Windows 8.1 Start button may not offer actual Start menu

Windows 8 users hoping for a return of the traditional Start button and Start menu in Windows 8.1 may be disappointed.

Rumors have floated recently that Microsoft may revive the familiar Start button in the Windows 8.1 update scheduled for release later this year. A new report today from The Verge claims that "sources familiar with Microsoft's plans" have confirmed the return of the Start button.

But... Yes, there always seems to be a but....

Read more at source:
Windows 8.1 Start button may not offer actual Start menu | Microsoft - CNET News

 

[Frank1]

Yes, I believe that we will have the start button back exactly like the one on Windows 7. I also believe in the Easter Bunny and the Tooth Fairy.

 

[Wds]

Me 2 ....

 

[labeeman]

The Windows 8.1 Start Button Is a “Good Move by Microsoft,” Says Start Menu App Dev

Microsoft indeed brought back the Start button in Windows 8.1, but it only gets users to the Start screen, instead of launching a Start Menu.

In spite of this, it’s still a nice feature, Mark Beare, the CEO and co-founder of ReviverSoft, the company behind Start Menu Reviver, told us in an interview.

Bear has explained that while the new Start button is helpful in some cases, many users might actually be disappointed with the fact that it only gets you to the Start screen, instead of launching a Start Menu

“I think that it is a good move by Microsoft. They really need something on the desktop to tell users where to go to access the menu. That being said, it still just takes people to the Start Screen. The Start Screen on mouse and keyboard is a less efficient way to navigate around Windows than a Start Menu that opens on the desktop,” Beare mentioned.

The Windows 8.1 Start Button Is a ?Good Move by Microsoft,? Says Start Menu App Dev

 

[Frank1]

"Inspite of this, it's still a nice feature" says Mark Beare.
I would ask him what's "nice" about it. He knows very well that it is not the start button that many users have been asking for. I really don't miss the start button, but a lot of users do. For MS to say they are bringing back the start button is, in my opinion, insulting everyone's intelligence. As I've mentionedbefore, instead of calling it the start button, they should have named it the appeasement button.

 

[DustSailor]

Start menu look

Start menu look -

It just looks like the Win 8 "flag" window; there is no surrounding "Box" or "circle". An outlining box appears when the mouse hoovers over it, however, for those who were wondering.

 

[HippsieGypsie]

Geez....Just as I thought > That new member opened up Pandora's Box again....

 

[Rickkins]

Geez....Just as I thought > That new member opened up Pandora's Box again....

Perhaps Pandora asked him to....??

 

[tseven]

I didn't miss the start button. But, I did miss the functionality of it. The start screen is not laid out in such a way unless you lay it out yourself to get you to what you need. The new button is basically a wasted opportunity to have a new more user-friendly way of bringing up the menu to go places. There is no point in adding back that button if it serves no real function aside from bringing you to the start screen which in itself is still messy. There is still no visual cue to bring up the menu and the hidden menu doesn't work well. If I didn't know about how windows 8 functioned from reading and watching it before using it I would be lost. It is not intuitive. There are nice upgrades but the product is still half baked.