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.

A review of UCheck, a Windows software updater

Posted on December 27, 2023December 27, 2023 by Martin Brinkmann

UCheck is a software updates checker for Windows. It is a freemium product, which means that it is available as a free, limited version, and a commercial version. The price of the commercial version starts at $12 per year.

Earlier this week, I reviewed WingetUI, an open source program to install, uninstall and update software programs on Windows. UCheck promises similar functionality, but the free version is limited to updating and uninstalling software on the system.

The Premium version, available for $12 per year, adds the installation of software, scheduled scans, email support and Enterprise use to the mix. There is also a Technician’s version, which adds scripting, portable configs and license.

The free version of UCheck was used for this review.

UCheck Free overview

The program is available as a portable and setup version. The interface displays the three main sections, updates, installed, and download, on start. Free version users see several “upgrade” links and offers there as well.

You may want to visit the program settings before you run a scan. The General section reveals that Telemetry data is send by default and that the program is configured to run on startup. You may disable both options there. There is also an option to scan apps that start on Windows automatically, which is an interesting feature.

The settings are also home to exclusions, which accepts folders and files, and custom locations, which can be used to include portable software programs in the scanning.

Activate the Scan button in the main interface to find out which installed (and portable) programs have updates.

The program lists the number of programs with updates, as well as the number of installed programs after the scan.

Select “pending updates” to take a look at the list of outdated programs UCheck discovered during its scan.

Programs are listed with their name, company / developer, location on the local system, and the current and latest version. Filters and a search are supported to display only some results.

The Action menu lists options to update individual programs, to skip this update, and to add them to the list of exclusions. The free version supports batch updates, but you need to start UCheck Free with elevated rights for that. There is a button in the interface that does that.

You may now check one or multiple programs and activate the “update selected” button to download and install updates for the selected applications in one operation. Note that there is no “select all” checkbox, which would make things comfortable.

It is unclear where the downloads come from, as this is not revealed by the application. The database is community powered, which explains why it is large and well maintained.

Comparison to winget and WingetUI

When you compare UCheck to winget, you will notice that UCheck supports more programs than the default winget database. Winget detected about 20 programs with updates on a test system while UCheck over 140.

One reason for that is that UCheck includes the Downloads folder of Windows by default. Depending on use, it may store a large number of applications.

WingetUI is easier to use, there is no doubt about that. It suffers from the same lack of a larger software database though. Another difference is that both “wingets” support the installation of portable programs, which is reserved to paid versions of UCheck.

UCheck does include information about available Windows Updates though.

Closing Words

The end of SUMO, probably the best software updates monitor for Windows, has left a hole. UCheck comes close to what SUMO offered, but you may need the commercial version to really take advantage of some of its features.

The program could use a few usability features, such as an option to check all / uncheck all programs in the updates listing. Nothing major, but these would improve usability for some users.

All in all, UCheck is a well designed program that delivers exactly what it promises. The Premium version is worth a subscription, as it adds scheduled scans and some other features to the app.

Now You: do you use software updaters?

WingetUI review: install, uninstall and update Windows programs

Posted on December 26, 2023December 26, 2023 by Martin Brinkmann

This is a review of WingetUI, an open source program for Windows that many users will find useful.

I wrote an article on the package manager winget for Windows yesterday on Ghacks. It is an integrated command line tool in newer versions of Windows to uninstall, install or update programs.

WingetUI takes the capabilities of winget and puts a shiny user interface around them. If you prefer to use a graphical user interface, WingetUI is a great option.

First the basics. WingetUI is an open source application for Windows. You can download the latest version from its GitHub respository and install it or run a portable version.

WingetUI supports winget but also other package manager and tools. These include Scoop, Chocolatey, Pip, Npm and PowerShell Gallery. Advanced users may configure the client to do their bidding exactly, but it works well without any advanced configuring.

WingetUI: core functionality

The main WingetUI interface is divided into three tabs: discover packages, software updates, and installed packages.

Discover packages — This tab features a search to find programs and options to install one or multiple apps at once.
Software updates — This tab checks for updates of installed programs. You may update all or some programs using it.
Installed packages — The tab lists the installed programs of the system.

Discover Packages

Use this to find applications to install. Just type an application name or part of it in the search field and wait for the results to show up.

The program lists package names and IDs, the available version and the source. Note that you may change sources in the preferences. If you just want to use winget, you need to disable all other sources. Some sources, for instance Scoop, are disabled by default.

