Windows 11 Start Menu


John

John

Member
Local time
4:20 AM
Posts
18
Location
Oklahoma City
OS
Windows 11Version 21H2 (OS Build 22000.469
I have finally conceded that Windows 11 Start Menu is fine for me -I gave up Open Shell and Start 11 (by Stardock) and I am perfectly content with the Windows 11 Start Menu. Am I in the minority or majority?
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 11Version 21H2 (OS Build 22000.4698th Gen Intel Core i584008GB DDR4 + 16GB Optane Memory, 1TB HDD
OS
Windows 11Version 21H2 (OS Build 22000.469
Computer type
PC/Desktop
Manufacturer/Model
Acer Aspire TC-885 Desktop
CPU
8th Gen Intel Core i58400
Memory
8GB DDR4 + 16GB Optane Memory, 1TB HDD
Browser
Google, Firefox
Antivirus
Windows Defender, McAfee Total Access-Total Protection
Other Info
Realtime: Malwarebytes, HMP Alert, UAC Highest Level. On Demand: Adwcleaner, MRT, Emsisoft EEK
Who Knows, I have mine looking like Win 10 but everything else about 11 I love
 

My Computers My Computers

System One System Two

  • At a glance

    Windows 11 Pro13th Gen Core i9 13900HX32GB DDR5 @4800MHz 2x16GBGeforce RTX 4090HX 16GB
    OS
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Alienware M18 R1
    CPU
    13th Gen Core i9 13900HX
    Memory
    32GB DDR5 @4800MHz 2x16GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Geforce RTX 4090HX 16GB
    Sound Card
    Nvidia HD / Realtek ALC3254
    Monitor(s) Displays
    18" QHD+
    Screen Resolution
    25660 X 1600
    Hard Drives
    C: KIOXIA (Toshiba) 2TB KXG80ZNV2T04 NVMe PCIe M.2 SSD
    D: KIOXIA (Toshiba) 2TB KXG80ZNV2T04 NVMe PCIe M.2 SSD
    Case
    Dark Metallic Moon
    Keyboard
    Alienware M Series per-key AlienFX RGB
    Mouse
    Alienware AW610M
    Browser
    Chrome and Firefox
    Antivirus
    Norton
    Other Info
    Killer E3000 Ethernet Controller
    Killer Killer AX1690 Wi-Fi Network Adaptor Wi-Fi 6E
    Bluetooth 5.2
    Alienware Z01G Graphic Amplifier

  • At a glance

    Windows 11 Pro10th Gen i-9 10900 K32Gb Dual Channel DDR4 @ 8843MHzNvidia RTX 2080 Super
    Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Alienware Area 51m R2
    CPU
    10th Gen i-9 10900 K
    Memory
    32Gb Dual Channel DDR4 @ 8843MHz
    Graphics card(s)
    Nvidia RTX 2080 Super
    Sound Card
    Nvidia
    Screen Resolution
    1920 x 1080
    Hard Drives
    Hard Drive C: Samsung 2TB SSD PM981a NVMe
    Hard Drive D:Samsung 2TB SSD 970 EVO Plus
    Mouse
    Alienware 610M
    Browser
    Chrome
    Antivirus
    Norton
I like the new start menu
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 11 Home- RP - 26H2 -26300.9550AMD Ryzen 5 5600GG.SKILL Ripjaws V Series 64GB 4x16Nvidia geforce gtx titan x
OS
Windows 11 Home- RP - 26H2 -26300.9550
Computer type
PC/Desktop
Manufacturer/Model
Banana Junior 5600-G Series
CPU
AMD Ryzen 5 5600G
Motherboard
Asus ROG Strix B550-F
Memory
G.SKILL Ripjaws V Series 64GB 4x16
Graphics Card(s)
Nvidia geforce gtx titan x
Monitor(s) Displays
28" ASUS VP28U 4k
Screen Resolution
4K
Hard Drives
Primary SAMSUNG 970 EVO Plus
PSU
EVGA BQ 700w 80+ Bronze
Case
Zalman i3 NEO
Cooling
ARCTIC Freezer 7 X
Keyboard
Corsair
Mouse
Amazon Generic with Cord
Internet Speed
Download: 295.11 mbps Upload: 65.35 mbps T-Mobile Internet
Browser
Firefox and Edge
Antivirus
MS - Defender
Other Info
Speakers: Klipsch ProMedia 2.1
For now I'm not doing much customizing but I like having the ability to add or delete Pinned items that are most frequently or commonly used.
 

