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What an incredible coincidence that they introduce ads in the official start menu around the same time that they begin blocking third party start menu replaceme

What an incredible coincidence that they introduce ads in the official start menu around the same time that they begin blocking third party start menu replacements. https://www.neowin.net/news/microsoft-blocks-even-more-customization-apps-in-windows-11-version-24h2/ https://www.neowin.net/news/microsoft-blocks-even-more-custo... They do have some legitimate reason to want to block specific versions of those apps if they cause stability issues on a new build of Windows, but at least in the case of StartAllBack the developer noted it isn't targeted at a specific version this time, it's a wildcard block. https://twitter.com/StartIsBack/status/1776555154701205877 https://twitter.com/StartIsBack/status/1776555154701205877

pesus 3y ago
Lovely! I rely on StartAllBack to make my Windows 11 work machine actually useful. At least renaming the executable works for now. Microsoft seems hellbent on making their products worse and worse. I guess this is more incentive for me to get a new job not working in a Windows shop.
- justinclift 3y ago
  And/or introduce non-Windows platforms into the place for any reason you can get away with. :)
- kyriakos 3y ago
  Are you using an insider build? It's only blocked in a pre release version. We don't know if this is a problem that will be in 24H2 final version
kevincox 3y ago
I mean it isn't a coincidence. But this framing is pretty negative. These apps broke and started crashing because they were updating the start menu. Probably related to the addition of ads. Then they blocked these versions because they were crashing. It doesn't seem like they are making any effort to block versions that don't cause crashes. (Other than maybe making it a bit harder to keep updating to new internal APIs) It really doesn't seem like they are purposely breaking these tools so that more people see the ads. It is probably such a tiny market that they don't care at this point. They'll definitely ship the ads to 99.9% of users first before they worry about this unaddressed market.
- jsheard 3y ago
  > It doesn't seem like they are making any effort to block versions that don't cause crashes. See the Tweet I linked, Windows does have a mechanism to only block a specific range of version numbers that are known to cause issues, and they have used that on StartIsBack/StartAllBack before, but the most recent Windows build simply blocks StartAllBack*.exe without any bounds on the version. The developer can get around the block by changing the filenames of course but that's not really the point, if Microsoft is being actively hostile towards this kind of customisation now then they're just going to keep breaking it on purpose.
  - TehCorwiz 3y ago
    I dislike this change as much as most people here. However, I do see a situation where it could be warranted. They might simply block all versions because there aren't any version that are actually compatible yet, and once there are it'll get updated. That of course presumes they'll continue treating StartAllBack as they have been so far.
    - aequitas 3y ago
      Innocent until proven guilty. Why block future versions where the developer has fixed issues. Not a user has to wait for the developer to fix the issue and for Microsoft to update their blocklist. It’s hostile behavior that doesn’t make sense unless you want to push users away from these apps. They probably consider any start menu that doesn’t carry their ads as “broken”.
      - TehCorwiz 3y ago
        Why allow new versions until they're tested?
naikrovek 3y ago
There have been ads in the start menu for nearly a decade…
pveierland 3y ago
My standard start menu replacement was always to add a "run" folder with program shortcuts to the system path, then just "Win+R" to Run and e.g. "kp" to run KeyPass. Until Windows 10 this was super fast - no idea whether they've managed to break even the Run dialog after this.
- DavidPeiffer 3y ago
  Prior to Windows 10, you could do "Win+R", calc, enter and immediately start typing numbers because the calculator app launched instantly. They have also managed to add lag to the most basic calculator as well.
  - HackeNewsFan234 3y ago
    On my Windows 11 laptop, there's a short delay from when I press Win and when it accepts keystrokes. It commonly misses the first letter I type, making Win + fire (for Firefox) do an internet search in Edge for "ire".
    - Const-me 3y ago
      Try unchecking that checkbox: https://www.howtogeek.com/742678/how-to-turn-off-animations-in-windows-11/ https://www.howtogeek.com/742678/how-to-turn-off-animations-... I’ve recently installed Win11 on my new computer, and immediately discovered Microsoft decided to implement keyboard lag in that version. Luckily, that “animation effects” checkbox did the trick for me.
    - hagbard_c 3y ago
      That's the Win key ad auction delay, they're just getting you used to it. Every time you press that key an auction is held for your eyes, to be sold to the highest bidder. Normally something like this should be ended with a </sarcasm> tag but I'm fairly sure this is soon to be - if not already - more fact than fiction. The solution? Ditch Windows. The pot is boiling, the frog has long since passed so bury it and move to greener pastures (no, not those used in the XP background). There is a Linux waiting for you, somewhere - take your pick and run with it.
daveoc64 3y ago
Given that the article says that there is a toggle to hide the recommended apps, this doesn't make any sense.
TiredOfLife 3y ago
Actual replacements like Start11 are not blocked. Buggy apps using undocumented apis that break with every update are being blocked.

