Originally Posted by
Condition One
My laptop is on its last legs. Was looking at a new one today, and it had Windows 8.1 on it. Still have no clue on how to use it. Do I still need Classic Shell or Start8?
Yes, if you want to use a start menu, or not to have to jump back to the start to use the Search-then-run functionality.
Having paid for Start8, it's pretty good, but I don't think it's enough better than Classic Shell to be really worth paying for.
I got the combination of Start8+Modern Mix, which is really nice and does not have an open source equivalent -- Modern Mix allows you to run "modern" apps in a Window, and makes them a good deal more useful if running on a regular laptop or desktop. One of the two upcoming Windows 8.1 updates (not sure if it's the coming soon Update 1 or the end-of-the-year Update) is supposedly going to have that functionality built in.