Author: Martin Brinkmann

When I was young, I studied German, History and English at Essen University in Germany. I worked in computer support for several years at the time to help other computer users when they ran into issues. Writing started out as a passion project, as I wanted to help more users and not just the ones that I handled in support. This lead to the founding of Ghacks Technology News in 2005. First, as a side-project, but shortly thereafter as a full-time project as the site's popularity exploded. I sold Ghacks to Softonic some years ago, but stayed on as Editor. You can still read my articles on the site. I do publish on Betanews as well. In recent years, I started to write and publish technology books, including my latest book "Windows 11 From Beginner to Advanced", which is available on Amazon. I'm also a freelance writer for the German publisher Gamestar. Chipp.in is my newest project. I want to use it to talk about my book projects, sell my books directly, and write about technology, as this is what interests me.

Windows 11: you can soon turn off one of the biggest Start menu annoyances

Posted on by Martin Brinkmann

If you’d ask me to name the most annoying feature of Windows 11’s Start menu, I’d probably pick the Recommended section. Here specifically the inability to remove it from the Start menu.

While you can configure Windows to stop giving recommendations, you cannot remove the then-blank section from the Start menu. That is, until now.

The Sherlock Holmes of Windows, Phantom of Earth, discovered that Microsoft has had a change of heart in the latest Windows 11 Insider build.

The hidden feature introduces major changes to the operating system’s start menu, including the ability to remove the recommended section.

Here is his post on X that highlights the change.

Here is how this works:

  1. Open the Settings on the system.
  2. Switch to the Start category.
  3. Disable “Show recently added apps”.

Disabling the option will remove the entire Recommended section of the Start menu, including the header that could not be removed previously.

Show recently used apps is going to remove Recommended in the Start menu. Source: Phantom of Earth

Here is why this is important. Up until now, Recommended would take up space in the Start menu, even if you did not use it. You could not use the space to display more pinned apps, which some users might prefer.

Phantom of Earth notes that there is another feature available now that complements the change. You may now choose to display “all pins by default”. You had to click on the All button up until now to display them all. The change places these icons in the area of the recommended section.

Closing Words

It is rare these days that I applaud Microsoft for the changes that it makes to the Windows operating system, but this one, albeit years too late, is a welcome addition.

Considering that it is currently only available in Insider builds, it may take a while before it lands in Stable. And yes, there is always the chance that a feature gets pulled again. Let us hope that this is not one of those cases.

Now You: do you use the Windows start menu or do you prefer to use a replacement?

Windows 11 is removing an option to bypass Microsoft account and internet during setup

Microsoft bringing a useful Windows Update feature to Windows 11, but restricts it artificially

Posted on by Martin Brinkmann

Microsoft’s Windows 11 operating system has its fair share of annoyances. From mediocre apps, Telemetry and ads to other design decisions that seem to serve Microsoft more than the users of the operating system.

Windows Update and the requirement to restart the PC to install updates is certainly on the list of some users. Especially the operating system’s habit of restarting the PC when it perceives it as idle needs to be mentioned. You find plenty of horror stories online about users losing work because of automatic restarts of their PCs.

Hotpatching

Microsoft created a solution for that some time ago. Hotpatching was introduced in 2022 for Windows Server. This allows updates to be installed without a reboot of the system. Unfortunately, this feature has been limited to Windows Server products up until now.

Good news is that Microsoft has finally ported the Hotpatch functionality to Windows clients, more specifically, Windows 11, version 24H2. Bad news is that this is limited to Enterprise clients at the time of writing.

Microsoft employee David Callaghan revealed the news on the company’s Windows IT Pro Blog. Hotpatching, according to Microsoft, offers several benefits over the traditional method of installing security updates.

  • Updates are applied immediately and not after the next reboot.
  • Security is always up to date.
  • Disruptions for users are minimized, as systems do not need to be rebooted anymore to install updates.

Note that some updates, feature updates or firmware updates for example, still require reboots. This is also true for what Microsoft calls cumulative baseline updates. These are released in January, April, July, and October of each year. They continue to require restarts.

The updates inbetween are hotpatch updates, which means that they do not require restarts.

In other words, four updates per year continue to require restarts, while the other eight cumulative updates of the year do not.