A double-click on a file display additional information about it. This may include a list of features, a short description and tags.

WingetUI lists package parameters as well, which may be used to change installation parameters.

Check one or multiple programs and select “install selected packages” to download and install them on the system. Several options are available at the top:

Install selected packages with administrative rights.
Skip the hash check when installing the selected packages.
Do an interactive install for the selected packages.

Unless you activate the interactive install option, you may notice that most installations happen silently in the background for the most part.

Software Updates in WingetUI

The Software Updater lists all installed applications that are not up to date. It lists names and IDs, as well as the installed version and the latest version.

You may use it to update all out of date apps in one swift operation. Just activate the “update selected packages” button to download and install updates for the selected Windows programs.

It is a quick and easy process. Note that you may still get UAC prompts to allow updates, but it is definitely quicker than updating programs manually.

A right-click displays some options. You may ignore certain updates using the right-click menu. This is important if you don’t want a program to install a certain update. One reason for that is that the update may introduce bugs or changes that you want to avoid.

The package details offer information, including links to the official websites.

Installed Packages

Installed packages offers an overview of all programs installed on the system. WingetUI displays names, versions and the installation source, which is useful information.

You may use the information to check the source, e.g., if it was installed locally, from the Microsoft Store or using a package manager.

While you may barely use native Windows apps or Microsoft Store apps, others may appreciate the functionality.

Closing Words

WingetUI is a powerful frontend for winget and some other package managers. It is a useful tool to find outdated programs on a Windows system and get these updated in batch mode.

While it may not pick up all oudated programs, as it does not support portable apps installed from other sources, it does a great job at taking care of the rest.

Running it from time to time is a good way of keeping a system’s software up to date.

What happens when you remove Microsoft Edge from Windows 11 after setup?

Posted on December 22, 2023December 22, 2023 by Martin Brinkmann

Microsoft is testing changes currently that give users from many European countries more control over Windows 11. There are workarounds already for users from other regions to uninstall Edge without tools or commands.

Microsoft plans to introduce the change in the first quarter of 2024 in Windows 11. Two of the main improvements let users remove Microsoft Edge and Bing Search from the operating system.

Microsoft Edge is the default browser of Windows 11. Bing Search is used to populate, some would say pollute, search results with web results.

While there have been ways to deal with the two until now, both required some technical know-how or the right tools. AppBuster, for instance, is a free program to remove many locked apps from Windows 11.

Windows users who prefer a different browser use Microsoft Edge to download these browsers. What happens if Microsoft Edge is uninstalled prior to installing any other browser? Are you stranded then, left without any chance to install an Internet browser? Let’s find out.

How to uninstall Microsoft Edge

Once the change lands, users with administrative rights may remove Microsoft Edge from the system.

Tip: even if you live in a region that is not supported by Microsoft in regards to the change, you may still add the functionality to your system. It involves changing the region to that of a European country.

While you may do so manually, you may also use the open source tool MSEdgeRedirect to to it for you. Just enable Europe Mode in the app when you run it. The app makes the required changes in the background. You need to restart the system once before the changes take effect.

Removing Edge is done in Settings > Apps > Installed Apps on Windows 11. Just search for Microsoft Edge, activate the three-dots menu next to its entry and select the uninstall option from the menu.

Edge is removed after you confirm by selecting uninstall again. Note that there may be a small warning prompt that explains that removing Edge may impact apps and widgets that depend on the browser.

Windows 11 without a browser

With Microsoft Edge gone, you may notice a few changes right away. The first and most important one is that you may not have a web browser installed anymore.

Microsoft Edge is the default browser. Removing it removes the only browser from the system, unless you install a different browser first.

What happens when you try to open Internet links in that case? Windows launches the Microsoft Store page of Microsoft Edge so that you may install it again.

This is not your only option, however. You may also install other browsers, including Firefox, Brave Browser, Opera GX or Vivaldi Browser from the Store.

In other words: you are not in a cul-de-sac when you uninstall Edge without having access to another browser.

The better option is to use Edge to install a different browser first before removing it.

There is one situation, at the least, which puts you in a dead end after all. Windows has a hard limit on the number of devices associated with an account. If you happen to run into this limit after uninstalling Edge, you won’t be able to install any other browser

The thing is, you may install Microsoft Edge even if you hit the account limit. This may be because it was installed previously on the device, or because it is not affected by the imposed limitation.

