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Microsoft Releases Windows 10 Build 18290 With Start Menu Improvements (betanews.com)

Posted by BeauHD on from the new-and-improved dept.

DarkRookie2 shares a report a report about Windows 10 Build 18290 for Insiders, which comes with a number of improvements and additions. BetaNews reports: The most noticeable change is to the Start menu which gets a touch of Fluent design, making it look more attractive. Icons have also been added to the power and user menus. The Search and Cortana areas have been given a bit of a cleanup as well. Also new in this build is an option in the Date & Time Settings that will let you manually synchronize your clock with the time server. If you suspect your PC clock might be showing the wrong time, this will let you check and correct the problem if you're right. You can now also check to see which app is using your microphone (just hover over the microphone icon to see), and when your PC has an update that requires a reboot, you'll now be informed via an orange Windows Update indicator in the system tray.

13 of 205 comments (clear)

  1. Call me when they roll it back by Shaitan · · Score: 5, Insightful

    The start menu has gotten worse and worse with each release and peaked somewhere around XP pro. 7 was the last functional one.

    1. Re:Call me when they roll it back by reboot246 · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Yes, "improving" the Start menu on Windows 10 really is putting lipstick on a pig.

    2. Re:Call me when they roll it back by PsychoSlashDot · · Score: 4, Interesting

      7 was the last functional one.

      So you never learned how to use the Start menu in Win8/Win10. Got it. Works just fine for me, but I learned how to use it to the fullest.

      Bullshit. Press the Windows button, then type "cmd". Don't be slow about it. Type it like you know what you're doing. Doesn't always find it. Try the same search for "Windows Update". Doesn't always find it. Repeat with pretty much anything that's installed on your computer. Doesn't always find it.

      Sure, it'll search the web to make suggestions, but actual programs that are local, on the actual "Start Menu"... not consistently.

      Again, sure, if you. Type. It. Slow. Ly. Be. Cause. You. Do. N't. Know. Wha. T. You. 're. Do. Ing. It. Works.

      Screw off, system-wide search. Screw off, Cortana. I'll just keep a command prompt open at all times and memorize all the MMCs, CPLs. Hell, with tab-completion I can get into c:\progra~1\micros~1\office ##\winword.exe faster than it can be searched on the Start Menu.

      --
      "Oh no... he found the .sig setting."
    3. Re:Call me when they roll it back by sexconker · · Score: 5, Funny

      Besides having a weird time delay (experienced on many systems) where the OS doesn't pick up the first couple of letters in the password field, start menu, etc. So you have to 'wait' for it to catch up after pressing alt-ctrl-del when logging in, pressing start to search, and all number of actions that should be quick and thoughtless...

      You have to wait for the "telemetry" service to wake up sometimes.

    4. Re:Call me when they roll it back by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Insightful

      The start menu has gotten worse and worse with each release and peaked somewhere around XP pro. 7 was the last functional one.

      IMNSHO, the Start menu peaked at Windows 2000. It was basic, utilitarian, and functional. RIP WIN2K.

    5. Re:Call me when they roll it back by hudsucker · · Score: 5, Insightful

      For one thing, the Windows 10 Start Menu doesn't allow for program subfolders.

      For example, if you had something like a "Microsoft Office" group, containing the key applications at the top level, but the lesser used utilities in a subfolder "Microsoft Office Tools", all of that nice structure is gone. It just throws all of the program icons into the single folder allowed per application.

      Microsoft's answer is, apparently, to redesign the application so it doesn't use the Start Menu for program links. But what happens when you have an application that was designed for Windows 7, which has a perfectly functional Start menu, that supports subfolders? It is just a horrid mess.

      And what possible reason is there for this limitation? Oh yeah: it is because Windows 8 was designed for tablets, not computers, hence the whole "metro" interface. For some reason Microsoft didn't bother to fix the Metro-emphasis in Windows 10, so we're stuck with limitations that make no sense.

    6. Re:Call me when they roll it back by AbRASiON · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Yes it's quite broken.

      I love how I install a new App, let's call it Chromulus I dunno
      I click start, type Chro - up comes Chrome browser and then Chromulus is underneath, I open it.
      5 minutes later, I hit start, type "Chro" only Chrome comes up, wtf?

      A day later, I try again, it's there.
      A day later, it isn't

      This is literally an installed Application in the start menu with a traditional .LNK file which should be indexed and god damn prioritised first in search results.

      NO, I do NOT want to search the web for Chro.

      This has occurred enough time over enough apps on enough installs of Windows 10, that I'm with you 10,000% - that search menu is terrible and worse of all, is sloppy inconsistent code
      Broken is ok - I'm ok with broken. Inconsistent is the true sign of poor work to me.

      That start menu is truly a mess.

    7. Re:Call me when they roll it back by AmiMoJo · · Score: 4, Informative

      My experience of Windows 10 has mostly been blighted my the forced restarts, until I found out how to turn them off.

      For reference go to %windir%\System32\Tasks\Microsoft\Windows\UpdateOrchestrator, rename the "Restart" file and create a folder called "Restart" so that Windows can't re-create it.

      Other than that it's okay. Multiple desktops are nice, although it resets the order of items on the task bar whenever you switch. It's janky crap like that which never gets fixed that erodes what little faith I had in Microsoft after Windows 7 was actually kinda good.

      The start menu is still a crap way to organize apps.

      --
      const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
      SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
  2. So, let me get this straight... by IWantMoreSpamPlease · · Score: 4, Insightful

    The latest patch fucks up your data, messes with dark theme, wipes out god only knows what else....and their solution is to make some icons shiny?

    Do I have that right?

    --
    So rise up, all ye lost ones, as one, we'll claw the clouds.
    1. Re:So, let me get this straight... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Not only that, Edge currently breaks the network filesystem, system wide. Windows really has dropped below the usability threshold. Upload a file from a network drive to a website from Edge, and Edge locks that folder view across the entire system until all Edge instances exit. Windows explorer will show files that are not there anymore, update the files on the network share from another machine on the network and the Win10/Edge machine can only see the files that were when it uploaded a file. That's shamefully broken. After this, I can trust nothing Win10 does.

      Just today I reinstalled a laptop for a client that had their user profile data and files wiped because windows and hp silently dropped support for the HP Validity fingerprint scanner. If a user is using the fingerprint scanner for login and you remove the driver their profile gets wiped, login user files, the works. So windows update in the October update ever so helpfully decided to silently remove the driver. Poof! Your login and files are gone! Isn't that so much better now? Microsoft: "I'm helping!".

  3. Busted RDP client by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Interesting

    First thing I noticed this morning (after the surprise restart) is the the RDP client was "improved" - Old version had been removed, when I clicked on it the new one downloaded.

    All settings and ~ 200 saved sessions gone.

    No actual improvement (actually removed functionality)- just so they could throw some lipstick onto the thing.

  4. Classic Shell by toejam13 · · Score: 5, Informative

    Call me when they include a classic shell option. I absolutely hate the new Windows 10 start menu. Yes, there is a third party utility that can provide such a menu, but the author has complained about how each new version of Windows makes it increasingly difficult to keep the utility functional.

  5. Change != Improvement by schwit1 · · Score: 5, Interesting

    If MS really wanted to improve windows 10 they would start by moving PC Settings back to Control Panel. And don't install so many services and apps until the user starts them for the first time.