My Computers My Computers

System One System Two

  • At a glance

    Win11 Pro RTM Version 24H2 Build 26100.4202Intel Core i5 11th Gen. 2.40GHz12GB
    OS
    Win11 Pro RTM Version 24H2 Build 26100.4202
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Vostro 3400
    CPU
    Intel Core i5 11th Gen. 2.40GHz
    Memory
    12GB
    Hard Drives
    256GB SSD NVMe M.2

  • At a glance

    Win11 Pro RTM Version 24H2 Build 26100.4202Intel Core i5 10th Gen. 2.90GHz16GBOnboard, no VGA, using a DisplayPort-to-VGA a...
    Operating System
    Win11 Pro RTM Version 24H2 Build 26100.4202
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Vostro 5890
    CPU
    Intel Core i5 10th Gen. 2.90GHz
    Memory
    16GB
    Graphics card(s)
    Onboard, no VGA, using a DisplayPort-to-VGA adapter
    Monitor(s) Displays
    24" Dell
    Hard Drives
    512GB SSD NVMe, 4TB Seagate HDD
    Browser
    Firefox, Edge
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender/Microsoft Security
It depends on how long you have been working with previous Start menus, some people still remember Windows 95, and how stable working habits you have. I am still feel more comfortable with Open Shell, counting it more practical and tuneable, but also use the new 11 menu time-to-time (it opens by Shift+click). For me, they are somehow complementary, currently about 80:20.
 

My Computer My Computer

At a glance

Windows 11 Pro 25H2AMD Rysen 5 4600H32 GB (2 x 16 GB Samsung SO-DIMM DDR4-3200)GeForce GTX 1650 Ti, 4 GB GDDR6
OS
Windows 11 Pro 25H2
Computer type
Laptop
Manufacturer/Model
Lenovo Legion 5-15ARH05
CPU
AMD Rysen 5 4600H
Memory
32 GB (2 x 16 GB Samsung SO-DIMM DDR4-3200)
Graphics Card(s)
GeForce GTX 1650 Ti, 4 GB GDDR6
Screen Resolution
1920x1080
Hard Drives
SSD M.2 512 GB SAMSUNG MZALQ512; SSD M.2 1 TB Seagate FireCuda 530
Mouse
Logitech M650L in Bluetooth mode
I'm still using Start11. I prefer categorizing my start menu.
 

My Computers My Computers

System One System Two

  • At a glance

    Windows 10 21H1, Windows 11i5 10600kCorsair Vengeance LPX 16GB /3200 MHzASUS GTX 1650 OC
    OS
    Windows 10 21H1, Windows 11
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    roll yer own
    CPU
    i5 10600k
    Motherboard
    ASUS Prime Z590M-Plus
    Memory
    Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB /3200 MHz
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS GTX 1650 OC
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell S3221QS
    Screen Resolution
    3840 x 2160
    Hard Drives
    Samsung 980NVME 500GB (Windows 10Pro), EVO870 500GB (Windows 11Pro),EVO870 1TB (Data), EVO870 500GB (Virtual Machines)
    PSU
    EVGA 500BR
    Case
    Thermaltake Versa H18
    Cooling
    BeQuiet Dark Rock 4
    Keyboard
    Logi K800
    Mouse
    Performance MX Master 2S
    Internet Speed
    Like the bird chiseling onto a tablet on the Flintstones

  • At a glance

    Windows 10 21H1Ryzen5-4500UI6 GB
    Operating System
    Windows 10 21H1
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP Envy 360 Convertible 15.6"
    CPU
    Ryzen5-4500U
    Memory
    I6 GB
    Monitor(s) Displays
    HP27es secondary
    Screen Resolution
    1080
    Hard Drives
    Crucial 1TB NVME
Only computer I never owned was Windows ME [Millenium Edition] and those before Windows NT 3.51. Got started with MS-DOS 5 and Windows 3.1, started building and repairing in late '94 or just before Windows 95 came out, so I've been through the bunch of changes.
 

