Microsoft is finally restoring the ability to ungroup taskbar buttons and show text labels for the running apps. As you may remember, the company has started working on it at least in November 2022. Now, the latest Canary build shows some progress in this direction.
The taskbar in Windows 11 no longer includes the legacy code used in previous OS versions, so its doesn't include several of its traditional options. But Microsoft is slowly restoring the missing features, as it happened to the Task Manager menu item.
One of such features is the ability to ungroup app buttons and show their text labels.
Windows 11 Build 25314 that is the first build in the Canary channel includes resources for the new taskbar settings.
Those include:
- DesktopTaskbar_GroupingMode
- DesktopTaskbar_ShowLabels
- SystemSettings_DesktopTaskbar_GroupingMode
- SystemSettings_DesktopTaskbar_ShowLabels
- SystemSettings_DesktopTaskbar_SecondaryMonitorsGroupingMode
This is one of the most requested features on the Feedback Hub for Windows 11. As it follows from the above lines, Windows 11 may allow specifying taskbar button grouping per display. Sadly, it is still not known when this feature will reach Insiders.
Besides restoring the missing classic taskbar options, Microsoft is also experimenting with adding new capabilities. The new taskbar may get an option to force-terminate a running app directly from the context menu of its icon.
H/t to @XenoPanther
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This can’t come soon enough. It better be there for 23H2, rather than 24H2.
I hope it comes soon. It really makes my workflow slower when I have to click an icon, then click again to choose the window that I want. With legacy Windows, you can just click the task button that you want in one step.
That’s the reason why I uninstalled Windows 11.
Same!
I hear you
About time!
Enough of Microsoft controlling how we work… These folks do not understand how one’s life depends on the computers they use and the tasks they have to perform within a given timeframe. I was surprised by the number of complaints people have made about this one single issue of ungrouping taskbar buttons ruining their life, but these morons pretend to be dumb. SHAME ON YOU MICROSOFT.
Enough of it……. This happens with each of their useless new release of Windows. Switching to Mac finally. Tata……………….
morons? can you write your own os that has the features that you ‘depend on’