Microsoft may bring back the Start menu in Windows 8.2

Here’s some good news for all those who have been waiting for the good ol’ Windows Start menu to return. According to a WinSuperSite report,  the next Windows 8.2 update, also known as Threshold, will be bringing back the Start menu along with the ability to use Windows 8’s Modern apps as floating windows on the desktop itself.

With Windows 8, Microsoft brought in a tablet-style UI on the conventional desktop mode, but many users have seemingly been put off by the complexity of the OS. The company then introduced back the Start button in Windows 8.1 to ease the transition, and the next version may see a complete U-turn.

Start Menu returns?

Microsoft has reportedly decided to do a turnaround to please users as well as IT administrators, who feel the dramatic changes to the interface in Windows 8 has caused a lot of confusion for business users and affected productivity. This is in light of support for Windows XP being stopped in April next year, and many companies still relying on the three-generations old OS for daily work. Microsoft hasn’t confirmed anything about Windows 8.2 yet, so this could just be some speculation. Even if it does bring back the Start menu, we won’t be seeing Windows 8.2 released till early 2015. 

Earlier this month, there were reports about Microsoft planning to unify Windows, Windows Phone and Xbox OS . The three OSes are likely to be tied together by a series of high-value activities, which should be apps shared across the three platforms–Office, Bing, IT management, and “fun” apps such as games. The software giant is also known to be working on a Siri-like voice recognition feature named Cortana for all three platforms.