What Happened to the Run Menu?

One thing you won’t find on the default Start menu is the Run option, which gen-
erations of Windows users have employed to start programs that may not appear
on any menu. The omission isn’t a problem—if you know the secret. Simply type
the name of the program you want to run (such as notepad) into the Start Search
bar just above the Start button and then press Enter.

Changing to old start menu like in windows xp

If you don’t like the new look, you can get the old Start menu back by reverting to the
familiar XP submenu system. Right-click the Start Button, click Properties, select Classic
Start Menu, and then click OK.

The New Start Menu

In Vista, the Start button is no longer called Start, and the Start menu looks completely
different from the menu you may be used to in Windows XP. However, it’s still there at the
bottom of the screen, and you may find it a bit better organized.
The old Start button has been replaced by a lighted sphere that displays the Windows flag
logo. Instead of submenus that fly out to the right of the main menu, Vista displays your
most recently used programs in a primary window

If you click All Programs, the Start menu switches to a display of collapsing folders. You
can expand each folder to show you all available programs, but the Start menu keeps the
list within the primary window.

Speed up Start Menu Search

The search box on the new Start Menu in Windows Vista can be very useful for everyday tasks. This search box is very powerful because not only does it search the start menu and control panel, but it also searches your pictures, documents and even your e-mails. The scope of the search is very wide and you can see some performance benefits if you narrow it down to just searching the start menu and control panel. Follow these steps to optimize your start menu search:

1. Right click on the start button and select Properties.
2. Click on the Customize button.
3. Remove the check from Search Communications.
4. Set Search Files to Don’t search for files.
5. Click OK.
6. Click OK once more