Start menu evolution

Translator's note: a free retelling of the article (in a negative way) was already presented at Habré alizar , but it seems to me that the topic is worthy of translating the original completely, without possibly adding its own emotions.


We want to share with you a series of articles about why and how we change the Start menu. To begin, we will talk about the history and evolution of the Start menu, as well as the problems and trends that we have learned from you. We think that it is always important to know where everything went from before talking about where everything goes. In the next article we will talk about how we created the new Start screen, and then we'll see where the discussion of these publications takes us.

We realize that for some people any change in Windows will be destructive, and therefore we want to have an open dialogue about these changes. For many people, Windows is an important part of life, which means that almost any change can produce heart-rending reactions like “how do I turn it off” or a debate about whether it has become more or less convenient.
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Today’s debates around touch control are terribly similar to the debates of the 1980s about whether a mouse is a newfangled curiosity, a productivity killer, or an innovation in user interaction. We say this, knowing that many comments emphasize the superiority of the mouse over touch controls. The mouse appeared before the desktop publishing programs appeared, and besides them and drawing programs, the mouse was nowhere special and could not be used. And now we are surrounded by touch screens everywhere: at airports, gas stations, cinemas, cash registers and, of course, in our phones. The only place where touch control has not yet become ubiquitous is in the most advanced devices that you use. As well as the appearance of the mouse, innovations in the field of touch control of the computer will not happen without the support of the operating system, new programs and new hardware. We believe that, like the mouse, touch control will eventually complement, but not replace, almost every aspect of user interaction. The move to this begins with the release of the Windows 8 Developer Preview. So let's start a dialogue on how things will evolve not only in the user's basic interaction with Windows, but also in the area of ​​software and hardware.

If we talk about the main thing, in particular about Start, we noticed several frequently asked questions:
- Will it be possible to close Metro applications without having to launch Task Manager?
- Yes, it will, but we also would like to talk about why you might not need to do that.

- Are you going to do something so that the mouse can more effectively scroll through the programs in the Start screen?
- Yes, we will make improvements in this area and show you much more in the beta.

Some of you said that they feel that working with the list of programs is less effective than with the taskbar (and we'll talk more about this in future articles). There are other issues. The main thing is for you to understand that we are in the know. Some things will be easier to discuss if we first agree on the terms and their meanings. For example, the Metro style is a design language that we can apply to any element of the system. A Start screen is a development of the Start menu (as well as a taskbar, notifications, and gadgets), and not a “Metro shell” at all. Another example: we do not consider Metro a mode of operation with an operating system. Rather, it is a generic name for programs using WinRT. There is still a lot to talk about. We initially focused on the platform and tools and probably didn’t explain much about the changes in user interaction.

The Start menu is one of the most visible parts of Windows, and therefore we take very seriously all changes in this area. The world around Windows has changed a lot since we first introduced the Start menu, and we want to be sure that we still provide opportunities that are adequate to the dynamic world in which we now live. The evolution of the Start menu is inextricably linked with the development of other related concepts, such as launching applications, switching between tasks, system notifications and gadgets. The history behind all these concepts and the ways in which they followed gave us the opportunity to create a much clearer, more powerful and uniform way of working with modern programs and computers. The new Start screen embodies these aspirations.

So, before we touch Windows 8, let's remember the past and see what we know about the Start menu.

A brief history of the Start menu

Start menu design began in 1992. The menu first appeared in Windows 95. The menu was invented in a world where vertically-standing computers and 15-inch CRT monitors dominated the workplace. The World Wide Web was still an experiment, and people had to go to the store to buy software. It was not at all like now. The fundamental goal of the menu was to make it clear to people where they should start work from. The menu was replaced by the ancient Program Manager, that concept from Windows 3.x, which was a floating window with shortcuts, and this window was interfered with on the desktop and was lost under the windows of other programs. Being securely attached to the taskbar, the Start menu was distinguished by the constancy of its position and was a single portal to programs and system functions. In fact, the menu was the fastest way to run a program without having to search for an executable file somewhere in the depths of the system.


