What's wrong with Vista's start menu

[Larry]

Taking off from a previous discussion, "Using keyboard with Start menu," I
want to say that the new search capability which is located in the Start
menu is a very good addition to Windows. However, making this Search box
the first thing that the Start menu opens to is a mistake. Most of the time
users open the Start menu in order to use, uh, the Start menu, not to do a
search. Making the search box primary means that an additional, annoying
step, pressing Tab, becomes necessary to jump past the Search box and get to
the rest of the Start menu. The Start menu has thus become less user
friendly in Vista.

The obvious solution would have been to have the Search box as one item
among others on the Start menu, not the first item. Thus the user would
open the Start menu, and then, if he wanted to do a search, click in the
Search box with the pointer or else press "F" or "S" or whatever and that
would put the cursor in the Search box. That way the Search box would be
readily accessible, without being the first item in the Start menu, which
adds to the number of steps to access the rest of the Start menu.

By the way, is is possible to change the Start menu so that the Search box
is not the first thing the cursor is place in when the Start menu is opened?

Another major flaw is that if you press the letter "A" to get to a Start
menu button that starts with "A" (assuming it's the only one that starts
with "A"), that item is not automatically run, but the user still has to
press Enter. This is a step backward in economy and ease of use. And what
is gained by it? The ability to right click that button and do other things
with it? But that was possible with the old start menu as well. You would
right click that button and access its context menu.

In conclusion, the only advance I see in the Vista start menu is the Search
box. But that could have been added without all the other changes that make
the Start menu worse, namely making the Search box the first thing the
cursor goes to, and removing the functionality of pressing a letter key to
run a Start menu shortcut.

Larry

 

[Paul Smith]

But having the search box in focus means you can type mai and press enter
and have Windows Mail launch.

Or press Start and type ca and press enter and have calculator launch.

Once you get used to this feature you can never go back to using the
keyboard or mouse to navigate around the Start menu. It's so much faster
and you don't need to look at what you're doing.

--
Paul Smith,
Yeovil, UK.
Microsoft MVP Windows Shell/User.
http://www.windowsresource.net/

*Remove nospam. to reply by e-mail*

 

[Richard Urban]

All I do is press the Windows key and use the up arrow on my keyboard. Yes,
if you want to go to something on the right side of the start menu you must
tab over.

--


Regards,

Richard Urban MVP
Microsoft Windows Shell/User

 

[Larry]

I agree that that's a good feature but here's my point.

With applications that one is using constantly, like the application
formerly known as Outlook Express, why have to type in anything? It should
take a click or two, or a keystroke or two, and nothing more. Any
application that a user is using all the time, e.g., Word, IE, e-mail,
should have an instant way of starting that involves the minimum of steps.

When it comes to less frequently used applications, then, yes, this new
search capability is very good. But since they are less frequently used,
there is no need for the Search box to be the default first location of the
cursor when the user opens the Start menu.

For people who value the new search box, but don't want it to have priority
in the Start menu, there ought to be an option to make the start menu open
with the focus on the main start menu, not on the search box.

 

[Qu0ll]

But having the search box in focus means you can type mai and press enter
and have Windows Mail launch.

Or press Start and type ca and press enter and have calculator launch.

Once you get used to this feature you can never go back to using the
keyboard or mouse to navigate around the Start menu. It's so much faster
and you don't need to look at what you're doing.

Vista has an amazing piece of technology called "Quick Launch". You just
move the mouse over the icon for Windows Mail or Calculator and click it.
The application is launched instantly!

--
And loving it,

-Q
______________________________________________
(e-mail address removed)
(Replace the "SixFour" with numbers to email)

 

[Bill]

You can select the classic menu, instead of the new vista menu. Many of
my senior citizen customers prefer their old menu.

 

[Guest]

With applications that one is using constantly, like the application
formerly known as Outlook Express, why have to type in anything? It should
take a click or two, or a keystroke or two, and nothing more.

Windows mail and IE are always located on top of start menu ---> 1 click only.
Frequently used application are listed in the start menu ---> 1 click only

 

[Ronnie Vernon MVP]

Or the right arrow key.

 

[Richard Urban]

Yep! Some people make things so much harder for themselves than it need be.

Or - they just like to complain.

--


Regards,

Richard Urban MVP
Microsoft Windows Shell/User