Some windows news at last

Hi all.
Firstly before we hit the news, we have a few updates.
Chromium 147 versions are out.
Remember with chrome to do an about:components run after you update to make sure you have the latest.
Remember to reinstall chrome by rerunning the installer afterwards if you get an error after checking for updates.
One of my systems had this and my primary had an error code on restart.
Codecguide mega codecs are updated with another full release, the mozilla suite stuff has a minor update.

Now onto the news.
The biggest news is this article.
https://www.windowslatest.com/2026/04/09/full-list-of-features-coming-to-windows-11-in-2026/
In it it pushes all the features going out.
Aparently the control panel is still usefull for advance work and is not going away any time soon.
I do wish that we had control panel as it was.
There is nothing wrong with the panel.
We will go through the features 1 by 1.
1. a moovable task bar.
Personally I have not been interested in this but it maybe usefull for some of us in particular those with some sight.
Windows is switching back to native apps rather than strange web ones.
It was a fad but not all of it worked as well as one would suggest.
Now don’t get me wrong, when web apps work they work really well.
The thunderbird email client is a glorified web app and so are a bunch of apps I regularly use.
A single web layout with accessible sites and settings with full brousing and navigation really works.
Plus if its web then it most likely will use by default standard controls.
And even if the native stuff didn’t work it certainly works well in web mode.
I have a bunch of hardware with native apps which are completely useless and inaccessible but if I can directly access the content on the hardware or the web interface without the fancy frontend then the thing is really good.
I have several touchscreen devices and such which are totally inaccessible till online.
Once that is I can access, read and do all functions from my desktop or any device with web capabilities.
It falls down when web apps try to put their inaccessable interfaces on top.
And in some cases the native stuff was faster.
Look at ccleaner v7.
Its a web interface but the v6 is faster.
On the other end, my software I use to control several updates and the like for lenovo is pritty much web based.
Its a bit to verbose but it is certainly accessible if not usable.
That may not be the case all the time so its user by user but still.

Copilot is being made optional.
The time of getting ai shoved down our throats is possibly at an end.
Good.
I like ai, but not in my face.
I want to ask it with a key or voice command I want it in my toolbox not it in my face.
We have multiple ai engines now days to use and their use will continue not stop.
That being said I haven’t had any reason to turn ai back on in firefox and I really should actually look for using the tool because I am being left behind.
On the other side I have almost no real reason to need to with what I do here.
Next is windows update.
Bar it loading various drivers which may or not be the latest I certainly have had no reason to distrust the thing as long as it doesn’t release a broken update.
If any thing I’d like a winget frontend so the package manager is accessible by everyone from a console like they do in linux but thats really minor.
I’ve implemented the upgrade command to my toolbox of things I do on system start now I know it exists so its not a real issue.
Next windows oob is getting updated.
Finally we mayget a faster setup.
There is also push on having things like updates not part of setup, and then as well as that no ms account on login.
For me it was something we didn’t need.
What I like with windows 10 is I can log the apps I need to my ms account but at login I want it local.
Now for a business user or enterprise where you are assured connectivity and need it almost immediately for your work that maybe good.
But its good to see we may finally have no ms account at login.
Also if you are a portable user its better not to be active on the net especially outside connection type deals.
I am a home user and I don’t have a password on my account.
Sure I have a password for various things but I don’t need a password to login my system for a home use.
Next dark mode.
I won’t comment on that as I don’t need it though I have turned as much dark as I can because I don’t need the screen and it can play havic with my eyes with the light.
There is also a redesign of the settings app.
Um that is at least ok.
I don’t think it needs one to be honest.
Certainly for us I’d expect a complete accessibility break because when microsoft does things they generally fuck them up.
It may not be the greatest but it works.
Or maybe they can give us the control panel and just bin the app completely.
I’d also like the option to show all system trey icons natively like they used to on windows 10 and the list of tasks starting up in the background you can toggle returned.

A bunch of shell improvements are appearing which is good.
There is also a push for microsoft to drop memmory usage.
I’d push this further and bin the cpu requirement for the upgrades because seriously with this war going on I may actually not upgrade my system this year.
It works and thats all I want.
Then reliability and hardware is being handled with drivers and the like.
Its been a bit spotty but I have not really had to many things, though I don’t use any wireless anything.
There is more audio and bluetooth work which is also good.

Next is windows hello.
I’ve never been able to use my fingerprint right and my face just doesn’t work.
I’d be happy if they removed the feature all together to be honest.
It gets in the way and is not much use.
They are trying to fix it so it works but I certainly won’t use it at least for the moment.

Next is haptic feadback and touchscreens.
Never used touch, and never will.
My spacial awareness is shot and anyway I am an old model.
Touchscreens are inaccessible.
I have no real interest or want to fucking change my attitude even if its completely wrong.
I can use my system with the keyboard and it works.
Maybe someone else may find this usefull but I’d be happy if touchscreens also got rid of to.
Next is wsl which I really don’t use.

After all the up and downs they finally decide to go back to native apps not web interfaces.
As I said there have been a bunch of bad things with the overlays and the web interface but I also think its still got a future if used correctly.
If its binned completely then we may see the old and inaccessible system again.
I’d continue using both interfaces because as I said if done well the web system is actually really awesome to use.

Next you can switch on and off features if you want to fiddle with them.
True if you are a tester, but its still best to leave things alone till they become stable.
On the other end if you can turn things off and on for everything from stuff you like to not like including reverting notepad and other apps from new to classic etc and can really customise your system to whatever interface you choose then I’m all for it.

Feedback hub is getting improved and I have seen that it does and its good its being sorted.

The last but not least is removing adds and such.
I haven’t noticed this badly but in 10 you can run with amost nothing.

Thats pritty all for this week.