Member Avatar for Evoke IT

Hi

I have recently bought a new laptop with Windows 8.1 and I have been using it fine, but trying to find everything easily is confusing me. There is a start button but it brings up loads and loads of little things I don't want, or know what they are. Does anyone have any advice about how to have everything I usually use right there when I turn it on rather than having to trawl through everything else. I used to have a Dell and it had Dell Stage and made things super easy - lazy I know, but super duper quick.

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You can make Windows 8.1 behave much more like Windows 7 without adding heavy third‑party software: set it to open the Desktop at sign‑in, pin the programs you use most to the taskbar or Start, tidy or remove unwanted tiles, and (optionally) create a one‑click All Apps shortcut so everything you need is on the Desktop. This note expands on the earlier replies from , , and with concrete, step‑by‑step options and a couple of safe recommendations. ()

To boot to the Desktop and soften the Start‑screen transition: right‑click the taskbar → Properties → Navigation tab. Check “When I sign in or close all apps on a screen, go to the desktop instead of Start” to default to the Desktop, and enable “Show the Apps view automatically when I go to Start” or “Show my desktop background on Start” if you prefer fewer live tiles and a steadier look. After that, pin your most‑used desktop programs to the taskbar for one‑click launch. (These options are part of Windows 8.1 and were added to address exactly this workflow.) (support.microsoft.com)

Keep favorites immediately available: open All Apps, right‑click a program and choose “Pin to Start” (then drag tiles into groups and name them) or run the program and right‑click its taskbar icon → “Pin this program to the taskbar.” To get an All Apps shortcut on the Desktop you can create a desktop shortcut that opens the Apps list using Explorer’s shell GUID:

%windir%\explorer.exe Shell:::{4234d49b-0245-4df3-b780-3893943456e1}

That folder can be pinned to the taskbar or Start for quick access. (howtogeek.com)

If you want a classic Start menu, reliable options are Open‑Shell (free/open‑source) or Stardock’s Start8/StartIsBack (commercial, trial available). These restore a familiar Start menu and let you hide the full Start screen — test them first and get them from the official project pages. Finally, note that Windows 8.1 passed end‑of‑support on January 10, 2023; for security and app compatibility, plan an upgrade to a supported Windows release when convenient. (github.com)

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Member Avatar for Slavi

I find it pretty easy to navigate through although I am not a windows fan. I barely use it mainly because I can't make eclipse luna to run on my linux but windows button + "S", makes life easier, you can just search for everything you need and all the system tools, just right click the start button. You don't really have to go to the start menu now at all, the search will bring you up any app you are looking for

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