6 Ways to Totally Avoid Metro and Use Only Desktop Mode in Windows 8
Mar 8, 2012 07:05 PM EDT by 
As installed, the Windows 8 Consumer Preview forces users to navigate through two attractive, but disparate UIs: the tile-based Metro Start Screen and the traditional desktop, which now comes without a start menu. Even though 99.9% of Windows programs run in desktop mode, the new OS effectively forces you to return to Metro when you want to browse through your applications and launch one. Fortunately, with a few tweaks, you can live 100% of your Windows 8 life in desktop mode, without even setting foot in Metro.
Editor’s Note: It almost goes without saying, but if you want to run a dedicated Metro app like Bing Weather, you’ll have to launch and run it in Metro.
6 Ways to Totally Avoid Metro, Use Only Desktop Mode in Windows 8
- Introduction
- Boot to the Windows 8 Desktop
- Keep Your Media From Launching in Metro
- Install Third-Party Start Menu Utilities
- Create a Custom Toolbar for Programs
- Pin Shortcuts to the Taskbar
- Create Keyboard Shortcuts for Apps
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March 8th, 2012 at 9:21 pm
This is a script for dorks living in the past.
See ya later luddites. The rest of us will MOVE FORWARD and enjoy computing in the 21st century. If you can’t get your supposedly intelligent heads around Metro, I’ve got an old copy of Windows 3.1 to sell you.
March 9th, 2012 at 1:59 am
Hey laptopmag. I downloaded the beta version but I heard you can’t uninstall it! do you know how?
March 9th, 2012 at 12:51 pm
For an even better programs menu, use the real Programs path at C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs. You can also re-create the quick launch toolbar by using the path for that in C:\Users\YOU\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Quick Launch.
Also, someone noticed you can right-click the start corner and get a lot of useful items to run.
March 9th, 2012 at 1:00 pm
The best way to avoid metro is just stick with Windows 7 no one is forcing anyone to upgrade.
March 11th, 2012 at 5:49 am
Can you please tell me, what is wrong with the script, it bypass the childish metro, but it also opens Libraries folder.
March 11th, 2012 at 11:40 am
It does open Explorer on the desktop at boot. I couldn’t find a way around that when writing this article, but I’m sure there probably is one.
March 12th, 2012 at 1:45 am
OK thanks for reply. Well as far as I can tell, MS finally did it, persuaded me to seriously consider moving to Linux, Fedora most likely, since it is the normal OS, which gives customers, what they want and do not move backwards like 8.
March 13th, 2012 at 3:41 pm
In W8 Developers Preview there was this hack:
For the last day one of the hot topics circulating online is the news that a hack has been found to reinstate the Start Menu in Windows 8. Doing so is just a simple registry hack too.
Open RegEdit from Windows 8 search by just typing it with the Start screen showing
Go to:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer
Change the value of RPEnabled from “1? to “0?
The thing is that this hack also disables the new Start screen completely so you’ll never see it. In returning to Start menu to Windows 8 you make the default interface the traditional Windows desktop.
And there was also a Widget called: “Windows8ShowStartMenu” that could alternate between UIs.
March 13th, 2012 at 4:11 pm
Yes, but this no longer works in Windows 8 Consumer Preview.
March 27th, 2012 at 4:03 pm
Staying in W7. Let’s hope for W9… At that time i hope this MS totalitarian disease is stopped.
April 11th, 2012 at 3:50 pm
I think it is interesting to watch these things in cycles. People had the same problems adapting to Windows 95 when it came out. They wanted to know how to run the old program manager (which actually came with Win 95).
Folks will get used to Metro eventually, then be upset when it leaves, too. as far as “MS totalitarian disease “, this is no different than it has been since the DOS days. if you don’t like what they do, it is customizable. If you don’t want to adapt… don’t.
April 11th, 2012 at 7:05 pm
Thank you for publishing this. Unlike Zippy, my life doesn’t revolve around having a cell phone constantly in my hand and I actually use a computer for WORK instead of playing Angry Birds or being on Facebook all day! Now I can actually see if Windows 8 will work correctly for my applications.
Hey Zippy, good luck with your McJob and NO, I don’t want fries with that!
-Scott H.
May 8th, 2012 at 1:20 am
I have Win8 CP installed on my laptop and it always boots through to the desktop anyway. I assume this is because it doesn’t detect any touch-enabled hardware. I’d also suggest that the Metro Start Screen is a massive improvement over the steaming pile of camel dung that is the Vista/Win7 Start Menu. Because I had already set my PC up to avoid it, I almost never see any Metro stuff unless I want to. (I upgraded my machine from Win7, rather than do a clean install.)
