For those who felt Windows 8 was a dramatic departure from everything that worked so well on Windows 7, there is good news. Windows 9 is almost here, and it actually looks like the Windows of old--but the good Windows of old. Not Vista.

The preview version of Windows 9 is supposed to be released to the public on Sept. 30 of this month, but that hasn't stopped others who've already got their hands on an early build of the OS to post videos of them using it. 

A German site, WinFuture.de, has posted a bunch of videos showing them use the new Windows 9 preview, and we've included one of them below. And based on these videos, Windows is alive an well. Gone is the so-called Metro UI which forced desktop users to navigate with a set of large colorful icons that were grafted straight from Microsoft's failed Windows Phone OS. Instead, what we see is a desktop, a tool bar, and--if you can believe it--a start menu. Yes, the start menu is back.

So, as this video shows, if you want the Metro UI 'live tiles' you can pin them to your start menu, and if you don't want them, you may simply remove them. WinFuture also shows off the new Virtual Desktops in Windows 9, which display on one screen all of the open apps currently running, and allows users to quickly move from one open app to another. 

The notification center for the OS has also been revamped and pops up at the bottom right-hand corner of the desktop. The notification center displays incoming messages from Skype and other apps, as well as OS notifications about updates that are available, etc. 

There are also a bunch of Windows Phone OS features coming to Windows 9, including: Cortana (voice search and personal assistant), Internet Explorer 12, Storage Sense and WiFi Sense.