The new Windows 11 Insider Preview, released this week, introduces some handy and highly-requested new features, including the ability to write in any text field with Windows Ink and the setting to never close application icon labels in the taskbar combine that existed from Windows 7 to Windows 10.
Improvements for Windows Ink
Windows Ink is modernized to allow users to ink directly into edit boxes. In addition, Microsoft says it will improve the accuracy of the recognition technology and add gesture recognition when users need to make changes. The goal of Windows Ink is to enable users to use their pen and handwrite anywhere they can type on their Windows device.
Use your pen to handwrite anywhere you can type in Windows, like the search box in Settings.
Microsoft states that these new improvements to Windows Ink currently only support English (United States), but support for other languages is planned. This new experience can be managed from Settings > Bluetooth and Devices > Stylus and Windows Ink under Shell Handwriting.
Changes to folder options in File Explorer
But Windows 11 gives and Windows 11 takes back. The new beta also removes several power-user-oriented settings from File Explorer’s Folder Options menu, most of which have been around for decades. Microsoft explains: We’re removing a handful of old settings under “Folder Options” in File Explorer to clean up the number of File Explorer settings. Many of these are legacy settings that have been around for ages and are not used regularly by Windows 11 users.
The following settings no longer appear under Folder Options in File Explorer*:
- Hide conflict when merging folders.
- Always show icon, never thumbnail.
- Show file icon on thumbnails.
- Show file type information in folder tips.
- Hide protected operating system files.
- Show drive letter.
- Show contextual description of folder and desktop items.
- View encrypted or compressed NTFS files in color.
- Use the sharing wizard.
Microsoft states that these parameters are always accessible through registry keys. A standard Windows installation has some of these options enabled by default and others disabled by default. Microsoft hasn’t said anything about changing these default settings.
The Folder Options menu, one of many Windows 95-style menus tucked just beneath the glossy Windows 11 interface.
The other big change in this release is the removal of the default chat button, a personal-use version of Microsoft Teams that was separate from the version used by schools and businesses and could only be disabled through settings, without it entirely to uninstall. The app is replaced with an icon for the free Microsoft Teams service, which can be pinned and unpinned like any other taskbar app without requiring a separate trip to the Settings app to unpin it.
Also under “Taskbar” and “Taskbar,” Microsoft is announcing the availability of “Never Combine” mode: The “Never Combine” mode that allows you to see each of your application windows individually on the taskbar, and its delivery with Build 23466 is now available to all Windows Insiders on the Dev Channel.
Taskbar in never combined mode
These are just some of the changes Microsoft is planning for future versions of Windows 11. The company also plans to add support for zipping and unzipping more file archive types, built-in controls for certain types of RGB accessories, Bluetooth low-energy audio. new features for MS Paint and a new Copilot feature that further integrates ChatGPT-based generative AI into the operating system. All of these features could be available in public versions of Windows at any time, but it’s more likely that Microsoft will bundle some or all of them and release them in one package sometime this summer or fall.
Windows copilot
In May, Microsoft announced that Windows Copilot will be available in preview for Windows 11 in June.
And Panos Panay, Head of Windows and Devices at Microsoft, explains the following:
Once opened, the Windows Copilot sidebar stays consistent across your apps, programs, and windows, ready to be your personal assistant whenever you need it. It turns any user into a power user, helping them take action, customize their settings, and seamlessly connect to their favorite apps. On Windows, Copilot can summarize, paraphrase, or even explain the content displayed in applications. It’s very similar to the chat box in Bing Chat, so you can use it to ask general questions and things you would normally ask a search engine. It won’t directly replace the Windows 11 taskbar’s search bar, but instead will have a separate Copilot button next to it, similar to how Cortana had her own dedicated area on the Windows 10 taskbar. According to Windows Copilot, Windows Copilot is a “personal assistant”. Microsoft, which sounds a lot like how Microsoft described Cortana as a “personal productivity assistant.”
Using Windows Copilot is simple and familiar: the button is located in the middle of the taskbar and is easy to find and use. Once opened, the Windows Copilot sidebar stays consistent across your apps, programs, and windows, ready to be your personal assistant whenever you need it. It turns any user into a power user, helping you take action, customize your settings, and seamlessly connect to your favorite apps. What you love about Windows—copy/paste, Snap Assistant, snipping tool, customization—is at your fingertips, just like every other platform feature, and it’s even better with Windows Copilot. For example, in addition to copying and pasting, you can ask Windows Copilot to rewrite, summarize, or explain your content.
Just like with Bing Chat, you can ask Windows Copilot a whole range of questions, from the simplest to the most complex. When I want to call my family in Cyprus, I can quickly check the local time to make sure I’m not waking them up in the middle of the night. When I want to plan a trip to Cyprus, I can ask Windows Copilot to find flights and accommodation for my family for the winter holidays.
With the Bing and ChatGPT plugins in Windows Copilot, not only do humans have access to advanced AI capabilities and experiences, but you, as a developer, also have new ways to reach and innovate for our mutual customers. . We invite you to join the Windows Copilot adventure by continuing to invest in the Bing and ChatGPT plugins to reflect your investment in Windows Copilot.
Source: microsoft
And you ?
Which Windows 11 features are you most looking forward to?
Which file explorer settings do you use most often?
What do you think of Microsoft Teams integration in Windows 11?
Do you prefer to write with Windows Ink or with a keyboard?
Have you already tested the beta version of Windows 11? If yes, what did you think?