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Before installing Win 8 today, my plan was to keep the Metro UI up on my smaller, laptop monitor and have the classic UI running on my two larger monitors. However, in reality, as soon as I click on something in one of the classic UI monitors, the Metro UI minimizes (thus exposing the classic UI in its place).

Is there any way to keep the Metro UI from minimizing when I do something in another monitor?

Oddly enough, if there is an app running/suspended in the Metro Window, then the Metro UI is not minimized. If the Start screen is currently viewed, clicking in a classic window/monitor switches the Metro UI from the start screen to the last run app. Very peculiar..

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  • I don't think the Start Screen is designed to stay open if you haven't selected anything. I've noticed this behaviour on my dual-screen setup.
    – user3463
    Sep 8, 2012 at 23:11

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The behavior you described is per design. The Metro home/start page will disappear if it loses focus to any other application, Metro or Desktop.

So either use one full screen metro app as you described. Or you can drag from the top of a Metro app and dock it to any side. Then launch another Metro app. You can run those two side-by-side. Then you can go to your other monitors in Desktop mode and Metro will stay up as long as no other application windows come up on the monitor that is currently running Metro. (And if they do, for example, a dialog box or something, you can get Metro full screen back by any usual means like Alt+Tab or the top left hotspot.) You can even have the "Desktop" by one of those apps on the main monitor as well, to run side-by-side with the docked Metro app.

But if two Metro apps isn't enough, or your goal is to have the Metro start menu specifically stay full screen, then no, you're out of luck unless you find a Metro home/start menu replacement application.

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Nope. That is one of the behaviors of the Start Menu that they kept. The Modern UI Home Screen will go away when you switch to another application.

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While this can not be done in Windows 8, 8.1 seems be behave just as you are asking. When I bring the start screen up on my second monitor I can continue to use classic windows without causing it to disappear, as it would before the update.

So the the answer is, use the 8.1 preview/wait.

WARNING: This is for experienced users only, please read all of the information MS provides before deciding if you are ready to install this. . .

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-8/preview-download

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  • You can also use Ctr-Win-Arrow now to move apps/the start screen to different monitors like you could with normal windows.
    – zeel
    Jul 2, 2013 at 16:39

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