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I have dozens of programs and folders in the Start menu App list:

App List

It takes forever to scroll all the way down to launch a particular program. I'm not willing to remove some of these items. I'd rather like to decrease the height of the programs and folders that are shown in there, potentially to the height of the ones back in Windows 7 (as seen below).

Windows 7 version

Is this possible, or is there a better way?

Run5k
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user897506
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    Sounds like an [XY problem](https://meta.stackexchange.com/a/66378/267029). What issue are you trying to solve? – gronostaj Apr 23 '18 at 17:52
  • simply, i want to decrease the height of these items (if you have a better solution, i wouldn't say no) @gronostaj – user897506 Apr 23 '18 at 17:56
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    You can always change the behavior of the start menu entirely, with programs like Classic Shell and StartIsBack++, there are other alternatives, entirely up to you choose one though. – Ramhound Apr 23 '18 at 18:17
  • @PimpJuiceIT that really is a great idea, but I think that it has one notable limitation: any program or folder that only appears on *that* specific user's App List won't be shown. They would essentially need another shortcut pointed at `%AppData%\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs`, also. – Run5k Apr 23 '18 at 19:01
  • @Ramhound, i am all fine with the Windows 10 Start menu except for the part i mentioned above, so i’m not willing to replace it entirely. I was hoping that there is a way to just decrease the height of the items, possibly a registry key for that? however, it seems that such tweak is not possible. But thanks anyway :) – user897506 Apr 23 '18 at 19:18
  • Look in how many apps you are actually using, and if it are only a few, consider pinning them to the main start menu. That way, you do not even have to go into your apps, but access them from the main start menu instead. – LPChip Apr 23 '18 at 19:50
  • [install StartIsBack++ or ClassicShell](https://superuser.com/a/946675/174557) to get Win7 start menu back. – magicandre1981 Apr 24 '18 at 15:31

4 Answers4

3

There is a much easier way: if you simply click on any letter heading within the App List, it will reveal an index that allows you to move though the list of installed apps relatively quickly:

App List

After selecting a letter, the index will appear:

App Index

Select a letter from within that index to navigate rather quickly through the list.

Source: Windows 10 tip: Jump through your list of installed apps

Run5k
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  • Sounds good, but the problem is: sometimes (most of the times actually) when i want to launch an app i look for its icon and not name. i don't recall names fast. Actually, sometimes i don't remember names at all (names of people as well) – user897506 Apr 23 '18 at 18:18
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    I understand what you are saying, but if you don't know the *name* of the application you want to launch, that adds an extra layer of complexity to what you are trying to accomplish. If that's the case, I would consider employing some combination of the `Pin to Start` and `Pin to taskbar` capabilities to make your favorite applications readily available. Beyond that, it may be a good idea to actually learn the application names, since that would resolve your problem without the need for any modifications and/or additional software. – Run5k Apr 23 '18 at 18:27
  • Yes, maybe i should just abandon the app list and use other solutions. Thanks for your time – user897506 Apr 23 '18 at 19:21
2

Windows 10 - Emulate a Windows 7 Scrollable Start Menu

To emulate a more Windows 7 like start menu that has scrollable functionality but on Windows 10, then consider simply creating a Toolbar from the Taskbar that opens %programdata%\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs to start traversing All Programs that are installed and have start menu shortcuts accessible to every user account on the machine.

Note: If there are programs installed and configured to only create start menu shortcuts for a specific user then use %appdata%\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs.

What's the Difference Again . . .

  1. Programs installed with start menu shortcuts created being for everyone

    • %programdata%\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs

  2. Programs installed with start menu shortcuts created for a specific user only

    • %AppData%\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs

Create a Toolbar Already . . .

  • 1, 2, & 3. Right-click on the Taskbar, select Toolbars > New toolbar...

    enter image description here

  • 4 & 5. When the New Toolbar - Choose a folder window pops up, paste in the %programdata%\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs value and press Enter and then the lower right Select Folder option

    Note: This is where you use the appropriate option or perhaps both as written about in the What's the Difference Again section.

    enter image description here

  • 6. Now in the Windows Taskbar area, there will be a new scrollable like Toolbar which allows you to traverse the All Programs area of the apps installed onto the PC somewhat similar to the Windows 7 scrollable start menu.

    enter image description here

Run5k
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Vomit IT - Chunky Mess Style
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1

Consider pinning the apps you use frequently to your startmenu instead. This way, you see them the moment you click on the start menu as a tile. You can make the start menu as big as the entire screen so you should have sufficient space to add at least 5 apps. But you probably can add 20 more depending on the resolution you use.

LPChip
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0

One helpful method I have found is to use the tab key - tab to the top of apps then you can easily use home end page up page down to navigate quickly

MikeS
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