The big downside to the improvement is that home users and many small and medium-sized businesses do not gain access to the functionality. It is reserved for Enterprise customers (Windows 11 Enterprise E3, E5, or F3, Windows 11 Education A3 or A5, or a Windows 365 Enterprise subscription).

Another restriction is that the ARM version is still in public preview. It requires additional prerequisites, specifically a Registry Key needs to be set as outlined by Microsoft.

Closing Words

Windows is not the only operating system that requires reboots when updates get installed. It is still a major nuisance, especially if the system reboots automatically suddenly, which may lead to lost work.

A big MSEdgeRedirect update has just been released

Posted on by Martin Brinkmann

When Microsoft launched its Edge web browser, it used Windows to quickly push the usage share of the browser. One of Microsoft’s ways of doing so was to create artificial protocols in Windows that would open only in Edge.

Clicks on web searches in Start or news would always open in Edge, even if the browser was not the default browser on Windows.

The small tool MSEdgeRedirect was created to address this. The main idea was to redirect requests that Windows would push towards Edge to another browser.

There have not been any updates for over a year, but a new update just hit. Good news for users of the project, as it is improving the redirector in several ways.

Note: The open source program is still a beta officially. While it works well, you may run into bugs or issues using it. Also, Microsoft may change things and that may break functionality.

So, here is what is new in MSEdgeRedirect 0.8.0.0:

  • The minimum supported system is now Windows 10. Windows 8 is no longer supported.
  • Fixed Windows Spotlight, PDF file handling, some UWP apps no longer working in Service Mode.
  • New AI-less Google Search results option.
  • Improved news handler.
  • Adds support for –from-ie-to-edge and bing.com/WS/redirect.
  • Adds passthroughs for –user-data-dir and –win-session-start.

The update is a bug fix update for the most part that fixes some existing issues. If you use the tool already, you should upgrade to the latest version. That is, unless you still run Windows 8.1, as this is no longer supported. Oh, and Europe mode is still a thing, why not give it a try.

All in all, it is good to see that the project has not been discontinued.

Now You: do you use MSEdgeRedirect or have used the app in the past?

Firefox AI Summaries

First Look at Firefox’s new Link Preview feature with AI Summaries

Posted on by Martin Brinkmann

Mozilla is working on introducing link previews in its Firefox web browser. The feature is in testing in the latest Nightly version currently and includes support for local AI summaries.

The main idea behind the feature is to give users a tool at hand to check information about linked resources without visiting them directly.

Here is how it works: You hold down the Shift and Alt-keys on the keyboard and move the mouse cursor over links in the browser’s interface. Firefox displays a popup then that shows a preview image, the page title, and some basic information.

It uses AI, processed locally entirely according to Mozilla, to create key points that are displayed in the popup. This works for English webpages only at the time. Sören Hentzschel notes that you may add additional language support in the advanced configuration, but that the summaries are often in English.

The speed of processing depends entirely on the local system and its capabilities. I tested this on a fairly old computer and the processing took too long to be of use. Still, even without it, link previews worked quickly and reliably already.

How to enable the feature

You need the most recent version of Firefox Nightly, as this is only baked into Nightly at the moment. Note that the feature is in active development and that some features may be missing and that you may experience bugs while using it.

To enable Firefox’s new link preview feature:

  1. Load about:config in the Firefox address bar.
  2. Confirm that you will be careful.
  3. Search for browser.ml.linkPreview.enabled.
  4. Set the experimental preference to True.
  5. Restart Firefox.

Tip: you can add new supported languages to the preference browser.ml.linkPreview.allowedLanguages. Just append them. The default value is en. To add Spanish and Japanese, expand the string so that its value is en,es,jp in the end.

Again, languages other than English may not work overly well at this stage in development.

Closing Words

Firefox supports link previews on mobile already. You can long-press a link to get a preview. On desktop, users need to install extensions for that purpose, unless I’m mistaken (correct me please on this if that is the case).

The shortcut Shift-Alt is not overly elegant, but it works. The preview opens quickly and you get some information that you would not get otherwise, including the page title and a short description.

The AI summary feature did not work well on an older test system, but it may work better on modern hardware.

Now You: do you make use of link previews regularly or click on links right away all the time? Would you use Firefox’s new feature? Feel free to leave a comment down below.

