Windows 10: Taskbar buttons (NOT icons) hidden behind cortana search

Hoping this is the right board. A guy in my office just upgraded to windows 10 and it looks completely different from other installations I've seen. The start button isn't the 4 equally-sized rectangles, the top left one is hollow and bigger than the other 3, if that means anything. Anyway, when "use small taskbar buttons" is unchecked in taskbar properties, the first few taskbar buttons are hidden behind the search box on the taskbar. I found this out by accident because I opened one more window and it barely peeked out from the right side of the search box. What can be doing this? BTW this is not the icons in the notification area, these are the program buttons pinned to the taskbar. I specify this because it's only icons that I can find help for anywhere. Oh, also, his start menu doesn't have tiles, it looks almost exactly like the Windows 7 start menu. To me, it's starting to feel like a skin/theme for windows 7, rather than an actual upgrade, and he got taken in by someone, somehow.

:)

 

windows 10 cortana pop up

Right click the taskbar, click Cortana or Search, click on Hidden.

 

search menu hidden

It's in the Start button's right-click menu (e.g. Win-x S) but you don't need it. Just raise your Taskbar (e.g. press and release the Win- key or press Ctrl-Esc) and start typing. Then you will be "searching".

 

These look like the symptoms of installing an old version of Classic Shell in Windows 10. If you have, uninstall it and install latest version which support Windows 10 OK. If it is not Classic Shell it could be a similar utility from another programmer. I use latest Classic Shell and have no problems.

 

Thanks for the idea! I'll check on it tomorrow when I see him.