One of the most hated features about Windows 8 is the inability to boot past Start Screen and go straight to desktop. After all, most people using Windows 8 with a mouse and keyboard are more likely to spend their time on traditional desktop than on Start Screen. It seems Microsoft may be listening to its customers (shocker!) because a rumor has surfaced on the Internet that Windows Blue — most likely to be called Windows 8.1, debuting later this year — will have the ability to skip Start Screen and boot straight to desktop.

The rumor is coming from a poster on Microsoft’s Russian website Microsoft Portal. The claim here is an analysis of the code for Windows Blue (see screenshot above) has revealed a function that indicates Windows Blue will have this go-straight-to-desktop functionality: CanSuppressStartScreen function in twinui.dll.

Of course this is far from a fact set in stone; that function could be for something else or it could be that function doesn’t even make it to the final build of Windows Blue, which is in development stages right now. However, anything to help bolster Windows 8 is, in my opinion, better for all of us.

Until (if) this comes to Windows 8 (Windows 8.1/Blue) natively, you can use third-party programs — such as ClassicShell, ViStart, or SkipMetro — or do a quick registry hack to automatically skip Start Screen and boot straight to Windows 8 desktop.

[via Ghacks, Microsoft Portal]