Outlook vs Mail Windows 8 w/Office Home and Student

[jlockley]

Having a little trouble setting up a new Lenovo with Windows 8. Aside from the fact that Microsoft has determined that everything I do is on the web and offers a screen full of "apps" (What happened to programs) I can't use with the assumption that I will always be connected (I won't) I cannot get to Outlook (and I am sure other programs..Is Outlook still a program?) although Office Home and Student is pre installed (and I have the disk). Instead there is mail which wants me to have a Windows account (I don't, at least not for these purposes) and sign in.
Can anyone tell me how to get to Outlook? I can reload Outlook 10 onto a thumb drive and (re?) install it, but I have outlook 10, and the drive is only about 250 GB, so I need to avoid redundancy. Is there a way to find it in the programs? Is there a way to find the existing Office programs (apps?) on the drive and add them to the desktop?

I would appreciate input very much. I realize this is a little basic.

 

[solderjockey]

I'll do a +1 for Classic Start Menu. It's usually the first thing I install on a Windows 8 system for someone coming over from 7 or Vista, including my own. If you have a touchscreen, the tiles make more sense, at least on my opinion. With a mouse they're just kind of a nuisance. To each their own though.

 

[goombawaho]

The problem with getting one of those programs is when you have to touch a Windows 8 computer WITHOUT one. Then I start to twitch.

"Living tomorrow is everyone's sorrow.
Modern man's daydreams have turned into nightmares.