Aside from Microsoft potentially enabling users to skip straight to the desktop upon booting Windows 8.1, another rumor on the street is that Microsoft is also looking at bringing back the Start Button in the update following user feedback. Mary Jo Foley of ZDNet reports that one of her sources not only confirmed the boot to desktop option, but that "Microsoft also is considering bringing back the Start Button as an option with Windows Blue", although "until it ships, anything can change".
While it won"t be bringing the Start Menu with it, the return of the Start Button would give an easier channel directly to the Start Screen, and provide users with a familiar button as opposed to clicking essentially nothing in the bottom left corner. A number of third-party solutions bring back the Start Button in Windows 8, and they"ve proved a popular solution for people who aren"t willing to get used to the changes Microsoft has made.
It"s not completely confirmed that the Start Button will return in Windows Blue/8.1, but if Microsoft is indeed responding to feedback from consumers and enterprises, we could be seeing an option to bring back the Button in the next leaked build of the operating system.
Source: ZDNet | Image via Stardock (of Start8)