It's slower, though. It takes longer to search through the index than to just run the program in the windows directory. For programs I run frequently, I place 1 letter shortcuts in the windows directory. That way, to launch a program I just type Win+R+[char]+Enter. You can also launch shortcuts on the taskbar using Win+[0-9], but if you already have an instance it will just show you the existing one .. which is useless because that's what Alt+Tab is for.

Edit: You can also assign shortcuts like Ctrl+Alt+[char], but those are more awkward to use, and also will focus an existing instance instead of creating a new one.

Those shortcuts are cool, but for programs in the path, you don't need to wait for search. You can hit the Win key, paste a long command line, and press Enter immediately. Or just throw down "cmd" or "regedit" before the menu has finished fading in, it still works.