Windows: Quick Machine Recovery feature explained

Posted on by Martin Brinkmann

If you have used Windows long enough, you have probably come into contact with Startup Repair at one point. The feature aims to resolve issues that prevent the operating system from starting up. It is a hit and miss kind of feature for many users though, as it relies solely on local files. All in all, it is not overly reliable.

Quick Machine Recovery extends the functionality to the cloud and Windows Update. The main idea is to improve recovery of Windows systems when boot issues are encountered. Designed primarily for administrators who manage multiple devices, Quick Machine Recovery adds cloud files and data to the recovery process.

The new feature uses a Windows Recovery Environment to “scan Windows Update for remediation options” according to Microsoft. The company says that this “allows devices to be recovered without requiring manual intervention”.

Quick Machine Recovery supports two recovery options:

  • Cloud remediation.
  • Auto remediation.

Cloud remediation

The feature uses Windows Update to fix issues experienced on the device. It requires an Internet connection and may download data from Windows Update to correct issues. If the feature is not enabled, Windows will use the local-only Startup Repair feature instead to attempt to fix the problem.

Auto remediation

This automates the problem solving. Windows will connect to Windows Update automatically to try and fix the issue. It will retry to correct the issue several times automatically.

The Quick Machine Recovery process

The five steps of the Quick Machine Recovery process. Image source: Microsoft.

Five steps make up the remediation process:

  1. Device crashes or fails to boot.
  2. Boot into recovery to start the Quick Machine Recovery process.
  3. Establish a network connection to scan Windows Update for fixes.
  4. Remediation, which attempts to apply fixes found by downloading data from Windows Update.
  5. Reboot to either boot into Windows, if a fix was applied successfully, or to restart the process from step 2.

Default configuration

The default configuration depends on the Windows edition:

  • Windows Home: cloud remediation is enabled by default, auto remediation is disabled by default.
  • Windows Pro, Enterprise: both remediations are disabled by default.

Administrators find instructions on Microsoft’s Learn website that explain how to enable or disable the feature.

Closing Words

Tests will show how well the cloud-based recovery feature will perform. For now, it is only available in test versions of Windows 11.

Now You: what is your take on this new recovery feature? Do you think it will work better than the local-only Startup Repair?

Vivaldi 7.2

Vivaldi Browser 7.2: the speed boost it needed

Posted on by Martin Brinkmann

Vivaldi Software has released a new version of its desktop browser today. Vivaldi 7.2 is available already. The company says that it implemented several speed optimizations in the browser as well as the usual mix of usability-enhancing options.

As for speed, Vivaldi has probably not been the fastest leanest browser out there in the past. Part of this comes from the awesome list of customization options that its users get. You can customize many aspects of the browser, including some that no other browser offers by default.

Vivaldi says that it has improved the performance of the web browser in two core areas:

  • The address bar.
  • Page loads.

As far as the address bar is concerned, it should deliver “quicker, and more relevant results” now. Vivaldi developers have tweaked suggestions and improved the accuracy of search. All this to help users find what they want faster.

Indeed, typing in Vivaldi’s address bar feels snappier after the upgrade to version 7.2. Mileage may vary though, so please let me know how you’d rate the experience after you have given it a try.

As for page load improvements. Vivaldi says it has optimized the browser’s connection handling and that this can lead in some cases to twice as fast page loads. I never really had issues with page loads in Vivaldi, but it surely feels as if pages load a bit snappier on my trusted HP laptop. Again, give this is a try and let me know how the experience is for you.

Priority shortcuts

Another new feature is the introduction of priority shortcuts. These are designed to take priority over any other shortcut, including those that websites may map when you visit them.

It is a power user’s feature, no doubt about that. Still, if you find the shortcut behavior on a particular site annoying, you may give it a shot.

Here is the list of other notable changes in Vivaldi 7.2:

  • You can now turn emails into events in Calendar.
  • There is a new Currency Widget to convert currency in real-time.
  • Quick Commands support Workspaces now.
  • Mail accounts can be reordered.

Additional information is available on the Vivaldi website. Existing users should receive the update automatically, but you can also select Vivaldi Menu > Help > Check for updates to get it right away. New users can download Vivaldi 7.2 from the official website to get started.

Now You: have you tried Vivaldi 7.2? What is your take on the new version? Noticed any speed improvements?

