PowerToys 0.18.1 is out with improvements and fixes

Microsoft has updated their PowerToys app suite. A new minor version, PowerToys 0.18.1, includes a number of fixes and improvements made to PowerToys Run and Keyboard manager, two tools which were first introduced with the previous version.

The change log comes with the following highlights:

• #3504 – FancyZones – Chrome tab regression
• #2259 – PowerToys Run – result / searching focus issue
• #3116 – PowerToys Run – updated term to packaged vs uwp
• #3128 – PowerToys Run – increase weight of exact match
• #3209 – PowerToys Run – Search pulling localized paths versus actual paths
• #3215 – PowerToys Run – Will not run as admin even if Runner is elevated
• #3227 – Keyboard manager – Will not run as admin even if Runner is elevated
• #3147 – Keyboard manager – Adjusted terms for remapping shortcuts to clarify which side maps to which

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You may remember PowerToys, a set of tiny handy utilities which were first introduced in Windows 95. Probably, most users will recollect TweakUI and QuickRes, which were really useful. The last version of the classic PowerToys suite was released for Windows XP. In 2019, Microsoft announced that they are reviving PowerToys for Windows and making them open source. Windows 10 PowerToys obviously are completely new and different, tailored for the new operating system.

Download PowerToys

You can download the app from its Releases page on GitHub:

Download PowerToys

Available Tools

As of now, Windows 10 PowerToys include the following apps.

• • PowerRename - a tool that is intended to help you rename a large number of files using various naming conditions like search and replace a portion of the file name, define regular expressions, change letter case, and more. PowerRename is implemented as a shell extension for File Explorer (read plugin). It opens a dialog box with a bunch of options.
  • FancyZones - FancyZones is a window manager that is designed to make it easy to arrange and snap windows into efficient layouts for your workflow, and also to restore these layouts quickly. FancyZones allows the user to define a set of window locations for a desktop that are drag targets for windows. When the user drags a window into a zone, the window is resized and repositioned to fill that zone. 
• Windows key shortcut guide - The Windows key shortcut guide is a full screen overlay utility that provides a dynamic set of Windows key shortcuts that are applicable for the given desktop and currently active window. When the Windows key is held down for one second, (this time can be tuned in settings), an overlay appears on the desktop showing all available Windows key shortcuts and what action those shortcuts will take given the current state of the desktop and active window. If the Windows key continues to be held down after a shortcut is issued, the overlay will remain up and show the new state of the active window.
• Image Resizer, a Windows Shell Extension for quickly resizing images.
• File Explorer - a set of addons for File Explorer. Currently includes two Preview Pane additions to show contents of *.MD and *.SVG files.
• Window Walker is an app that lets you search and switch between windows that you have open, all from the comfort of your keyboard.
• PowerToys Run, provides a new Run command with extra options like quick search for apps, files, and docs. It supports extensions to get features like a calculator, dictionaries, nd online search engines.
• Keyboard Manager is a tool that allows remapping any key to a different function. It can be configured in the main PowerToys dialog.It allows you to remap a single key, or a key sequence (shortcut).