When we first heard about Vista Start Menu, we assumed it was a program that would give Windows XP users a Vista-like start menu. But while Vista Start Menu does have a search box and a Vista-black theme, that's where the similarities end. In fact, Vista Start Menu works on both Windows XP and Vista.

So what exactly does this application do? It replaces your Xp or Vista start menu with an easy to use menu designed to show you pretty much everything. While Windows Vista hides away most of the programs you don't use every day and shows you those you use most often, Vista Start Menu shows you everything all the time.

The idea is that most people actually don't have a hard time remembering where the applications they use most of the time are. You get used to moving your cursor to a certain part of the screen and launching the program you need. The only time you have a problem is when you've recently deleted an item and your entire start menu shifts. So Vista Start Menu keeps everything in its proper place -- even if you delete an application. The menu just includes a blank space where the old menu item was so that nothing else moves.

On the other hand, if you prefer launching your programs from a run box, you can just type an application name into the search box and Vista Start Menu will find your program for you. It's not as fast or elegant as other program launchers we've seen, but it gets the job done.

Vista Start menu is available as a free download. For $20 you can upgrade to the Pro version which includes a 2-click program launcher, which basically means you can launch programs by clicking on a folder instead of opening up a subfolder to find executables.

[via SolSie]

So you're an early adopter and you've run out to buy yourself Asus's $400 Eee PC because it seemed like a great price for a fully functional 2 pound computer that's about the size of a typical hardcover book (and far smaller than Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows).

But the innovative easy to use interface might get old pretty quickly if you want to do more than surf the web and create letters, spreadsheets, and PowerPoint style presentations for your friends telling them how cool you are because you have an Eee PC while they don't.

Asus includes instructions for loading Windows XP onto the Eee PC, but it requires an external DVD drive, some drive compression, and you know, a copy of Windows XP. Curiously, Asus does not include any instructions for unlocking the built-in potential of Xandros Linux, the operating system that ships with the Eee PC. But as we mentioned in this week's Squadcast, it just takes a little bit of work to unlock this machine's potential.

If you've got a bit of Linux experience under your belt, it's pretty simple to add some programs, enable an advanced desktop, and tweak the Eee PC to your heart's content. But it turns out that even if you're a Linux noob, the learning curve isn't that steep. Here are some of the most useful Eee hacks/tweaks we've discovered in our first half week of playing with it. Thanks to the Eee User community for helping inspire our hacking.