# Windows 10 desktop - what the hell happened? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 12, 2019, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-10-desktop-what-the-hell-happened/841691 "2019-10-12T20:06:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![jz78817](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jz78817/32/1028_2.png) [@jz78817](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jz78817)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2019, 9:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-10-desktop-what-the-hell-happened/841691/21 "2019-10-14T09:16:13Z")
> [@I\_Love\_Me\_Vol.I](#): > > That’s true. I didn’t. > > I just laughed at all the idiots who bought 8 or 8.1. > > Now I might vomit a bit because soon I’ll have to get Windows 10 on a new computer and I’m scared that it has some stupid shit for phone-swipers that’ll either be a pain to workaround or not possible to work around. I had no issues with Windows 8. Guess that makes me an idiot. Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2019, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-10-desktop-what-the-hell-happened/841691/22 "2019-10-14T16:59:54Z")
> [@RaftPeople](#): > > Here’s the drama in a nutshell: > 1 - MS announces new UI geared towards mobile devices > 2 - MS announces same UI for desktop > 3 - The entire planet vomited in unison (except for about 8 people) We’re talking about Windows 10 ---
**Author:** ![SmartAleq](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smartaleq/32/163_2.png) [@SmartAleq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmartAleq)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2019, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-10-desktop-what-the-hell-happened/841691/23 "2019-10-14T17:16:35Z")
> [@MindsEye\_Watering](#): > > When I very recently upgraded my desktop from Windows 7 to Windows 10, I used [this website](https://www.howtogeek.com/277448/how-to-make-windows-10-look-and-act-more-like-windows-7/) to help me get Win10 to a place that was a lot more familiar. > > I also downloaded and installed Classic Shell as shown in the site above. > [@PastTense](#): > > Classic Shell’s author has quit updating it. There is a new open source replacement Open Shell: > [Download Open-Shell (Formerly Classic-Start) - MajorGeeks](https://www.majorgeeks.com/files/details/classic_start.html) You’ll be reinstalling a lot of stuff every time Microsoft gets a wild hair across its asshole. Take a screenshot of your add/remove programs and stash it somewhere so you can remember all the stuff it will break and uninstall for you in order to put you back to that fucked up excuse for a start menu. ---
**Author:** ![RaftPeople](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/6f9a4e/32.png) [@RaftPeople](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RaftPeople)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2019, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-10-desktop-what-the-hell-happened/841691/24 "2019-10-14T18:32:56Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > We’re talking about Windows 10 I think you are trying to say something like: “the intro was with Win8, now that we are at Win10 it can’t be considered the source of the drama anymore because it was a previous version.” If that is what you are attempting to say, I think it’s pretty obvious why the source of the drama can be due to a change that happened in a previous version. Or maybe you are thinking that the Win10 UI is very different from what people vomited over and that my “source of drama” doesn’t apply to Win10 because there is zero similarity between Win10 and Win8? ---
**Author:** ![RaftPeople](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/6f9a4e/32.png) [@RaftPeople](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RaftPeople)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2019, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-10-desktop-what-the-hell-happened/841691/25 "2019-10-14T18:35:23Z")
> [@jz78817](#): > > No they didn’t. While my post was an exaggeration, objectively, there was and is significant unhappiness with the Win UI changes after Win7. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2019, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-10-desktop-what-the-hell-happened/841691/26 "2019-10-14T22:34:17Z")
> [@RaftPeople](#): > > I think you are trying to say something like: > “the intro was with Win8, now that we are at Win10 it can’t be considered the source of the drama anymore because it was a previous version.” > > If that is what you are attempting to say, I think it’s pretty obvious why the source of the drama can be due to a change that happened in a previous version. > Or maybe you are thinking that the Win10 UI is very different from what people vomited over and that my “source of drama” doesn’t apply to Win10 because there is zero similarity between Win10 and Win8? It wouldn’t be true even to say that there is ZERO similarity between Windows 8 and OSX. As I mentioned upthread - if you don’t like the tiles on the Win10 start menu, it takes a few seconds to make them go away forever, and you end up with something that looks and behaves like a more modern, mostly-better version of Windows 7 People resist change because it causes them pain Change causes pain when it is big Change gets big when you resist it for too long, and get left behind Windows 8 wasn’t all that bad. It was the wrong product for the market, but the reaction and drama was very silly - it wasn’t bad in the technically-flawed way Vista or ME were bad - it just ‘looked scary’ to a lot of people, and got badmouthed by a lot of people who never even really tried it. ---