My Computers My Computers

System One System Two

  • At a glance

    Win11 Pro RTM Version 24H2 Build 26100.4202Intel Core i5 11th Gen. 2.40GHz12GB
    OS
    Win11 Pro RTM Version 24H2 Build 26100.4202
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Vostro 3400
    CPU
    Intel Core i5 11th Gen. 2.40GHz
    Memory
    12GB
    Hard Drives
    256GB SSD NVMe M.2

  • At a glance

    Win11 Pro RTM Version 24H2 Build 26100.4202Intel Core i5 10th Gen. 2.90GHz16GBOnboard, no VGA, using a DisplayPort-to-VGA a...
    Operating System
    Win11 Pro RTM Version 24H2 Build 26100.4202
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Vostro 5890
    CPU
    Intel Core i5 10th Gen. 2.90GHz
    Memory
    16GB
    Graphics card(s)
    Onboard, no VGA, using a DisplayPort-to-VGA adapter
    Monitor(s) Displays
    24" Dell
    Hard Drives
    512GB SSD NVMe, 4TB Seagate HDD
    Browser
    Firefox, Edge
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender/Microsoft Security
John said:
I have finally conceded that Windows 11 Start Menu is fine for me .... Am I in the minority or majority?
Click to expand...
You're certainly in the minority of those expressing an opinion, but then those with a gripe are always the most vociferous. Those that like it are less likely to come here and say so.

When I first got Windows 10 in 2015 I didn't try to make it look like my previous Windows 7. Rather, I adapted to and made use of the new Start and soon had it populated with small tiles for a dozen or so of my frequently used apps. Some of them, such as my XP version of Solitaire, needed to be added as custom entries in All apps in order to do so. The Taskbar provided more space for the most frequently used.

Start menu - W10.jpg

And when that system was upgraded to Windows 11 it really wasn't that difficult to customise Start in a similar way.

Start menu - W11.jpg

So yes, I'm happy to use the new Start. It would be nice to have more rows of icons in Pinned and less in Recommended, but apparently that's already available in Insider builds and should appear for the rest of us in the 22H2 feature update.
 

My Computers My Computers

System One System Two Other systems

  • At a glance

    Windows 11 HomeAMD Athlon Silver 3050U8GBRadeon Graphics
    OS
    Windows 11 Home
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Acer Aspire 3 A315-23-R9VY
    CPU
    AMD Athlon Silver 3050U
    Memory
    8GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Radeon Graphics
    Monitor(s) Displays
    laptop screen
    Screen Resolution
    1366x768 native resolution, up to 2560x1440 with Radeon Virtual Super Resolution
    Hard Drives
    1TB Samsung EVO 870 SSD (from April 2026: 250GB EVO 850)
    Internet Speed
    150 Mbps
    Browser
    Edge, Firefox
    Antivirus
    Defender
    Other Info
    UPDATE - 11 April 2026: due to lid hinges starting to break up this laptop has been retired from active duty. The OS with all software and files has been migrated to my System Seven in 'Other systems' to carry on as my general purpose 'main machine'.

    I've now clean installed 25H2 and used Garlin's scripts to update Secure Boot to CA 2023 and revoke the PCA 2011 certificates. It's new role is to test secure boot issues.

    Info for 2021-2026:
    fully 'Windows 11 ready' laptop. Windows 10 C: partition migrated from my old unsupported 'main machine' then upgraded to 11. A test migration ran Insider builds for 2 months. When 11 was released on 5th October 2021 it was re-imaged back to 10 and was offered the upgrade in Windows Update on 20th October. Windows Update offered the 22H2 Feature Update on 20th September 2022. It got the 23H2 Feature Update on 4th November 2023 through Windows Update, 24H2 on 3rd October 2024 through Windows Update by setting the Target Release Version for 24H2, and 25H2 on 30th September 2025 through Windows Update by setting the Target Release Version for 25H2.

  • At a glance

    Windows 11 ProIntel® Core™ i5-520M8GB(integrated graphics) Intel HD Graphics
    Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Latitude E4310
    CPU
    Intel® Core™ i5-520M
    Motherboard
    0T6M8G
    Memory
    8GB
    Graphics card(s)
    (integrated graphics) Intel HD Graphics
    Screen Resolution
    1366x768
    Hard Drives
    500GB Crucial MX500 SSD
    Browser
    Firefox, Edge
    Antivirus
    Defender
    Other Info
    unsupported machine: Legacy bios, MBR, TPM 1.2, upgraded from W10 to W11 using W10/W11 hybrid install media workaround.

