While Windows 8 brought with it a number of sweeping new changes, the most radical of them was the absence of the Start Menu. Six months into release, some users have moved beyond it, but for others this still remains a controversial exclusion.
Microsoft is said to be pondering bringing the Start button back in Windows Blue (also known as Windows 8.1), and even though the software titan has hinted at this, nothing is official yet.
But what is official is that the third-party Start Menu solutions are seeing some amazing success.
Statistics provided by AllThingsD indicate that two of the most popular Start Menu apps — namely Start8 and Pokki — have hit more than 8 million downloads combined. And this is keeping in mind that the former of the two comes with a $5 price tag.
Both software solutions only launched after Windows 8 hit store shelve.
These two are obviously the two most popular solutions available on the market — one that also includes several other programs namely ClassicShell, RetroUI, StartisBack and many more. Most are offered as freeware, though some also carry a paid license.
And with no confirmation yet from Microsoft whether it will officially bring back the Start Menu, these third-party developers are quietly thanking the software titan for doing so.
