You will either love or hate the new start menu of Vista and you will either love or hate Vista itself, there isn’t much middle ground here.  The only thing you can do about Vista is roll it back to XP (or install XP over Vista) which may not be much help for some of you but it is possible to do something about the new start menu if you don’t like it.

I happen to like the start menu in Vista, it’s somewhat attractive and not nearly the cumbersome thing it was in XP but some people like that, if you’re one that does then keep on reading.

Vista Start Menu, despite the name is a start menu replacement for both Windows XP and Vista.  It will no doubt make life easier for XP users but for Vista users it just depends on what the individual prefers.

It’s not quite the XP start menu nor is it the Vista start menu, it’s kind of a hybrid that attempts to take the best of both worlds.  I can hardly say that it is an attractive replacement but it does give you quick access to all your programs and shutdown options.

The programs comes in two versions, a freeware version and a “pro” version that adds one click program launches, quick uninstall and menu customization as well as the ability to add tabs to the bottom menu.  Other than those few features, the versions are the same.

As with a lot of freeware programs, it is always asking you to upgrade to the “pro” version but it is not annoying.

I’d definitely recommend XP users give it a try, Vista users may not get as much out of it unless you’re one of those users who hates the new streamlined start menu which I am a huge fan of.

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Related:

Free Windows+Tab/Alt+Tab replacement for Vista

Make Vista shutdown easier

Free Vista Sunday: remove shortcut arrows from desktop icons

Free security software for 64-bit Vista users

Free Vista Monday, tweak Vista with TweakVI

Entry was posted on Sunday, December 9th, 2007 at 12:57 pm under Free Software, Tips, Vista.  Print This Post

Read more entries by Jonathan Schlaffer.