If you open a lot of programs, slogging through the Start menu every time can be a pain. For example, on my Start menu, to access the Calculator, I have to choose Start|Programs|Accessories|Calculator. Opening up multiple utilities from these nested locations can get tedious.
Normally, after your final click to open a program, your path through the Start menu disappears. Windows assumes you’re going to go run off and go use that program. But if you want to open another program, it’s easy to "hold" the Start menu open. (I think of it as kind of like holding the elevator door open.)
The key is to hold down the Shift key while you click your item in the Start menu. The program you selected opens and goes and sits quietly on your Taskbar. The cool thing is that the Start menu doesn’t disappear; it stays open. When you are done opening programs, click anywhere outside the Start menu or press the Esc key to get rid of it.
Here’s another tip that I found useful because I just installed a lot of new software. My Start menu was a mess because new programs tend to add their entries at the end of the Start menu. Because the names are in the order you installed them, there’s no rhyme or reason as to the order in the list and it can take a while to find the item you want to open. It’s a lot easier if the list is alphabetized. So to arrange the Start menu items by name, click the Start menu. Then click Programs and right-click on any item. In the pop-up menu, choose Sort by Name. And suddenly order is restored to that jumbled Start menu.