Articles about Windows Insider

Microsoft Photos is something of an unsung hero of the Windows app family. It is an astonishingly useful and powerful tool that Microsoft keeps quietly updating on an irregular basis. The latest update has just landed, and it’s a biggie.

We’ve already seen the addition of OCR capabilities to Microsoft Photos so in-image text can be easily copied; this has now been extended to include the option to search the web with text that has been extracted. But this is far from being the only change in the latest update.

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Microsoft often likes to do things in a contrary fashion, particularly when it comes to Windows. But there are also times when the company sees that it doesn’t always makes sense to work against the tide, and makes changes to its software accordingly.

And this is just what has happened with the latest Release Preview build of Windows 11. This is a build that brings a lot of changes and new features, but one of the most interesting, useful and pleasing is an update to Task Manager that finally sees it complying with industry standards for the way it shows CPU usage.

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It seems that even legacy apps are not immune to artificial intelligence. Microsoft has just rolled out a new Insider build of Windows 11 that sees the arrival of AI-powered features in Paint and Notepad.

While these are both stalwarts of the Windows app arena, they also feel like unusual targets for updating with such cutting-edge features. But this is precisely what Microsoft is doing, furnishing Notepad with a handy AI-driven Rewrite feature, and Paint with clever fill and erase options.

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With the Start menu being at the heart of Windows, it is vital that it functions in a way that makes sense to people. Sadly, this has not always been the case.

Over years of development, Microsoft has taken a series of questionable design decision with this iconic part of the operating system, but a change that could prove popular is about to land in Windows 11.

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If you have been experiencing higher than normal CPU usage in Windows 11 recently, you are certainly not alone. There is good and bad news.

The good news is twofold. Firstly, the cause of the issue has been identified by Microsoft, and secondly, it only affects Insider builds of Windows 11. The bad news, however, is that there is no fix available, and no indication of when this may change.

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There is, it seems, no end of ways in which Microsoft can use and abuse the Start menu. Now a long way from the simple launcher for accessing apps, documents and settings, the bastardized version of the Start menu that appears in Windows 11 has become a clutter and chaotic mess over the years.

And now Microsoft is adding even more to the mix. Soon, the Recommended section of the Start menu -- already controversial for having been used to house advertising -- will be used to show reminders for upcoming meetings scheduled in Microsoft Teams.

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Love it or hate it -- and it is something that has proved incredibly polarizing -- AI is here to stay for the foreseeable future. Microsoft is just one of a stream of tech firm investing heavily in the technology, and this includes the introduction of its AI-power assistant Copilot in both Windows 10 and Windows 11.

Copilot has already shown itself to be controversial and divisive, but a recent announcement by Microsoft caused such ripples that the company has been forced to go on the defensive. Plans to have Copilot launch automatically in Windows 11 elicited a vocal response from some corners of the internet, compelling Microsoft to issue an additional statement.

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A few months have passed since we first heard about Microsoft's plans to simplify the process of reinstalling Windows 11. Once a lengthy and potentially nightmarish task that could involve the loss of files and settings, the reinstallation of Windows 11 is in line for a serious revamp.

A new option called 'Fix Problems using Windows Update' is in the pipeline. We have already seen it referenced in Dev builds of Windows 11, but now it has progressed up the line to the beta channel, signifying that a wider launch is imminent.

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Microsoft has released Windows 11 Insider Preview Build 22635.2776 to the Beta Channel. Also known as the KB5032292 update, this fixes numerous issues from previous builds, and also introduces several new features and options.

There are big improvements to Windows Ink, so handwriting recognition is now more accurate and can be used with more languages. Significant changes to Windows Share make it possible to share directly to specific Microsoft Teams Channels and group chats. Beloved stalwart tool Task Manager has some improvements for power users too.

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Microsoft began its rollout of Windows 11 2023 Update (23H2) yesterday, but development  continues apace with both Beta Channel and Canary Channel builds arriving for Insiders today.

For those in the Dev Channel, Build 23580 makes it possible for users with local accounts to access Copilot in Windows for a limited number of queries before needing to sign in. Microsoft has also “significantly” improved the nearby share transfer speed for users on same network.

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Although it’s easy enough to find new wallpaper for Windows, many users prefer to stick with the default images supplied by Microsoft.

The software giant includes a choice of wallpapers with the OS, so if you don’t like the default ones, you can pick any of the available variations. Today, Microsoft adds two new images to its collection which you can download right now.

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Over the years, the Start menu has evolved from a handy place to house shortcuts to apps and system settings into the slightly chaotic mess users are now presented with in Windows 11. The Windows 11 Start menu is still home to shortcuts -- and more -- but Microsoft has taken a different approach when compared to previous versions of the operating system.

One of the more controversial aspects is the Recommended section. This is used for various things, from highlighting recently installed apps to, more divisively, advertising apps Microsoft would like you to install. And now the company is experimenting with adding even more recommended content.

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As ever, the Dev and Canary channels of the Windows 11 Insider Program are exciting places to be, bringing updates for not only the operating system itself, but also the bundled apps.

The latest builds of the OS include significant changes and new features for the Snipping Tool, Windows Photos and Phone Link apps. Perhaps the most important addition is Text Actions which brings OCR functionality to Snipping Tool.

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Microsoft Paint has been the subject of ridicule for as long as it has existed, but much of the mockery is ill-placed these days. While it may not be the most advanced image editor in the world, there is a lot more to the app than it is generally given credit for.

Microsoft is not done with development of the app, updates rolled out to the latest Insider builds of Windows 11 show that the company is on the verge of bringing a Photoshop-level tool to Paint: background removal.

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Notepad is one of the longest standing Windows apps, having been around for decades. Over the years, there have been slow, gradual improvements and now Microsoft has delivered a much-needed update to the beloved text editor.

Bringing the app more in line with word processors like Microsoft Word, this latest update sees the arrival of automatic file saves and more.

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