Start Menu Could Return Before Threshold, May Be Called Mini-Start

Don’t you just love it when the rumor mill just starts to run wild? The grapevine has been abuzz with all sorts of news, some even conflicting, about Windows Threshold.

While this is, in all probability, just a codename for the next major version of Windows, people have been rather interested about it due to recent reports that Microsoft is planning to bring back the Start Menu in this future Windows release.

The $64 question, as Bug Bunny once quipped, is what kind of a Start Menu?

Mary Jo Foley has added her thoughts to the mix, and suggests citing her undisclosed sources that the Start Menu could actually make a comeback before Threshold — it may be added to Windows as part of a Windows 8.1 update next year.

What is not clear is whether Redmond plans to reintroduce it during the Spring GDR update, or early.

Another rather interesting point of interest is what exactly will the upcoming feature look like? Foley reports that Microsoft is internally calling the Start Menu, ‘mini-Start’.

While details are scarce on what exactly it may end up looking like, the name at least indicates that it could probably just be a simple list of all installed applications — in other words, it may not provide access to documents, pictures and other such files and options.

What do you guys and gals make of this? Is something like this really worth it? Or should Microsoft keep it simple, and just bring back the Windows 7 Start Menu?

Share your thoughts using the comments box below!