May 29th, 2012 at 12:12 pm
Very good article; thanks to sharing.
I tried Windows 8 consumer preview, and I switched back to 7.
I have to admit a gain in term of performance, but in my case, I lost twice the time I win in performance at searching and opening programs, or do easy tasks.
Maybe I’m too old, but I really NEED to be able to open my favorite programs in two clicks, and not to have to browse between a forest of apps I even don’t use to do it; and to fill my desktop or taskbar with all my Office programs in shortcuts is not an option too.
I’m not a fan of installing these “start menu”-emulators. As you stated, they don’t offer all options a real start menu, and we all know installing such programs negatively influences the overall performances; as well as create autostart tasks.
June 4th, 2012 at 10:40 am
Just use Win+t to switch to the desktop, or even Win+m
Sometimes the old shortcuts are still the best.
June 25th, 2012 at 10:52 pm
@ZipZipRap
Its more for people looking to do ACTUAL WORK. Metro is ok for consuming content, but its lack of flexibility becomes apparent when multitasking. Why should I have my screen cluttered with huge (touch based) tiles when I’m working with a mouse? WHY SHOULD I GET LOCKED INTO MICROSOFT’S METRO APP STORE. This is a step back for people who are productive…
July 28th, 2012 at 11:12 am
[quote]
This is a script for dorks living in the past.
See ya later luddites. The rest of us will MOVE FORWARD and enjoy computing in the 21st century. If you can’t get your supposedly intelligent heads around Metro, I’ve got an old copy of Windows 3.1 to sell you.
[/quote]
Lol… luddites?
Seriously?
The Metro UI was designed for touch based devices (namely, smart-phones and pads), and to top it all off, it looks ghastly from a design perspective – using it on a desktop or laptop (where you use a keyboard and a mouse) is incredibly stupid.
Furthermore… the ‘consumption’ aspect is idiotic to say the least. I detest the ‘consumerism’ mentality in the first place and I don’t want huge blocks that say ‘entertainment’, ‘pics’ and the likes sticking out like a sore thumb because I don’t use Windows in such a manner in the first place (plus I put my files and everything else on a separate partition or on a completely different HDD in the first place – I only keep the OS, programs and maybe some games installed on the C partition – everything else is elsewhere in case I want to do a complete wipe of the OS without losing any of my data, or if the OS was compromised by malware/virus/whatever).
Metro UI seems to work great on touch based devices, but start moving beyond ‘always online’ mentality into doing some other type of work or customization, the new UI falls flat on its face.
I’m all for moving forward, and it would have been nice to see an evolution of the known UI into something better, but Metro is NOT the answer we are looking for.
September 27th, 2012 at 11:14 am
“Metro” is well suited for touch, and hence for tablets and media consuming users.
But What about the people that produces the media, or program the apps you use?
this people uses desktop or BIG very big screens (usually two).
This people want to use win8 but don’t need or want touch. (I want to see you seat on a chear with the hands extended on the screen a few hours….)
December 27th, 2012 at 7:54 am
Just stay with windows 7 and leave all the fashion victims to go to the FISHER PRICE designed Win 8 METRO! All these fanbois who claim that win8 is progress should demand to be paid by MS for their propaganda services!
Win7 + Classic Shell is all you will need!
Win 8 is not recommended for enterprises, professionals, and PC users in general.
February 28th, 2013 at 4:19 am
ads on every picture makes you a douche-bag.
April 16th, 2013 at 2:39 pm
The only reason im having this problem at all is cause my poor laptop finally shit the bed. but for all you jackasses out there that say “well noone is forcing you to upgrade” um, yes they are, you CAN NOT get a new computer WITHOUT a windows 8 interface. wtf? you want me to go and buy windows 7? i too use my computer for work. not all those shit apps, not shopping, and i dont like to waste my time navigating around a system that caters to a device i have no desire to own. and one more thing. you DO NOT need the newest thing. you DO NOT need to take some handheld device with you everywhere you go. and i certainly DO NOT have to be inconvenienced because of you people who are addicted to that kind of shit.
April 30th, 2013 at 11:05 pm
Problem is if you buy a new proprietary machine now (HP etc) it comes with Win 8 and if it’s the consumer version there is no downgrade option. Removing Win 8 and loading 7 may affect the warranty.