Open-Shell is a free tool that lets you customise the Windows Start menu. It is a modified Classic Shell that its author, Ivo Beltchev, abandoned. If you remember Classic Shell, it’s effectively the same thing, with other developers picking up the project and tweaking it for modern Windows versions.
Open-Shell is totally open source and available in Russian. You can get it for free from the link provided below.
Settings and Styles:
- The basic options let you customise the behaviour of left-click, the Shift + Click combo, the Windows buttons, the display style for all programs, and more.
- Everything is on one page, and the altered settings are underlined in bold so you know precisely what you changed.
- If the basic settings are insufficient, advanced mode lets you fine-tune every feature. This is for individuals who enjoy tinkering.
- Despite all of the graphic modifications that can be made, the application consumes almost minimal resources and runs in the background unnoticed.
Skins:
- There are various built-in skins to select from.
- Each one can be further personalised by adjusting transparency, icon size, frames, and even the Metro skin’s user image.
- In fact, you can customise the Start menu to seem like any version of Windows, including Windows 7 and XP.
This software is necessary for Windows 11. The new Start menu is gorgeous but cumbersome; you can’t properly organise apps, and the search feature is inconsistent. Open-Shell restores the classic behaviour while remaining clean. Another key feature is that it allows for community-created custom skins.
Alternatives:
StartAllBack, a premium option that is more visually refined and better integrated with Windows 11, lets you personalise not only the Start menu but also the taskbar and File Explorer.
Start11, which is also premium, offers the same features, attractive designs, and excellent support, but it costs money.