**Author:** ![RaftPeople](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/6f9a4e/32.png) [@RaftPeople](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RaftPeople)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2019, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-10-desktop-what-the-hell-happened/841691/27 "2019-10-15T00:00:30Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > As I mentioned upthread - if you don’t like the tiles on the Win10 start menu, it takes a few seconds to make them go away forever, and you end up with something that looks and behaves like a more modern, mostly-better version of Windows 7 Just because there is a remedy doesn’t mean it’s not disruptive and a net negative to have to figure out how to revert the system to a more usable state. > [@](#): > > Windows 8 wasn’t all that bad. It was the wrong product for the market, but the reaction and drama was very silly - it wasn’t bad in the technically-flawed way Vista or ME were bad - it just ‘looked scary’ to a lot of people, and got badmouthed by a lot of people who never even really tried it. It reduced usability for a significant percentage of users with no long term net positive. That is a technically flawed UI. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2019, 7:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-10-desktop-what-the-hell-happened/841691/28 "2019-10-15T07:58:12Z")
> [@RaftPeople](#): > > Just because there is a remedy doesn’t mean it’s not disruptive and a net negative to have to figure out how to revert the system to a more usable state. Most Windows users perform some sort of customisation after installing or buying any version of Windows. You’re making something out of nothing. Windows 10 is a stable, relatively secure, capable modern OS - it can be very simply made to behave in a comfortably similar way to Windows 7 without any need for third party skins or add-ons. There is very little reason to fear it, and plenty of good reasons to embrace it. That is the helpful assistance I am trying to offer the OP, or anyone else faced with the fear of upgrading from Win7. ---
**Author:** ![Spiderman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiderman/32/230_2.png) [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2019, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-10-desktop-what-the-hell-happened/841691/29 "2019-10-15T13:22:48Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > Windows 10 is a stable, relatively secure, capable modern OS - it can be very simply made to behave in a comfortably similar way to Windows 7 without any need for third party skins or add-ons. There is very little reason to fear it, and plenty of good reasons to embrace it. > > That is the helpful assistance I am trying to offer the OP, or anyone else faced with the fear of upgrading from Win7. My problem with it, & I’ve avoided getting it on my PC by still using Win7, is that they broke stuff that was around since the beginning of Windows, at least 3.1. I’m a keyboard user, meaning I use lots of shortcuts, \ + {This}, \ **Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2019, 1:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-10-desktop-what-the-hell-happened/841691/30 "2019-10-15T13:42:28Z") > [@Mangetout](#): > > it can be very simply made to behave in a comfortably similar way to Windows 7 without any need for third party skins or add-ons. Have you a link about how to do that? ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2019, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-10-desktop-what-the-hell-happened/841691/31 "2019-10-15T15:42:03Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > Have you a link about how to do that? Here you go: > **[Windows 10 start menu: How to change it to look however you want](https://www.cnet.com/tech/services-and-software/windows-10-start-menu-how-to-change-it-to-look-however-you-want/)** > > Customize the Windows 10 Start menu with these tips. The part you want is ‘pin and unpin tiles’, but it’s so simple I might as well quote it here: > [@](#): > > To unpin a tile, right-click the tile and click Unpin from Start. Once you have unpinned all the existing tiles from the Start Menu, the tile area will collapse down and the Start menu is then just a single column of folders, shortcuts, etc. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2019, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-10-desktop-what-the-hell-happened/841691/32 "2019-10-15T15:47:05Z")
> [@Spiderman](#): > > My problem with it, & I’ve avoided getting it on my PC by still using Win7, is that they broke stuff that was around since the beginning of Windows, at least 3.1. > > I’m a keyboard user, meaning I use lots of shortcuts, \ + {This}, \ > I’m not a violent person but if [del]a[/del] _sereral_ nuclear ICBMs were to suddenly fall on Redmond, WA I wouldn’t shed a tear. Which shortcuts are you missing in Windows 10? I have to confess I don’t use keyboard shortcuts a lot outside of the very basic copy/paste/insert within applications - but as far as I can tell, the ribbon items in, say, Windows File Explorer still seem to have keyboard shortcuts (at least where a keyboard shortcut makes sense) ---
**Author:** ![slash2k](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/439d5e/32.png) [@slash2k](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slash2k)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2019, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-10-desktop-what-the-hell-happened/841691/33 "2019-10-15T16:15:50Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > Most Windows users perform some sort of customisation after installing or buying any version of Windows. You’re making something out of nothing. Cite? In my experience, Windows users seem to fall into three categories. 1. Those who are too scared or too uncomfortable to change ANYTHING. 2. Those who do experiment and customize. 