This replaced the Windows desktop as the primary interface of the operating system.
[3] The following is a list of Start menu replacements for Windows 8 which have received coverage from third-party sources: [22] The number of skins in the table givens the number of built-in skins.
[40] Classic Shell used to be free and open source (now proprietary freeware), major items are localized and installing the Language Pack from Windows Update makes all items fully localized; Classic Shell is also available for Windows 7 and Windows Server, and claims over 25 million downloads.
[41] The Pokki download to restore the Start menu is free; as of January 2013, it has about 1.5 million users.
[44] Pokki has raised $21.5M from investors like Google, Intel, and O'Reilly;[45] its business model is to make a commission on software sold through its app store.