If you have another device at hand, you may remove older devices from the Microsoft account to unlock the functionality. Still, it is definitely a nuisance if you hit the limit.

Other things to note

Some links may still require Microsoft Edge to open, at least in the current state of the feature. The “learn about this picture” link for instance, refuses to open in any browser but Edge, even if Edge is not installed and another browser is set as the default.

This may be because of the current state of development. It is unclear if these link will require Edge no matter what once they roll out to stable versions of Windows.

All in all, it will be interesting to see how Microsoft is going to tackle these issues. The most obvious option would be to allow them to load in the default browser, even if it it is not Edge. Whether that is going to happen remains to be seen, however.

Now You: which web browser do you use?

Appcopier: backup and restore Windows Settings

Posted on December 20, 2023December 20, 2023 by Martin Brinkmann

Appcopier is a new open source application by Built By Bel, known for apps such as CleanmgrPlus, ThisIsWin11 or Bloatynosy.

The app, which is in an early development stage, lets Windows 11 users back up and restore system settings. Its developer designed the app to replicate functionality of Microsoft’s new Windows Backup app.

You may remember my rather harsh review of Microsoft’s app, which I called “not a real backup app”.

Appcopier

The developer of the application describes it in the following way:

This small project is still in the making. It allows you to back up and restore your most important Windows 11 preferences and settings offline and locally.

Appcopier has several advantages over Microsoft’s creation. It is open source, portable and it does not require a Microsoft account. In other words, you may use it to back up Windows settings and customizations locally. One downside is that you need to find a way to transfer the backup to another PC, if you want to restore the settings and customizations there.

Using Appcopier is straightforward. After you pass the dreaded “Windows protected your PC” screen by selecting “run anyway and an UAC prompt, you are greeted with a simple interface.

The tested version displays a tree structure in the interface. You may expand the tree to list all available backup options.

There are, at the time of writing:

Windows Configurations
- Personalization settings
- Taskbar settings
- Privacy settings
- Apps Privacy settings
- Windows 11 Telemetry settings
- Windows Update settings
- Windows 11 Wallpapers
Apps
- 7-Zip
- Notepad++

The program may support other apps and list them under the section. Check some or all of the options and activate the backup button afterwards. Note that the root checkbox did not work during tests to select all items.

Backup and restore

Backups are saved to a subfolder of the program folder. The folders use a date – time naming scheme, which makes it easy to find the right one.

All settings are saved as Registry keys. Wallpapers and themes do get stored in their native formats.

You have two options to restore a backup. Either use the “reload” button in the program interface to select a backup that you want to restore, or execute the Registry files directly on target systems.

These settings are regular Registry keys, which you may import on any compatible system.

Closing Words

Appcopier is an interesting program, especially for users who sign-in to a local account on their Windows devices. The app is in an early stage of development and you may run into bugs currently while using it.

I did not encounter any major issues, but your mileage may vary. The developer announced plans to improve it in the future to add more backup options for “things” that are more complicated to backup than saving Registry values.

The app was only tested on Windows 11, but it should also run on Windows 10 devices according to the developer.

All in all, this is an app that you may want to put on your watchlist if you find it interesting.

Now You: do you sync settings or use backup tools? (via Deskmodder)

Thunderbird for Android postponed to 2024

Posted on December 19, 2023December 19, 2023 by Martin Brinkmann

The first official version of Thunderbird for Android will not be released in 2023. The Thunderbird team announced this week that it has postponed the release to 2024.

To better understand why, it is necessary to look back at the initial plan. It all started with the separation of Thunderbird from core Mozilla. Eventually, the new team announced plans to release the email client for Android.

Instead of creating an app from scratch, which would have taken considerable development resources and time, it decided to cooperate with an existing app developer. K-9 Mail is a long standing app for Android.

Now that the target was set, the team had to decided on a feature set for Thunderbird for Android. K-9 Mail supported core features already, but to make it Thunderbird, the app had to support a set of features that the team considered essential.

Once the list was set in stone, the team estimated the development time it would take to get these features integrated. It even set the end of 2023 as the release period for the first stable release of Thunderbird for Android.

As year’s end kept coming closer, the team realized that the app would not be ready for a release. Even cutting features was not enough, and it could also disappoint some users who expected certain features to be present.

