When Microsoft first revealed Windows 8, complaints started rolling in almost immediately. The lack of the traditional Start Menu and the fact that Windows would no longer be booting directly to the Windows desktop were just a couple examples of the many complaints that continue to trickle in regarding the new OS.

Rumor has it that Windows 8.1, codenamed Blue, will possibly offer preferences that will enable booting directly to the Windows 8 desktop and the ability to bring back the Windows Start Menu. On April 14th, MicrosoftPortal.net blogged about how the twinui.dll file found in the leaked Windows Blue Build 9364 contains code that controls whether the computer will boot directly to the desktop. As previous builds of Windows Blue did not contain this option, it’s pretty clear that Microsoft may be giving in to customer complaints and are working to fix them.

As we all know, Microsoft is unpredictable when it comes to making changes. These are just rumors at this point, so we can’t count on these fixes to actually happen. We won’t know until 8.1 is released in August 2013. If you can’t wait for the Windows Blue, programs like Start8 from Stardock may be your answer. Start8 allows users to tweak the Windows 8 experience to more closely mimic that of Windows 7 and XP. You can boot straight to the desktop, skip the new (and sometimes confusing) tiled start menu and bring back the start button.

Windows 8 has some great new features that make it more secure and easier to troubleshoot than previous versions. Bringing back the Start Menu and the ability to boot directly to the desktop will (in my opinion) make Windows 8 the best Microsoft OS yet!