Windows 7 - Classic XP Start Menu - a different approach

I've tried to read all the other threads about this but they all seem to require external software or comparatively complicated paths to the result.

This way which I stumbled upon while experimenting reproduces the Classic XP Start Menu in every way I can see, with one exception, you need to use one mouse click rather than the WinKey to access.

First make a new folder and call it, erm, 'Start Menu' - initially it's handy to have it on the desktop - you can move it later if you want. Please NOTE this is nothing to do with any other Start Menu items you find in the Users or Roaming folders.

Then go through every thing you'd like on the Start Menu (file, folder, program) and use 'Send To Desktop Create Shortcut'. Move all those new shortcuts (you can rename them now or later if you want) into the new folder.

Go down to the taskbar, right-click, Toolbars, New Toolbar and navigate to the Start Menu folder you made. Select that folder and you will have a new entry on the Taskbar called 'Start Menu' which, when you click the double arrow, has all the facilities of the old Classic XP menu - ie, Rename, Sort by Name, Delete, etc.

If you add your own sub-folders (Programs, Accessories, Uncle Tom Cobleigh) to the Start Menu folder they behave on the Start Menu toolbar as they did in XP once you've added the shortcuts you want. If you add new shortcuts to the Start Menu folder (or sub-folders) they appear immediately on the Start Menu toolbar.

You can even add shortcuts to other disks. In fact if you can make a shortcut, you can add it to the toolbar just by placing the shortcut in your Start Menu folder

I'm still experimenting but it seems that everything you do with the Start Menu folder/Start Menu toolbar reproduces the Classic XP SM including (what I was looking for) the keyboard navigation.

I apologise if I have taught any granny to suck eggs and I've just solved a problem that has been done before but I didn't find the solution in my searching.

Now if someone could find a way to hotkey the new toolbar into say Alt GR or the unused Menu key, we'd have full keyboard control as we had before. BTW you can get to the new toolbar using the TAB key but it can be a long way round...

Hope this helps someone

PS You can obviously call the folder anything you want, that name will be the name of your toolbar

Thank you for sharing, so that all the members could benefit from your experience. Have a Happy New Year.