Start Menu in Windows 95

Looking at the Start menu in Windows 95 you can immediately notice the areas that have been gradually improved in the next versions of Windows. For example, we have heard reviews that the location of programs in the alphabetical list in a pop-up window led to slower navigation. In response to this, a section of recently used programs appeared in Windows XP. This change led to new problems, since in reality there was no way to customize this section. Some people were eager to understand, on what basis were the programs selected for this section? A complex heuristic algorithm determines which programs you use most often. In order to solve the problem of setting up the Start menu for yourself, in Windows XP (and later in Windows Vista and Windows 7) a section was added into which you could fix the programs that were most important for you, so that they were always at hand. However, this functionality was still insufficient. You could pin programs and change their order, but there was still no way to group programs, which is important if there are many programs.

Viewing the list of all installed programs was also not very convenient. Often the menu turned off due to incorrect movement and had to start all over again. Particularly difficult was the owners of laptops with their trackpads and those who are not very skilled. It was still difficult to display everything on low-resolution monitors. To solve these problems in Windows Vista, a tree-like menu appeared, completely located in one window. Such a menu required less acrobatic exercises with the mouse. However, the list of all installed programs still seemed to be full, as the menu required a scroll bar. The Start menu has already begun to seem full to the limit.


List of all installed programs in Windows 7

Another important evolutionary change in the Start menu was the appearance of an instant search. In Vista and Windows 7, it became very easy to open the menu and just start typing a request. We know that many of you liked this powerful way of working, as it reduces the time needed to open programs and documents. Adding extended commands also reduced the need to run the Run dialog. However, we knew that there was still something to improve. Sometimes there were too many search results and displaying data of different types (letters, files, control panel settings, etc.) was not always convenient in a fixed-size column. Some of you asked if the Start screen in Windows 8 will support search. He already supports. Just start typing and instantly see search results that can be filtered by type (programs, files, or settings). And, just like in Windows 7, the full power of the search is available in Explorer.

Based on known problems and your feedback, we continued to hone interaction with the Start menu over the years. However, we believe that even Start in Windows 7 still contains the following problems:

• When I try to view the list of installed programs, the menu seems to be full. Especially looking at the amount of screen space available.
• Search undeservedly allocated little space to display additional information in the search results. This is especially noticeable on large screens.
• The menu is difficult to customize.
• Icons and labels are static and do not use the increased number of pixels.

Of course, the above list is not a complete set of what we are improving. We also aim at unifying Start with the rest of the system and adding new work scenarios. An important part of the design is that sometimes you need to step back and look at everything from the outside. This will help to fundamentally rethink problems and bring something more into the product than cosmetic changes. This is especially true for something like the Start menu, which was born at a completely different time, when we used computers in a completely different way.

It is important to understand the depth of the problem. The Start menu is used almost exclusively for opening programs and documents (except for the search function). Working with Windows 7 also includes switching programs and pinning them to the taskbar, receiving notifications and working with gadgets on the desktop. In the course of our dialogue, we will talk about how Windows 8 harmoniously brings it all together.

How is the Start menu used?

Now that we have briefly discussed the history of the Start menu, let's explore how people actually use Start. We think you will be interested to see how the use of the menu has changed over time. The following figure shows the changes in menu usage in two versions of Windows.


Changes in the use of the Start menu in Windows Vista and Windows 7

This is astounding how differently the Start menu is used in Windows Vista compared to Windows 7. The frequency of using some special folders (as we call the objects in the upper right of the menu) has decreased by more than 50%. Similarly, in Windows 7, people began to use pinned items on the Start menu two times less than in Vista. Also, people much less often began to use the list of all installed programs and the list of recently used ones. And finally, we see that people in general have begun to open the Start menu less often (11% less often). At first glance, 11% seems small, but if we take into account that hundreds of millions of our users have become so less likely to use the universally recognizable element of the Windows interface, then everything looks much more serious. We are not talking about some hidden setting that the minority uses. We are talking about the fundamental element of Windows, which people use less and less.