3. Those who are using a computer on which their corporate IT dept discourages or actively prevents any changes whatsoever. I’d be very surprised if categories 1 & 3 don’t substantially outnumber 2. ---
**Author:** ![jz78817](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jz78817/32/1028_2.png) [@jz78817](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jz78817)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2019, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-10-desktop-what-the-hell-happened/841691/34 "2019-10-15T17:24:28Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > While Macs have a completely different interface, Linux distros have very close approximations of the Windows interface available, and are the default in most. > > And it’s not the interface that is the problem for most people. It’s the extra widgets and the horrible search. The former can indeed be removed, but the latter is built in. I mean, people will type the exact name of the program they want into search and Search won’t find it and will instead show a Bing search result. It’s ridiculous how bad it is. funny, I’d think the fact that macOS and Linux don’t run any of the programs they use would be a bigger problem, but what do I know? ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2019, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-10-desktop-what-the-hell-happened/841691/35 "2019-10-15T17:50:11Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > Here you go: > [Windows 10 start menu: How to change it to look however you want - CNET](https://www.cnet.com/how-to/how-to-customize-the-windows-10-start-menu/) > > The part you want is ‘pin and unpin tiles’, but it’s so simple I might as well quote it here: > Once you have unpinned all the existing tiles from the Start Menu, the tile area will collapse down and the Start menu is then just a single column of folders, shortcuts, etc. Thanks, Mangetout. ---
**Author:** ![slash2k](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/439d5e/32.png) [@slash2k](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slash2k)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2019, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-10-desktop-what-the-hell-happened/841691/36 "2019-10-15T18:06:10Z")
> [@jz78817](#): > > funny, I’d think the fact that macOS and Linux don’t run any of the programs they use would be a bigger problem, but what do I know? Anymore, the main program used by a huge percentage of people on their desktop is simply a web browser, and Firefox/Chrome are available on all of the major platforms. Desktop apps are a declining market. Even so, Microsoft Office is available for macOS, and can be made to run on Linux; the same is true for the Adobe Creative Cloud. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2019, 7:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-10-desktop-what-the-hell-happened/841691/37 "2019-10-15T19:33:49Z")
> [@slash2k](#): > > Cite? > > In my experience, Windows users seem to fall into three categories. > > 1. Those who are too scared or too uncomfortable to change ANYTHING. > > 2. Those who do experiment and customize. > > 3. Those who are using a computer on which their corporate IT dept discourages or actively prevents any changes whatsoever. > > I’d be very surprised if categories 1 & 3 don’t substantially outnumber 2. I have no cite - it’s merely my impression from experience of supporting both corporate and personal users that the folks most resistant to change tend to be the ‘got it just how I like it’ mindset - i.e. they have tinkered with a few appearance settings, shortcuts, folder structures and are comfortable with the changes they have made. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2019, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-10-desktop-what-the-hell-happened/841691/38 "2019-10-15T19:36:23Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > Thanks, Mangetout. No problem. Oh, I forgot to mention: Left click the Start Menu button to get the main start menu - mostly folders, but a few shortcuts to power down, log out, etch Right click the Start Menu button to get a different menu of more administrative, Control Panel-y sorts of things ---
**Author:** ![RaftPeople](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/6f9a4e/32.png) [@RaftPeople](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RaftPeople)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2019, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-10-desktop-what-the-hell-happened/841691/39 "2019-10-15T20:59:10Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > I have no cite - it’s merely my impression from experience of supporting both corporate and personal users that the folks most resistant to change tend to be the ‘got it just how I like it’ mindset - i.e. they have tinkered with a few appearance settings, shortcuts, folder structures and are comfortable with the changes they have made. What you are ignoring is that for most people there was no need to customize for something like Win7 UI to be a reasonably productive model of interaction. This is precisely why there was such a massive backlash, because MS broke something that didn’t need fixing in the first place for people that never had to customize anything in the past. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2019, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-10-desktop-what-the-hell-happened/841691/40 "2019-10-15T22:34:02Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > Here you go: > [Windows 10 start menu: How to change it to look however you want - CNET](https://www.cnet.com/how-to/how-to-customize-the-windows-10-start-menu/) > > The part you want is ‘pin and unpin tiles’, but it’s so simple I might as well quote it here: > Once you have unpinned all the existing tiles from the Start Menu, the tile area will collapse down and the Start menu is then just a single column of folders, shortcuts, etc. I did exactly this and it’s a beautiful thing. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-10-desktop-what-the-hell-happened/841691.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/windows-10-desktop-what-the-hell-happened/841691.md?page=3)