Search behavior of Windows 7 start menu
- by Kevin Ivarsen
I'm coming to Windows 7 from XP, and there are aspects of the start menu search that I like. However, there are some behaviors that seem either inconsistent or surprising to me. For example:
If I type "Pa" into the search bar, Paint is the first result (under the "Programs" heading), and it is selected for me. I can just hit Enter to start the program
If I have a standalone exe "testing" on my desktop, and I type "test", the program comes up as the first item (under the "Files" heading), but it is not selected for me. I have to hit down-down-down-enter to open it from the keyboard. The same appears to be true for shortcuts and folders.
What classifies something as a "Program" verses a "File"? Is there any way to configure the start menu so that the first search result is always selected? As a heavy keyboard user, it seems insane for the behavior to be inconsistent, and to require so many keypresses to select the top result.
Also, are there resources that document the details, limitations, and tricks of the start menu search? (For example, a "Proc Exp" search will match "Process Explorer", but not "ProcessExplorer")
EDIT: I've found that instead of hitting down-down-down to select the first item (when no Programs are in the list), you can just hit tab. This helps a bit, but the inconsistent behavior still makes this search feature more awkward and frustrating than necessary.
