awaited Windows 8 is about to launch.

This weekend a significant screenshot seeped out to the Internet that displayed the supposedly “Consumer Preview” of Windows 8. This screenshot clearly depicts the Super Bar exclusive of the Start button orb. This was an element of surprise for the users eagerly awaiting the Windows 8 interface.

But this is not a bad news indeed as the sources reveal that Microsoft has arranged for a substantially more functional hot corner that adeptly substitutes the “Start” button. A user interface replicating a thumbnail would be apparently available in the Metro or desktop mode which despite the touch or mouse input would pave way to easy access of Windows desktop and Start Screen in Windows 8.

The activated new interface of Windows 8 functions from the lower-left corner. It provides a thumbnail preview of the menu to choose from and browse to with a click on the new visual element. The touch mode is supposed to have the same facilities which would be functional through a swipe action. Microsoft Windows 8 comprises of a reciprocal feature that is designed to show a preview of the Metro mode even if you are in desktop mode and glance of Desktop mode when in Metro mode.

Apart from the above features, Microsoft is said to carry the heritage of the Super Bar in Windows 8, as was inherited in Windows 7. It is evident that the purpose of removing the Windows Start button is to use Super Bar in the form of a shortcut dock for the desktop mode. Microsoft retains the secrecy and keeps hope afloat about re-launching the highly familiar “Start” button if situation and users demand.