Use Ninite to give Windows 8 a classic Start menu

October 27, 2012

Are you taking the plunge on a new Windows 8 system? Although Microsoft has positioned the new OS to be all about apps, most users will want to run some "legacy" programs (quotations mine—how is something like iTunes suddenly a legacy program?). Rather than downloading all your favorites manually, or, worse, fishing out a bunch of installer CDs, check out Ninite. This insanely handy tool automatically downloads and installs software, saving you considerable time setting up a new machine. Even better, Ninite just added Classic Start, which is the open-source Classic Shell program Lincoln Spector wrote about last month. It's a Start button/menu for Windows 8's Desktop mode, which, irritatingly, doesn't have one. Never heard of Ninite? It works like this: You scroll through Ninite's categorized list of programs, check-marking the ones you want. The service offers the most current versions of nearly every popular mainstream program, including Firefox, Skype, OpenOffice, iTunes, Picasa, Steam, and personal favorite IrfanView. To read this article in full or to leave a comment, please click here

Link: http://www.pcworld.com/article/2013144/use-ninite-to-give-windows-8-a-classic-start-menu.html