#Windows 11 start menu windows 8#
#Windows 11 start menu windows#

The automatic organization of tiles could be confusing, and the dynamic aspects of tiles made for a very visually cluttered menu. And while Live Tiles could be visually interesting, the busy interface they created wasn't always easy to navigate.

Live Tiles stayed on for Windows 10, with some tweaks to make them more usable.īut it looks like this real-time functionality has been removed from the Start Menu and rebranded as Widgets, with the return of icons on the Start Menu.

When Microsoft launched Windows 8 back in 2012, it added Live Tiles, which replaced static app icons with a grid-like menu of dynamic squares that could show icons, photos, or real-time information from within a given app. If it's anything like Windows 10, clicking on this icon will pull up options to shut down or restart the machine, or just put it in sleep mode. Clicking on this will probably give you the option of signing out, switching users or locking your system.Īnd in the lower right-hand corner of the Start Menu is a power icon. The specifics of how these items are selected hasn't been shared with the public, so it could be based on anything from frequently used apps to files that are routinely opened at the same time of day.Īlong the bottom of the Start Menu is a profile picture, identifying the active user account. It looks to be made up of automatically generated recommendations for the apps and files you are most likely to need. The next big section on the Start Menu is labeled Recommended. The new Start Menu has a much cleaner look than before, and the shift from the corner to the center of the screen could offer some interesting improvements in how efficiently you can navigate the apps and files that are found there.īut with change comes some confusion, and until we can actually use a final version of the new Windows 11, our best information on the new Start Menu may be the images from the announcement itself. And, as always, you can open this menu with a tap of the Windows key. If you prefer the left-oriented layout, it looks like you'll be able to move the Start Button back to that position. Instead of having a static position in the lower left corner of the screen, the Start button and menu will have a more central location, in the middle portion of the taskbar running along the bottom of the screen.

In Windows 11, the default home of the Start Button is in a different place than in past versions of Windows. (Image credit: Microsoft) Wait, where is my Start Button?

#Windows 11 start menu windows#

#Windows 11 start menu windows 8#