    In-place upgrade to 22H2 using ISO and a workaround.
    Feature Update to 23H2 by manually installing the Enablement Package.
    In-place upgrade to 24H2 using hybrid 23H2/24H2 install media.
    Upgraded to 25H2 by Enablement Package.

    Also running Insider Experimental 263xx and 29xxx builds and Windows 10 as native boot .vhdx.
  • My SYSTEM THREE is a Dell Latitude 5410, i7-10610U, 32GB RAM, 512GB NVMe ssd, supported device running Windows 11 Pro.

    My SYSTEM FOUR was a 2-in-1 convertible Lenovo Yoga 11e (1st gen) type 20DA, Celeron N2930, 8GB RAM, 256GB ssd. Unsupported device. This has now been sold. It has been replaced by my System Eight.

    My SYSTEM FIVE is a Dell Latitude 3190 2-in-1, Pentium Silver N5030, 8GB RAM, 1TB NVMe ssd, supported device running Windows 11 Pro, plus Insider Beta, Experimental 263xx and 29xxx builds (and a few others) as a native boot .vhdx.

    My SYSTEM SIX is a Dell Latitude 5550, Core Ultra 7 165H, 64GB RAM, 1TB NVMe SSD, supported device, Windows 11 Pro, Hyper-V host machine. Updated to 25H2 on 30th September 2025.

    My SYSTEM SEVEN is a Lenovo Thinkpad T580, 1920x1080 touchscreen, Intel Core i7-8650U, 16GB RAM, 512GB NVMe SSD + 2nd 512GB NVMe SSD, a supported device for Windows 11. This is my current general purpose 'main machine'. The installed Windows 11 Home from my System One has been migrated to this machine. As its new home has an existing digital licence for Pro I've been able to upgrade the migrated OS from Home to Pro.

    My SYSTEM EIGHT is a 2-in-1 convertible Lenovo Yoga 11e (5th gen) type 20LN, Celeron N4120, 8GB RAM, 512GB NVMe ssd, a supported device for Windows 11. Currently running Windows 11 Pro, plus Insider Beta, Experimental 263xx and 29xxx builds as native boot vhdx.
I am happy with EP as I have both win 10 and win 11 start menus
 

My Computers My Computers

System One System Two

  • At a glance

    Windows 11 Pro13th Gen Core i9 13900HX32GB DDR5 @4800MHz 2x16GBGeforce RTX 4090HX 16GB
    OS
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Alienware M18 R1
    CPU
    13th Gen Core i9 13900HX
    Memory
    32GB DDR5 @4800MHz 2x16GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Geforce RTX 4090HX 16GB
    Sound Card
    Nvidia HD / Realtek ALC3254
    Monitor(s) Displays
    18" QHD+
    Screen Resolution
    25660 X 1600
    Hard Drives
    C: KIOXIA (Toshiba) 2TB KXG80ZNV2T04 NVMe PCIe M.2 SSD
    D: KIOXIA (Toshiba) 2TB KXG80ZNV2T04 NVMe PCIe M.2 SSD
    Case
    Dark Metallic Moon
    Keyboard
    Alienware M Series per-key AlienFX RGB
    Mouse
    Alienware AW610M
    Browser
    Chrome and Firefox
    Antivirus
    Norton
    Other Info
    Killer E3000 Ethernet Controller
    Killer Killer AX1690 Wi-Fi Network Adaptor Wi-Fi 6E
    Bluetooth 5.2
    Alienware Z01G Graphic Amplifier

  • At a glance

    Windows 11 Pro10th Gen i-9 10900 K32Gb Dual Channel DDR4 @ 8843MHzNvidia RTX 2080 Super
    Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Alienware Area 51m R2
    CPU
    10th Gen i-9 10900 K
    Memory
    32Gb Dual Channel DDR4 @ 8843MHz
    Graphics card(s)
    Nvidia RTX 2080 Super
    Sound Card
    Nvidia
    Screen Resolution
    1920 x 1080
    Hard Drives
    Hard Drive C: Samsung 2TB SSD PM981a NVMe
    Hard Drive D:Samsung 2TB SSD 970 EVO Plus
    Mouse
    Alienware 610M
    Browser
    Chrome
    Antivirus
    Norton
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