Early in February 2012, I asked what I considered to be a simple question:

Is the lack of a Start Button in Windows 8 really a big deal or is it just an excuse to feign angst before the beta release?

Change may be an inevitable part of an information technology professional’s life, but that does not mean it is always embraced as beneficial — at least seldom at first blush. However, there are degrees of change. There are minor changes that can be avoided or mitigated, and there are major changes that cannot be avoided and must be dealt with. Judging by the results of the poll, it would seem that the loss of a Start Button in Microsoft Windows 8 is one of the minor changes.

At the very least, the results suggest that, despite the very loud chorus of naysayers citing the lack of a Start Button as the final straw that will drive them to other operating systems, most IT pros are taking a wait-and-see attitude toward the pending beta release of Windows 8.

(The general consensus is that the Windows 8 Consumer Preview will be announced at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona on February 29, 2012.

Follow-up question

It is no secret that I find the tone of the comments on Windows 8 that I have seen in the discussion forums on TechRepublic to be way more apocalyptic than warranted by the facts. The angst expressed when Microsoft announced that there would be no Start Button just did not match the magnitude of the change. Obviously, there is more than the loss of single desktop button causing all this hand-wringing, but what that is eludes me.

So, let me ask for some calm, rational explanation. What exactly concerns you about Windows 8? Are you one of the members expressing what seems to be a sense of betrayal at the changes Microsoft is making to Windows? Can you express why you feel that way? What about it is raising your blood pressure?

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