Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Computing

Windows 11 brings back another highly requested Taskbar feature

By

Microsoft has confirmed the weather widget that was initially introduced via Windows 10 will be integrated into Windows 11. A new voice access feature for the operating system has also been added.

The latest Insider preview build for Windows 11, dubbed . 22518, displays live weather content on the left side of the taskbar. Users will also be able to open the widgets board by hovering over the entry point.

Voice access feature for Windows 11.
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Another addition to Windows 11’s latest preview build is voice access, which allows users to control several aspects of their PC and author text through voice commands.

Recommended Videos

The new feature lets you open and switch between apps, browse the web, and control the mouse and keyboard. For example, you can click an item like a button or a link by saying “click start” or “click cancel.”Similarly, you’ll be able to open an application by saying “open Edge” or “open Word.”

Please enable Javascript to view this content

Other elements that can be interacted with through one’s voice include searching and editing text, as well as interacting with overlays. Microsoft provided a full list of commands for voice access, but pointed out that it only supports the English-U.S option in the display language section.

Related

Microsoft has also made it easier for new users to install the Windows Subsystem for Linux through the Microsoft Store.

Microsoft is also introducing the Spotlight collection to Windows 11, which will “keep your desktop fresh and inspiring.” New desktop pictures from around the world will be offered every day, accompanied by various facts pertaining to the picture itself.

Besides Insider preview build 22518, Microsoft recently released a redesigned Notepad. An updated user interface brings changes like rounded corners, but the most exciting inclusion is a dark mode component. The new-look Notepad also addresses a “top community feature request” by adding support for multilevel undo.

There’s currently no timeline for when all these changes will become available for all Windows 11 users, but expect a rollout sometime during 2022. As for the latest preview build that’s been released in the Windows 11 Dev Channel, Microsoft stated that it won’t be offered to ARM64 PCs due to an issue that it’s currently working to fix.

Regarding Microsoft’s plan for Windows 11 in 2022, one area of focus for the company largely revolves around performance, with the tech giant highlighting how improving the responsiveness of the new operating system will be a priority.

Editors’ Recommendations

Topics
Zak Islam
Zak Islam
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Zak Islam was a freelance writer at Digital Trends covering the latest news in the technology world, particularly the…
Microsoft warns that the latest Windows 11 update may crash PC games now
Gaming PC on a desk.

Microsoft has once again temporarily halted the rollout of its latest major Windows 11 update, also known as 24H2. This time it is for systems running select Ubisoft games following widespread user reports of crashes and performance issues. The affected titles include Assassin's Creed Valhalla, Assassin's Creed Origins, Assassin's Creed Odyssey, Star Wars Outlaws, and Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora.

Common complaints include black screens, freezing, and unresponsiveness during gameplay or while loading these titles. "I just bought a new gaming laptop with RTX 4080, Intel i9 14900hx. I can't play the game (Origins) even for 5 minutes because it crashes to a black screen, with audio, and the only way to close it is from task manager. Impossible to play," one user shared on Reddit. Others reported similar frustrations, citing the persistent error “NTDLL.dll” that renders their games unplayable.

Read more
Nearly six months later, you can finally try out Windows 11 Recall
Recall promotional image.

After a tumultuous initial reaction and months of reworking, Microsoft is finally releasing the first preview of its controversial Recall feature today. If you're a Windows Insider with a Qualcomm Copilot+ PC, you can install a new build of Windows 11 that includes both Recall and Click to Do.

If you're not part of the Windows Insider Program but you want to try out this feature, it's pretty easy to sign up on the Microsoft website. Recall was first announced back before any of the Copilot+ PCs were released and was meant to be available at launch, but an outcry of privacy and security concerns forced Microsoft to delay it.

Read more
The Windows 11 24H2 update is causing even more problems
Windows 11 logo on a laptop.

The Windows 11 24H2 update had already been giving users a real headache with problems such as bugs for visual layouts and flaws for certain wallpaper apps. And now, as Microsoft confirms in a support document, some people without administrative privileges can't change the time zone in the Date & Time view, among myriad other issues related to the important Windows 11 update.

A Feedback Hub post also reports a time issue after exiting Sleep Mode, specifically after about one out of every five overnight sleep cycles. There is also a report that the time is not syncing correctly following daylight saving time. Put differently, the update doesn't break the time zone, but only affects the toggle or makes it very difficult to modify it.

Read more