Want to boot straight to the desktop in Windows 8? Too bad.

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Want to boot straight to the desktop in Windows 8? Too bad.

Some people like the Windows 8 Metro tiles screen, others hate it. Want to just boot straight to the desktop and never see it? Too bad. Word is that when Windows 8 goes gold this fall, you will have no choice but to boot first into the Metro screen. You’ll like it or else.

The final release-to-manufacturing (RTM) builds of Windows 8 and Windows Server 2012 have been leaking to the Web for last few days. Those with access to the final builds are discovering the final tweaks Microsoft made to the product since the last public test build, Windows 8 Release Preview, was delivered.

One of those tweaks is the decision to block users from setting up their Windows 8 machines to boot straight to the Desktop, circumventing the tiled Start screen, formerly known as the Metro screen. (There’s still no external word as to how Microsoft is planning to rebrand “Metro.” It seems the Softies are backing away from the Metro terminology due to pressure of some kind from Metro AG, one of its European retail partners.)

Rafael Rivera, coauthor of the forthcoming Windows 8 Secrets, said he has verified that users cannot boot straight to the Desktop in Windows 8. With Windows 8 test builds, users could create shortcut that switches to the Windows 8 Desktop. Those who didn’t want to boot to the tiled Start screen could schedule this shortcut to be activated immediately after a user logged onto Windows 8.

Some other users were holding out hope that Microsoft would allow administrators to use Group Policy to allow users to circumvent the Metro startup screen. But Rivera told me he believes this also is blocked.

Via