From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

	This article is part of WikiProject Microsoft Windows, a WikiProject devoted to maintaining and improving the informative value and quality of Wikipedia's many Microsoft Windows articles.
B	This article has been rated as B-Class on the assessment scale.
High	This article has been rated as high-importance on WikiProject Microsoft Windows's importance scale.

This is the discussion/talk page for: Start menu.

Contents 1 Topics from 2006 1.1 Not needed? 1.2 Is Microsoft the inventor of Start Menu? 1.3 Tweaks and tricks 2 Topics from 2007 2.1 Removing a pointless bit 2.2 Generic term 2.3 "Start" label in other countries 3 Topics from 2008 3.1 Chicago "Start" Menus 3.2 Retrofit topic-year headers 3.3 Added general overview about Vista Start Menu

[edit] Topics from 2006

[edit] Not needed?

"Technically, the Start Menu is not needed at all, as any programs and files can be opened by navigating to them in the Windows Explorer interface. " But to open Windows Explorer, one has to right mouse click on Start Menu, right?--Mongol 18:54, 23 January 2006 (UTC)

windows explorer can be accessed through the 'windows key + e' keyboard shortcut. supine 16:39, 4 February 2006 (UTC)

Or open "My computer" on the desktop ... or shortcut 'WIN + R' and type in the desired folder ... or add it as a shortcut to the quicklaunch-bar ... or add an appropriate additional panel to the task bar ... or use a third-party program launch application, like a dock ... nuff said? — Mütze 22:39, 27 June 2006 (UTC)

Anyone who used the Explorer to run programs is 14 years out of date with advances (like using MS-DOS Executive to run a proggie). Still, if used like a Mac, which is document-centric, then a user could use the Explorer to find a document, then double-click it to launch the appropriate program. Just my 2 cents.--David Spalding 14:33, 6 November 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Is Microsoft the inventor of Start Menu?

Hello!

I would like to know if Microsoft invented the Start menu, or took the idea from another operating system. --82.227.246.168 04:07, 20 February 2006 (UTC)

Depends on how you look at it. The idea that a user "starts" using their applications from a single button in the corner of the screen was almost certainly a Microsoft thing... but Mac System 7 (which came out in 1991) did introduce a more flexible "Apple" menu that a user could have arbitrary items on. and even in 1995 was fairly flexible in what could be placed in it. Apple didn't emphasise the use of the Apple menu for being a general-purpose application launcher, though... it still focused on the use of the Finder to navigate to applications. Warrens 04:29, 20 February 2006 (UTC)

Thank you. Is it worth mentioning in the article? --CutterX 05:28, 21 February 2006 (UTC)

Yes. Also, the aritcle is too pro-Start Menu. It should be pointed out that from the Mac point of view, the whole thing is just a kludge designed to cover up the cruftiness of the standard Windows directory system. --220.52.172.91

I believe writing from a "point of view" isn't something desirable in an encyclopedia. Besides, what about the dock? How does one launch an application in OS X? If not through the dock or desktop, then through the filesystem, correct?--24.68.141.169 21:03, 9 August 2006 (UTC)

This may just be a rumor, but the way I heard it Commodore (or it may have been Amiga Corporation at the time) actually were the first to introduce a "Start Menu", and actually patented the idea. However, the person in charge of renewing the patent forgot to and Microsoft jumped on the opportunity to include it in their OS. But again, that's just a rumor and I can't find anything to back it up.OPaul 05:01, 22 October 2006 (UTC)

It's too easy to point at a WIMP GUI and say, "they stole that idea." Apple tried in 1988. Since the Wikipedia espouses a NPOV, IMHO it's not appropriate to weigh in on these decades old arguments other to identify that there is some controversy over it. Couldn't MS say that Apple stole hte "quick launch toolbar" idea for their "dock?" Sure, but things like floating/docked toolbars are not unique ... Norton Desktop 2.0 had 'em, I'm sure earlier WIMPs had them. See how murky this gets? --David Spalding 14:38, 6 November 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Tweaks and tricks

A user is trying to put specific tweaks into the page. Let's not initiate an "edit war," but I think a paragraph describing "there are undocumented features" is okay. Discussion? In accordance with WP:NOT, I think the less details, the better. --David Spalding 15:38, 6 November 2006 (UTC)

Agreed, tips and tricks are not particular encyclopedic - OPaul 22:24, 6 November 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Topics from 2007

[edit] Removing a pointless bit

The use of the word "Start" is also seemingly a contradiction, as it is used to select the Shut Down option used to switch off (and therefore stop using) the computer. Some would counter that even an action such as "Shut Down" must at some point be "started". The Start button is used to start a task or process, including the Shut Down process.

I'm getting rid of this since it really adds nothing to the article. It's not disputed or wrong or anything -- it just seems pointless to mention a debate about "starting" to "shut down" the computer (which I can't imagine ever being seriously debated anyway). (|-- UlTiMuS 19:00, 7 February 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Generic term

Is there no generic term for this phenomenon? Other OS's also have something similar and I specifically wanted to look it up for KDE and the only term I could come up with is 'start menu'. It would make sense if I could first go up to the generic article and then down to the KDE article (if (one day) it exists). So what's the generic term and is there an article on it? DirkvdM 08:53, 14 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] "Start" label in other countries

Was doing some research tonight on the Start menu (and not having huge success one one point...) I thought it might be an idea for a list of what 'Start' is called in other countries; for example, French Windows users have "Démarrer" instead. The Germans have Start too - they use Startseite for homepage, if I understand what I've read correctly. I don't think the German word for "start" is "start", but they seem to be one of those countries where English is allowed to pervade the national language. (I once saw "Chicago Hope" translated into "Chicago Hope: Hospital" there, even though the German word for hospital is krankenhaus. In any case, I reckon a set on this page (or a similar one on the Start icon/button) might be worthy of addition if the information was available to contributors. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 89.127.167.34 (talk) 01:38, 30 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Topics from 2008

[edit] Chicago "Start" Menus

Should there be something about the Windows Chicago betas having 3 buttons that had more or less the same combined function of the start menu? I have beta 53 installed in a Virtual PC machine so I can take a screenshot. Blasterman 95 (talk) 03:23, 13 April 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Retrofit topic-year headers

18-April-2008: I have grouped older topics above using headers "Topics from 2006" (etc.) to emphasize age of topics. Older topics might still apply, but using the tactic of yearly headers to note the age helps avoid rehashing old news, without archiving any ongoing issues. Also, new topics are more likely to be added to the bottom, not top. I fixed the "Template:TOC" bug (of 6-Nov-2006) by removing {toc} from the top of page. -Wikid77 (talk) 14:21, 18 April 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Added general overview about Vista Start Menu

18-April-2008: The section about changes with Vista had jumped into the Vista search-as-you-type box, without a simple introduction to the Vista Start Menu as a 2-column format with 70% new options. I added a whole paragraph, trying to describe an overview focus, and noting that options can be added to the Start Menu, such as the Calculator. The intent is to give an overview of the general features of the Start Menu, before describing minute details of each menu option. Similar general text could be added to that paragraph. -Wikid77 (talk) 14:38, 18 April 2008 (UTC)