Microsoft is once again updating the built-in File Explorer app in Windows 11. The app will get a new Home page and the left pane, along with new views and closer Microsoft 365 integration.
Author: Sergey Tkachenko
Windows 7 secretly received support for Secure Boot
Without a fanfare, Microsoft added Secure Boot support to Windows 7 in September 2022. The company supports the OS for companies that pay for ESU, so this could be per their request. Anyway, it will receive its last update tonight.
Support for Windows 8.1 is ending tomorrow
Tomorrow, January 10, 2023, Microsoft will end extended support for Windows 8.1. Users are encouraged to upgrade to Windows 10 or Windows 11 as soon as possible to stay protected from the latest security threats.
File Explorer is getting Gallery on Windows 11, here’s how to enable it
Yesterday Microsoft released a new Dev channel build 25272 to Insiders running Windows 11. As you could expect, in addition to the officially announced features, it includes some hidden gems. One of them is Gallery, a new folder in File Explorer that exposes images stored on your PC.
Windows 11 Build 22623.1095 in Beta includes an updated Start menu appearance
Besides the new Dev channel build, Microsoft has released a new patch KB5022364 for those who runs Windows 11 in the Beta channel. Traditionally, there are two builds, Build 22623.1095 that includes new features, and Build 22621.1095 that comes with everything new disabled, but it is easy to activate them via a special optional update. The new features in today's update include a new design of the Start menu. It now has a search box with rounder corners. Similar to its Dev channel counterpart, this build shows Quick Assist outside of the Windows Tools folder.
Microsoft releases this year’s first Dev channel build of Windows 11
Microsoft just made available the first update to Dev channel insiders. Windows 11 Build 25272 comes with a long list of various fixes. It includes improvements to WSL, search on the taskbar, fixes made to the Task Manager app, and many more.
Windows 11 Notepad will get tabs in 2023
Microsoft appears to be working on adding a tabbed interface to the Notepad app for Windows 11. A leaked screenshot that proves that has been posted by a company employee. The original tweet has been quickly deleted, but here's the original image.
Google introduced new Early Stable channel with earlier access to Chrome releases
The Search giant has announced an extra Early Stable channel that will host what becomes stable versions of the Google Chrome browser a week before the official release. By rolling out the semi-final builds to a select small group of users, Google expects to catch more bugs before making the releases available to a wider audience.
Dev Channel Windows 11 now has an option to always show full context menus
In Dev channel builds, Microsoft has added a new hidden option that makes File Explorer always show the full context menu. As you know, but default Windows 11 has a shorten version of right-click entries that only includes a set of essential commands. To access the rest, the user has to shift + right-click on a file, or select "Show advanced options", or apply a Registry tweak.
Firefox can now show search terms instead of URL
Firefox developers have added a new controversial feature to the browser. It can now show search terms in the address bar for the default search engine instead of the actual URL.