Curves Non-destructive filter being applied to a portrait of Sofiia being edited in GIMP. Photo by Sofia (CC by-sa 4.0 International)

Gimp 3.0 image editor is now available

Posted on by Martin Brinkmann

When the Gimp development team started to work on Gimp 3.0 in 2020, it probably did not think that it would take five years to release the new version.

Gimp 3.0 is a major update that has been in the making for seven years, since the release of Gimp 2.10. The open source image editor is a popular alternative to commercial applications like Adobe Photoshop.

Highlights of the update are support for non-destructive effects, interface improvements, and the new GTK3 library, which improves scaling and tablet support. There is also an optional welcome dialog on start and improved color space management.

The release notes are available already, but download servers have not been updated yet. It may take a while before downloads become available officially.

Updated GTK3 user interface

The update to GTK3 brings several improvements along with it. Apart from better user interface scaling on high-resolution displays, it is also improving tablet input support.

Linux users may notice that GIMP 3.0 runs natively on Wayland now. An option to switch to X11 is still available, however.

Non-destructive layer effects

One of the big changes is support for non-destructive layer effects. Previously, adding a filter would have it merged automatically to the layer. This prevented you from making edits, as you had to use the undo function to do so.

Filters stay active in GIMP 3.0, which means that you can edit most filters without having to revert your work each time.

GIMP users who prefer the classic way can use the merge filters option when applying a filter to bring back the old functionality.

The team notes that the new filter effects can be saved “to XCF and reloaded for further editing” next to that.

Color space management

GIMP 3.0 offers extensive support for RGB color spaces beyond sRGB thanks to improved babl and GEGL libraries integrations.

The team notes:

For example, if you load an image with an AdobeRGB color profile, that information will be retained in all aspects of GIMP – allowing you to make whatever edits you need without losing color space information. This update also lays the groundwork for future CMYK and LAB image color modes.

Closing Words

GIMP 3.0 is a big update that improve things for users of the open source image editor in several meaningful ways. You can check out the full release notes, linked above, for additional release information.

Microsoft confirms bug that uninstalls Copilot app on Windows

Posted on by Martin Brinkmann

Just a few days ago, Microsoft released the cumulative security updates for Windows 10 and 11 to the public. The company did not confirm any new issues at the time, but that has changed now.

A new issue has been confirmed that is affecting all supported client versions of Windows.

The details:

  • Windows 10, version 22H2 and Windows 11, versions 22H2, 23H2, and 24H2 are affected.
  • The bug uninstalls the Copilot app from the operating systems.
  • The Copilot icon is removed from the taskbar in the process as well.

Microsoft confirms furthermore that only the native Copilot app for Windows is affected. In other words, Microsoft 365 Copilot remains unaffected by the issue and won’t be uninstalled.

Microsoft writes:

We’re aware of an issue with the Microsoft Copilot app affecting some devices. The app is unintentionally uninstalled and unpinned from the taskbar.

Note: This issue has not been observed with the Microsoft 365 Copilot app.

It is unclear how widespread the issue is.

Workaround: affected users are asked to reinstall the Microsoft Copilot application from the Microsoft Store and pin it manually to the taskbar to restore the functionality.

Here are the links to the support articles and the KB IDs.

Not all Windows users may be unhappy about this new bug. Granted, it is easy enough to remove Copilot from the system or hide it at least.

If you do not want to do it manually, you could give helper apps like O&O AppBuster or NoBloatBox a try.

Now it is your turn. Have you tried any of the Copilot apps on Windows ever since it was pushed onto systems by Microsoft?

Microsoft Edge for Android: more extensions now available, but one group is missing entirely

Posted on by Martin Brinkmann

When Mozilla — finally — introduced support for extensions in Firefox, years to late, but still, it unlocked a whole new world for users of the mobile open source browser.

Up until that time, no major browser supported extensions no mobile. While there were some dedicated projects that supported mobile extensions, all major browsers did not. Imagine having to browse the Web without a content blocker.

The next best thing were browsers with integrated ad blockers. Vivaldi, Opera, or Brave come to mind.

Now that Firefox supports extensions, Microsoft has also moved on that front and integrated support for extensions in Edge for mobile.