Thunderbird for Android in 2024

The decision was made to postpone the official release of Thunderbird for Android to 2024. The change removes pressure from development. It also means that the first release version will support all the features of the original list.

For now, it is still K-9 Mail which users may download from F-Droid or Google Play to install on their Android devices. In 2024, it will change automatically to Thunderbird for Android on devices it is installed on.

Closing words

The decision to postpone the release makes sense on many levels. Instead of rushing a version that may not be up-to-par quality or feature-wise, development is getting enough time to get it right the first time.

A false start could have negative consequences for the entire app on Android. The team needs to take a look at user reviews as well, as they are not only positive.

Interested users may check out the latest development progress report on the official Thunderbird blog.

Now You: do you use an email app on your mobile devices?

Windows Protected Print Mode explained

Posted on December 18, 2023December 18, 2023 by Martin Brinkmann

Windows Protected Print Mode (WPP) changes printing on Windows significantly. The main idea is to improve security and make printing convenient. Modern printers work automatically under WPP so that third-party printer drivers are no longer required.

There are downsides, especially when it comes to printers that don’t support the functionality. Another downside is that printer apps by the manufacturer may be installed automatically.

Good news is that the new mode does not lock out printers that are not supported. There are still ways to use third-party drivers, but the default mode will be Protected Print Mode going forward.

Security improvements

Windows Protected Print Mode improves security significantly by eliminating third-party printer drivers. These drivers can’t even be installed anymore, which eliminates an attack vector and reduces driver related issues as well.

Microsoft says that about 9% of all Windows cases reported to the Microsoft Security Response Center are print bugs. The company’s Microsoft Offensive Research & Security Engineering team claims that about 50% of all Windows Print related vulnerabilities are mitigated by Windows Protected Print Mode.

To put these changes in some context, MORSE did an analysis of past MSRC cases for Windows Print to assess if these changes would help. What we found is that Windows Protected Print Mode mitigated over half of those vulnerabilities. Major vulnerabilities, including Stuxnet and Print Nightmare, used print bugs in their attacks.

To better understand how MPP improves security, it is necessary to look at the current state of printing on Windows.

The current security model relies on a shared approach. Both the native Windows printing stack and third-party drivers play a role here. While Windows’ print stack is maintained, the same can not be said for all third-party printer drivers. Drivers may no longer be supported or may be incompatible with modern security features of the Windows operating system.

Besides that, printer drivers run as SYSTEM on Windows, which gives them a wide range of permissions that even exceed those of a regular administrator account.

Manufacturers and publishers are responsible to address vulnerabilities. This becomes a problem when they do not.

Printing features, such as Internet Printing, may also introduce vulnerabilities, if the feature does get implemented. Microsoft estimates that printer drivers implement over 40 different Printer Document Languages, which can “result in vulnerabilities”.

Advantages

With Windows Protected Print Mode “normal spooler operations are deferred to a new Spooler” which implements the following improvements:

Limited/Secure Print Configuration — Certain types of attacks, such as tricking the print spooler into loading malicious code, are ineffective.
Module Blocking — APIs that allow the loading of modules will be modified to prevent the loading of new modules.
Per-User XPS Rendering — XPS rendering runs as USER and no longer as SYSTEM under WPP.
Lower Privileges for Common Spooler tasks — runs with restricted rights instead of as SYSTEM.
Binary Mitigations — Several security mitigations may be enabled thanks to the removing of third-party binaries.
Point and Print — no longer installs third-party drivers.
Better Transport Security — supports encryption and will recommend using encryption whenever possible.

Windows Protected Print Mode limitations

The mode supports so-called Mopria certified printers only. The creators of the standard describe it in the following way:

Mopria is a printer industry designed standard offering a simple and seamless way to print to millions of certified printers and multi-function printers. It eliminates the need to install any additional software or drivers allowing you to easily print, regardless of the printer’s brand.

Once the change lands in Windows, the default becomes WPP. This eliminates the need to install third-party drivers and will also limit the Print Spooler service to a restricted service. This alone will reduce

Older printers that are not certified won’t benefit from these improvements. Windows administrators may install third-party printer drivers in these cases to ensure that the printer and its functionality can be used.

Another issue is that manufacturers may define Print Support Apps (PSA). These may get installed automatically on devices to add custom features and support. Users may uninstall them, but this is a manual process.

Closing Words

Windows Protected Print Mode improves security on Windows once it lands. The first version of MPP landed in experimental builds and it may take a while before it lands in stable versions of Windows.

