Windows 8 forum: Poll: Do you think Microsoft will ever bring back the Start button?

My vote was "I don't care." And its because that has always been the attitude of MS. You do it their way or get the much more expensive Apple. It's just amazing that Win 7 was such a dream and so easy to use and they go and give you Win 8 which is an immense hassle. Nothing is familiar and you've got to re-learn everything. I will delay upgrading as long as possible before I spring for the 8.

I really don't care about the start button. I am however, disappointed about their decision to remove the "Manage Wireless Networks" tool. It just seems plain stupid that you can create hidden networks but once created you can't manage them (because they don't show up in the wireless networks list). You therefore have to either learn the command line method which only provides the options to see them, delete them and display the security key but not edit them or download third party tools which only show them to you but don't allow you to manipulate them.

Unless Microsoft brings this back I won't be going to Windows 8 with wireless being the dominant, growing method of networking.

I don't care because regardless of whether they bring back the start button or not, I'm not putting that garbage bubble-gum interface on my computer.

I use a computer to do my WORK, and if the OS gets in the way of DOING MY WORK, it will be "a cold day" before I put it on my machine. And it REALLY ticks me off to have a software company try to dictate HOW I will use the computer; install a bunch of "features-in-search-of-an-application", render a bunch of my most-used programs and apps obsolete, and then try to convince me that they're doing it "for my own good."

I don't WANT pretty little blocks to a bunch of social apps I DO NOT USE, (Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, ad nauseum) I want a clean, customizable desktop where I put the icons for the apps I use the most, and when I'm not using them, I still see a CLEAN, UNCLUTTERED desktop...

MicroGarbage doesn't want to give me a "Start" button? I don't care...because I'm not putting that garbage on my computer.

If I'd wanted a Mac, I would have bought one by now. I've used the Mac/Apple stuff enough to know I don't like it, and don't want one.

Why should I have to pay for an OS upgrade I don't want; that cripples my system; that renders most of my most-used apps obsolete; that obscures the functions I use the most....and then PAY some 3rd-party for a "little add-on" that restores the functionality I used to have...before MicroGarbage killed it and told me to "like it"????

Are you nuts?

Microsoft did really well with XP. It took them some time to get it some what hacker proof. But it worked well and did everything that I needed. Then came Vista, what a bomb. I got it and then nothing worked, no printer no scanner or fax machine, and it was slow as. Found the problem was drivers for the system. Couldn't get them as there is no money for the MOBO makers to write new drivers. Dumped it. Seven came out and I waited to see what happened. It was obviously better that Vista, but again no new drivers, unless I bought all new hardware. I know am sysadmin to a small charity group and there headquarters demanded they switch to 7. Now their computers are as slow as a wet wick, the reason NO NEW DRIVERS. And to do any thing you have got to wait for the wizard to fall over before you can fix anything. I had the 8 trial verson an a machine and it is usable, but very difficult to find thinngs, couldn't even turn it off. Found the answer when I hit the upper right corner to find the shut down, and again no drivers. I might consider up grading to 8 if I can set the system to boot to a legacy type desktop, else it will be a really big learning curve for Linux.

Maybe the Microsoft programmers are too young or too old to understand that not everyone is happy with a computer that does not do what is has to do: making the daily job as easy as possible for computer users; in this way they will quickly loose the market and go through the drain, leaving the market to other and more understanding companies!

There's nothing wrong with Windows 7. End of story for me.

I think that they should make the start button part of the main page as it is on Windows 7, I know that you can get to it from the settings ,moving your mouse to the far right bottom of the screen, the thing is that no person wants to move from 1 screen to the other just to shut down, restart or sleep mode.
As far as Windows 8 goes it seems to be a good program so far and it does use more resources than that of Windows 7.
The only thing that I don't see is that Windows XP has run great and if it wasn't for all of the fix's and updates that are actually 50 times more than that of the original OS CD. (original 840mb, Now 6 gb) .
Windows 7 is good in my book but not a challenge when it came up against XP-PRO.
My guess is that you have to get acquainted with the program as we all got use to Windows XP for the past 12 years.
The problem here is the same with all and that is Virus's and Adware's getting through the firewall in Windows, so the thing is, if you are going to have internet access then the modern day phone, tablet and Televisions are going to have issues (Modern Day Cyber Crimes).