Like Mozilla’s offering initially, Microsoft is limiting available extensions right now. Unlike Mozilla, Microsoft is not offering a single content blocker at this point.

Extensions in Edge Stable for Mobile

Once you have upgraded Edge Stable to the latest version on Android, you gain access to extensions with a click on Menu > Extensions. There you find the list of supported extensions. Some good ones are available, including Tampermonkey, Dark Reader, or Bitwarden Password Manager. There is also a video downloader, cookie manager, and some other useful extensions.

What you do not get is a content blocker. Granted, with Google’s decision to stop Manifest V2 extensions from working in Chromium and Chrome, popular choices like uBlock Origin are no longer compatible. But the lite version is also nowhere to be found. The same is true for other content blockers.

Microsoft does not explain why that is the case, only that more extensions “are coming soon”. So, the good news is that Edge is getting support for a wider range of extensions. The bad news is that no extension of, probably, the most popular extension type is available.

Closing Words

Support for extensions is a welcome feature on mobile, as it gives users more options to customize their experience while using the browser. Content blockers are a must, and it is puzzling that Microsoft has not added a single one to the list of supported extensions at this stage.

So, for now at least, you might want to stick to Firefox, the one browser with excellente mobile extensions support. Or, at least a browser with a proper content blocker, like Brave.

Copilot key

Copilot: I see some use for the assistant on Windows at the horizon, finally

Posted on by Martin Brinkmann

The integration of the Copilot AI in Windows has been lackluster up to this point, if you ask me. It felt rushed and Microsoft is still scrambling to improve its use for users. The same is true for any other AI that is available as an application.

While there are plenty of options to use AI on Windows, the tools do not really offer much in terms of usability that is not also available elsewhere.

Microsoft seems to have forgotten a key ingredient regarding the successful launch of a new product: the benefit for the user.

The initial Copilot offered some of that, as it supported the tiniest amount of Windows-specific control options. It demonstrated what could have been, even though the implementation itself was cumbersome. Even Microsoft did not publish the full list of commands that Copilot supported back then.

Microsoft changed its strategy suddenly and replaced the integration with a copy of the web version. Windows-specific options were gone and the clear signal was that they would not be back anytime soon.

Two new Copilot for Windows features were shown this week. While I would not call them gamechangers, some Windows users may find them useful.

Number 1: Gaming

Copilot for Gaming. Source: Microsoft

Microsoft describes Copilot for Gaming as “the ultimate gaming sidekick that helps players get to play faster, sharpen skills with expert coaching, and enjoy a more social gaming experience”.

The key feature is helpful coaching, not game recommendations, maintaining connections with friends, or seamless game setups.

One particularly exciting area which Kardar demonstrated on the podcast is a future feature of Copilot for Gaming: in-game assistance. In example scenarios, players were presented using natural language, where Copilot was able to provide situation-specific advice to assist players in overcoming challenges and improving their gameplay.

So, when you are stuck in a game currently, you may fire up a web browser to find a solution. Maybe it is a YouTube video or a tutorial that explains how to beat a particularly difficult boss in the game you are playing.

Clearly, it remains to be seen how useful this AI assistance is really going to be, but it is finally something specific and not just a feature that everyone is also offering.

Number 2: Press to talk

Copilot push to talk. Source: Microsoft

The main mode of interaction with AI is typing currently. Microsoft, Google, and other major players are evolving their AIs to allow different means of communication.

Talking offers advantages in some situations, for instance when you have your hands busy or do not want to leave an app or game that you are using at the moment.

Press to talk is a new feature of Copilot for Windows that is rolling out currently to Windows Insiders. Microsoft mapped the function to the Alt-Spacebar shortcut of Copilot. Press the two keys for two seconds to start a conversation with Copilot.

Ask anything over the microphone and you get an answer from the AI. Copilot ends the conversation automatically when there is no speaking for several seconds.

This may be useful in several scenarios, from gaming over other fullscreen applications to asking for contextual help without having to do a lot of typing.

Closing Words

Yes, these features may not persuade the majority of Windows users to give it a try or buy a new Copilot+ PC. What I like about them is that they introduce usefulness to Copilot when using Windows in particularly.

I expect more features like these to become available in the future.

What is your take on this? Do you see your “future you” using Copilot or another AI? Feel free to leave a comment down below.