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Thanks to users’ complaints about the Start menu in Window 8, Microsoft reinvented the Start menu in Windows 10. Although it’s really not an exact clone of previous Windows versions Start menu, it’s should seem familiar for most users. In this article, I’ll provide tips on how to customize the Windows 10 Start menu.
Windows 10 offers two methods for using the Start menu.
The first is a new hybrid Start menu that offers some flexibility resembling what we’ve been used to in previous versions of Windows. This includes a modern interface, where you can rearrange applications, change the size of the apps tiles, and hide or uninstall the ones that you don’t want. This Start menu can be resized by dragging its corners, and its color can be automatically changed to match the theme of your wallpaper.
The second method for using the Start menu is an interface where the desktop is entirely hidden behind the page that opens when you click on the Start button. Like in Windows 8, you can move, resize, or uninstall applications. This type of Start page may make sense to some, especially for those using tablet computers and touch screens.
The new Start menu in Windows 10 is made of several components.
The Windows 10 Start menu. (Image Credit: Daniel Petri)
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Now let’s discuss how we go about accessing the parts of the Start menu that are customizable.
In Windows XP, Windows Vista, and Windows 7, when you wanted to access the location of the Start menu folders and shortcuts to various applications that are installed on your computer, you could easily accomplish this by right-clicking the Start button and selecting Explore All Users. This takes you to the location of the Start menu folders, where you can arrange all the shortcuts and programs that you have in customizable folders. In Windows 10, this simply doesn’t work anymore.
Open this path in Windows Explorer to open the All Users section of the Start menu. You can use drag-and-drop shortcuts to applications, rename folder names, and basically do whatever you were used to doing in previous Windows versions:
C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs
Programs list in Windows 10. (Image Credit: Daniel Petri)
Accessing Settings from the Windows 10 Start menu. (Image Credit: Daniel Petri)
An alternative method for accessing Windows 10 settings. (Image Credit: Daniel Petri)
The Windows 10 Settings menu. (Image Credit: Daniel Petri)
Start menu options in Windows 10. (Image Credit: Daniel Petri)
Choose which folders appear on Start menu in Windows 10. (Image Credit: Daniel Petri)
Modifying an app tile in Windows 10. (Image Credit: Daniel Petri)
Pinning or unpinning app to the Start menu in Windows 10. (Image Credit: Daniel Petri)
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