...and I'll be damned if I'll play Microsoft's game any more! I liked XP and fought Vista on a friend's computer (he took it to get W7 when I refused to try to make his toy work with Vista anymore!) --- and when I obtained a Sony laptop about 16 months ago, it had W7. And it will continue to have W7. I will be damned if I'll pay Microsoft to allow me to "adjust."
No sale, fellers!!!!!

I spent 30 years in the retail business, and in the past 8 months I have trained and worked on 89 computers, laptop and desktop. I am a real computer geek and my hobby is building super computers.

The reason for slow computers sales is not presentation or poor sales etiquette. It is an operating system (Win 8) that sets the laptop and desktop back twelve years to the days of Word perfect and the maze of key strokes to learn the system. While Word Perfect is not an operating system, it is the same principle. Who wants to learn key strokes when they could have had a START icon with everything they need on it.

Most of the people I work with can barely turn ON and OFF a computer with a Windows 7 operating system, much less maneuver through a clumsy Windows 8 operating system scheme.

When these new computers do start to sell, half the people who buy them will take them home, try to operate them, and finally end up taking them back to the retail store where purchased, because the operating system is just too complicated for them to learn. I have had calls where they can't even get to their Home page, their email, or on line.

There are a lot of good things in Windows 8, but the removal of the Start icon is not one of them. Microsoft has let the world electronics retail industry down, and will cost industry billions of dollars in retraining expense. Simply because they have tried to create an all purpose operating system to corner the market in smaller electronics devices. Wake up Microsoft and correct this situation while it is still early in the game.

SHAME ON YOU MICROSOFT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I say no! If you miss the START Button just switch to the DESKTOP. I started using Windows 8 in Beta. Its was a real mess back then, and the Apps were very Spartan. Since then thing have come a long way. It took me a while to figure out that the MENU page is replacing the START Button. I have discovered a few other things about Windows 8 along the passing of time. Of which the missing Start button was the easiest to get used to. During Beta I had my DVD drivers, after the full version I had none! I purchased new ones for about $35.00, now there is an App costing about $15.00. I found that there are two very different versions of the Internet Explorer in Windows 8:
(1) one I call the App version and it caters to the media people that don't like computers users stealing their content, so cutting, pasting, enlarging, and shrinking doesn't work unless the media people allow it. I don't know why, I think maybe it is a web security thing, and the Adobe Flash Player doesn't work no matter what! (It drives me batty)
(2) two the DESKSTOP Version of the Internet Explorer acts just like the one in Windows 7, just like the one I have grown to love so much over the years. I tried loading Google's Chrome on Windows 8 and it worked for about a week before I got the famous "Windows Blue Screen of Death". I am lucky I had made Recovery Disks before, just rolling back the system didn't fix it, I had to wipe the hard drive and use those Recovery Disks. I have found a Google App that lets my do some of the Google domain, but again because it is an App the Flash Player doesn't work. My laptop used to be Windows 7 before I installed Windows 8, trust me It is remarkably faster reading email and surfing the web. Those are the only two things I care about speeding up on my computer and Windows 8 hits the mark for me.

Microsoft does what Microsoft want to do whith out regard to it`s users.
I like windows 8 and the NEW start button is at the bottom left of the screen.
I don`t like that windows 8 does not support POP 3 mail. Also the send mail by
Page/Link is grayed out. I know thier is a work around but it is crazy that microsoft
would change this. To many steps to send link/page by mail.

I'm stuck back in XP mode. I have a computer with Vista, but it is in many ways a pain. It's like when they thought they were improving things by radically modifying Office. The difference between Office 2002 and Office 2007 is so far out there, that after all these years TRYING to use the /07 version on my Vista laptop, I get so frustrated that I shut it down and revert to my 2002 XP desktop with Word 2002. Why would they expect the bulk of users to be sophisticated and professionally trained enough to leap to Windows 8?

Microsoft needs to come back to earth. Apple learned how to expand on an idea without tossing out the baby. I and a lot of people liked the leap from Windows 95 to XP. Not everyone is a cyber engineer, and somewhere beyond XP Microsoft lost track of that. Now the behemoth is forsaking us all and shutting down support for XP, the one great engineering success story they ever had. I don't think the present crew there has the hutspah or blessing of Bill's descendant management to reactivate what they believe to be ancient history, such as the Start button.

My next computer will be an Apple.