Microsoft released new monthly optional cumulative updates (C-release) for all supported versions of Windows 10 and 11. The updates bring various improvements, not including security patches. Here is what is new.
Author: Taras Buria
Taras is here to cover stories about Microsoft and everything around, although sometimes he prefers Apple.
November 2021 firmware update is available for Surface Duo 2
Earlier this month, Microsoft released November 2021 firmware update for the first-gen Surface Duo. As with many previous updates, this month's release contained nothing but general Android security patches without device-specific improvements or bug fixes. Now the same update is available for the second-gen Surface Duo, released in September 2021. And "the same" means literally the same—only Android security updates.
Winamp developers announced a reborn of one of the most iconic music player
Winamp is undoubtedly one of the most iconic and legendary pieces of software. For more than two decades, this llama's ass-whipping app was the default music player for millions of Windows users. Even in a world where everyone uses Apple Music, Spotify, and other streaming services, many die-hard fans continue using Winamp despite the fact that the latest version is almost eight years old (developers released version 5.666 in 2013). Winamp simply refuses to die. Moreover, it is about to receive a new life.
Microsoft promises to focus on performance improvements for Windows 11 in 2022
A major visual overhaul is one of the most noticeable changes in Windows 11, which is a bit ruined by numerous small bugs and annoyances. It does not take too long to spot rough surfaces in the new shiny UI: menus appear with delays and bugs, tooltips appear out of nowhere, and the overall responsiveness leaves much to be desired, even on more powerful computers.
PowerToys is getting a new mouse click highlighter tool
One of the recent updates for PowerToys brought a new Find My Mouse utility that helps users find the missing cursor on large or high-resolution monitors. Microsoft now plans to add more mouse-related features to PowerToys. The project's repository on GitHub reveals an upcoming Mouse Highlighter tool.
Microsoft confirmed issues with repairing and updating apps in Windows 11 and 10
On November 9, 2021, Microsoft released cumulative updates for supported Windows 10 and 11 versions. The update fixed numerous issues, although some new bugs appeared out of nowhere. Microsoft has yet again updated the Windows Health Dashboard page, adding details about one more trouble users might encounter.
Make Windows 11 Open Search Links in Default Browser
Here is how to make widget and search links open in default browser in Windows 11. Microsoft recently confirmed that some of the features in Windows 10 and 11 work exclusively with the Edge browser regardless of your default browser setting, and the company does not plan to change that. That means Windows Search, Windows Widgets, and some other parts of the operating system will continue opening links in Edge whether you like it or not.
You can now activate Windows 11-style menus in Chrome 96
With Chrome 96, you can finally enable redesigned Windows 11 menus in Google Chrome stable. This week, Google released Chrome 96 with minor changes and improvements. The update also comes with one new experimental flag that lets users enable slightly redesigned menus in the browser.
Microsoft stopped supporting several Surface computers released from 2015 to 2017
All new Surface computers get four years of active support. During those four years, Microsoft releases new drivers and firmware updates with various improvements, fixes, and security patches. This month, Microsoft stopped supporting a bunch of Surface computers released from 2015 to 2017. Some of those Surface computers ended their lifecycles with more than six years of support.
Firefox Relay is out of beta, now publicly available
Besides offering users a non-Chromium browser, Mozilla runs several services to help people reclaim just a bit of their privacy online. One of such tools has just come out of beta. Firefox Relay is now publicly available for Firefox users with a new premium tier with additional features.