pesus 3y ago

Lovely! I rely on StartAllBack to make my Windows 11 work machine actually useful. At least renaming the executable works for now. Microsoft seems hellbent on making their products worse and worse. I guess this is more incentive for me to get a new job not working in a Windows shop.

justinclift 3y ago
And/or introduce non-Windows platforms into the place for any reason you can get away with. :)
kyriakos 3y ago
Are you using an insider build? It's only blocked in a pre release version. We don't know if this is a problem that will be in 24H2 final version

kevincox 3y ago

I mean it isn't a coincidence. But this framing is pretty negative. These apps broke and started crashing because they were updating the start menu. Probably related to the addition of ads. Then they blocked these versions because they were crashing. It doesn't seem like they are making any effort to block versions that don't cause crashes. (Other than maybe making it a bit harder to keep updating to new internal APIs) It really doesn't seem like they are purposely breaking these tools so that more people see the ads. It is probably such a tiny market that they don't care at this point. They'll definitely ship the ads to 99.9% of users first before they worry about this unaddressed market.

jsheard 3y ago
> It doesn't seem like they are making any effort to block versions that don't cause crashes. See the Tweet I linked, Windows does have a mechanism to only block a specific range of version numbers that are known to cause issues, and they have used that on StartIsBack/StartAllBack before, but the most recent Windows build simply blocks StartAllBack*.exe without any bounds on the version. The developer can get around the block by changing the filenames of course but that's not really the point, if Microsoft is being actively hostile towards this kind of customisation now then they're just going to keep breaking it on purpose.
- TehCorwiz 3y ago
  I dislike this change as much as most people here. However, I do see a situation where it could be warranted. They might simply block all versions because there aren't any version that are actually compatible yet, and once there are it'll get updated. That of course presumes they'll continue treating StartAllBack as they have been so far.
  - aequitas 3y ago
    Innocent until proven guilty. Why block future versions where the developer has fixed issues. Not a user has to wait for the developer to fix the issue and for Microsoft to update their blocklist. It’s hostile behavior that doesn’t make sense unless you want to push users away from these apps. They probably consider any start menu that doesn’t carry their ads as “broken”.
    - TehCorwiz 3y ago
      Why allow new versions until they're tested?

naikrovek 3y ago

There have been ads in the start menu for nearly a decade…

pveierland 3y ago

My standard start menu replacement was always to add a "run" folder with program shortcuts to the system path, then just "Win+R" to Run and e.g. "kp" to run KeyPass. Until Windows 10 this was super fast - no idea whether they've managed to break even the Run dialog after this.

DavidPeiffer 3y ago
Prior to Windows 10, you could do "Win+R", calc, enter and immediately start typing numbers because the calculator app launched instantly. They have also managed to add lag to the most basic calculator as well.
- HackeNewsFan234 3y ago
  On my Windows 11 laptop, there's a short delay from when I press Win and when it accepts keystrokes. It commonly misses the first letter I type, making Win + fire (for Firefox) do an internet search in Edge for "ire".
  - Const-me 3y ago
    Try unchecking that checkbox: https://www.howtogeek.com/742678/how-to-turn-off-animations-in-windows-11/ https://www.howtogeek.com/742678/how-to-turn-off-animations-... I’ve recently installed Win11 on my new computer, and immediately discovered Microsoft decided to implement keyboard lag in that version. Luckily, that “animation effects” checkbox did the trick for me.
  - hagbard_c 3y ago
    That's the Win key ad auction delay, they're just getting you used to it. Every time you press that key an auction is held for your eyes, to be sold to the highest bidder. Normally something like this should be ended with a </sarcasm> tag but I'm fairly sure this is soon to be - if not already - more fact than fiction. The solution? Ditch Windows. The pot is boiling, the frog has long since passed so bury it and move to greener pastures (no, not those used in the XP background). There is a Linux waiting for you, somewhere - take your pick and run with it.

daveoc64 3y ago

Given that the article says that there is a toggle to hide the recommended apps, this doesn't make any sense.

TiredOfLife 3y ago

Actual replacements like Start11 are not blocked. Buggy apps using undocumented apis that break with every update are being blocked.