So why has the way people use the Start menu changed? Here's a hint: this is related to the panel at the bottom of the screen, which appeared in Windows 7.

"Start Panel"

The evolution of the taskbar directly influenced the Start menu. The fact that once was hidden in the menu, suddenly became closer to you. The most obvious improvements were the appearance of the Quick Launch toolbar (after installing the update from Internet Explorer 4.0) in 1997 and the addition of the ability to pin shortcuts to the taskbar in Windows 7.

Interesting fact: did you know that the quick launch panel in the original version of Windows XP was disabled by default because some people believed that the list of recently used programs and the ability to pin shortcuts in the Start menu would be enough? We got enough evidence to the contrary and changed the decision. We are somewhat justified by the fact that the data on the basis of which we made the initial decision was not enough, and we by and large did not know what our customers were doing. We learned the following lesson from this story: it is important for you to be able to highlight the programs that are important to you, see them all in one place and get to them in one click. And you do not need anyone to guess what is important or confusing for you important and unimportant.

Well, in order to bring everything together, let's see where people fix programs. The following graphs show that 85% of people have three or four programs on the taskbar, while only 23% of people have the same number of programs on the Start menu. Although the taskbar and Start menu defaults contain different pinned programs, people still customize both, if desired. It’s obvious to us that most people want to see their programs on the taskbar, and not dive after them in the Start menu.


The number of assigned tasks in the Start menu (upper chart) and on the taskbar (lower chart).

We also know that advanced users use the taskbar in Windows 7 even more often than the Start menu. Hot keys like Win + (where n is the sequence number of the application icon on the taskbar) allow you to start and switch applications even faster (these hot keys will work in Windows 8). When we meet with IT professionals, we often see a taskbar filled with various icons. We have even seen people pinning Control Panel and similar things on the taskbar. This is to once again in the Start does not run. People are increasingly fixing something on the taskbar, especially after the sites have become anchored with the release of IE 9. Fortunately, there is enough space on the taskbar. Even with a resolution of 1024x768 it contains 22 small icons. And if you use Jump lists, then in theory you can easily get to 220 files, folders and sites at the mentioned screen resolution. This means that for those who just want to use desktop applications, the taskbar provides enough space to pin down and use everything that you constantly need without having to look in the Start menu.

By the way, since we started talking about the Jump Lists: we saw how people pinned the Explorer on the taskbar and filled it with the Jump List with frequently used folders. This allows for faster access to folders such as Documents. Not surprisingly, the frequency of using the Documents shortcut in the Start menu also decreased.

Summarizing, we can say that the taskbar has evolved and replaced many of the features of the Start menu. You can even say that the taskbar showed a lack of Start menu, as well as the fact that this menu is not as important as it used to be. Search and access to the list of all installed programs are still unique benefits of the Start menu that are important to you, but the taskbar provides you with an opportunity to get to the applications that you use every day in one click. You, and many people like you, have been pushing us with your feedback over the years to make the taskbar a powerful tool for launching and switching desktop applications. In fact, we sometimes called the taskbar in Windows 7 “Start Panel” because it’s obvious to us that many people now start with a panel, not a menu.

New features for Start

Due to the fact that the taskbar has become the main tool for launching and switching desktop applications, and also because it became clear that the Start menu is not a good tool for this, we have the opportunity to rethink Start and make it more useful. Since we know that many of you can use the taskbar to access what you often use, we decided that we could, without looking at the past, redo Start so as to develop its strengths and add new features. Improved search, more space for your programs, animated tiles, more options for customizing everything for yourself - all of this suddenly became possible after the venerable, but outdated Start menu was transformed into the Start screen. Do not miss the next publication , in which we will talk about the Start screen and how it reflects the modern ways of working with a computer.