Old printers will continue to work, but they won’t benefit from MPP and its improvements.

Windows 10 and 11 will support the feature. Microsoft announced recently an extension of Windows 10 support.

Now You: which printers do you use?

Firefox for Android Extensions: 5 Tips

Posted on December 16, 2023December 16, 2023 by Martin Brinkmann

The road towards a full extension ecosystem in Firefox for Android was long and difficult. Mozilla Firefox for Android supported the majority of desktop extensions for a long time. This changed when Mozilla switched from Firefox’s own native extensions system to the one used by Google Chrome and Chromium.

Suddenly, users of Firefox for Android could install just a handful of extension. While the selection included popular extensions, it reduced the extensibility of the browser significantly. Development editions were not as limited, but it still was complicated to install extensions that were not selected by default.

Mozilla did add more extensions over time to Firefox for Android, but the selection remained limited.

This changed with an announcement earlier this year that Mozilla planned to unlock extensions in Firefox for Android. An update on December 14th, 2023 brought the much awaited change to the stable version of Firefox.

Firefox users may now browse more than 500 extensions for the Android version of the browser already. This is a ten-fold increase over the situation on December 13th, 2023.

While that is still miles away from the thousands of extensions for desktop Firefox, it is a great start and something that sets Firefox apart from its main competitors. Chromium-based browsers, including Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge and Vivaldi, do not support extensions in mobile versions.

Firefox for Android Extension Tips

Here are five extensions that I use in Firefox for Android. They improve the browser in several meaningful ways. Feel free to post your extensions in the comment section below and let me know whether you agree or disagree with my selection.

A remark on YouTube. I use a third-party app to watch YouTube, and don’t need any extension therefore in Firefox for that. If you watch YouTube videos in Firefox you may find ad skipping extensions and others useful.

Extension 1: uBlock Origin

There is no doubt about this, uBlock Origin is a must have extension for Firefox for Android. It blocks advertisement and tracking, which leads to all kinds of positive effects: faster page load times, improved privacy, improved security, less distractions, improved battery load and performance.

Extension 2: Bitwarden

Bitwarden is a popular password manager. While there are others, it is open source, available for various platforms and free to use without any impairing functionality limitations. The paid version is relatively cheap at $10 per year and highly recommended to support the project.

Extension 3: Single File

Single File adds support for saving entire webpages as a single file on the Android device. It is useful to save a local copy of a webpage either for safekeeping or offline access. It is also useful if you fear that the content may change in the future.

Extension 4: Dark Reader

Dark Reader brings a dark mode to any website, even those that don’t support it. It comes with lots of customization options to make dark mode work exactly the way you want.

Extension 5: Reddit Annoyances

Reddit Annoyances deals with Reddit’s attempt to get users to use the app instead of a mobile browser. It blocks those, which makes browsing Reddit in Firefox much nicer. One reason for using Firefox is that it will block ads on Reddit, if you have installed a content blocker. Only useful if you visit Reddit, e.g., from search results.

Also useful in this regard: Old Reddit Redirect.

Now You: do you use extensions in mobile browsers?

YouTube TV: Google promises fewer but longer ads

Posted on December 15, 2023December 15, 2023 by Martin Brinkmann

Most YouTube users would probably agree that YouTube is more enjoyable without ads. Ads that play before, during or after videos on YouTube are seen as a nuisance by many users.

Google’s YouTube Premium subscription does away with ads, but it comes at the cost of $13.99 per month in the United States.

Google announced two changes recently that change advertisement on TV screens. The first promises fewer ad breaks for certain long-form content videos. The change comes at the cost of longer ad breaks.

Google started to test this change in September 2023. It says that the majority of viewers prefer grouped video ads instead of ads that are distributed throughout videos on YouTube.

YouTube TV Ads changes

YouTube will roll out the announced change globally. It applies only to “certain long-form content on connected TVs”. YouTube will also change the information that YouTube displays to users during ad breaks.

Previously, YouTube displayed the number of ads that users can expect to see during the break. The change displays the total playtime of all ads until they can be skipped on the site or until the ad break ends. Not all adverts can be skipped on YouTube.

Ads are coming to YouTube Shorts on the big screen

YouTube users who like to watch Shorts, shorter videos, will start to see advertisement soon. The short video format was launched a little bit over a year ago on the big screen. Google says that it has seen the viewership double in less than a year already.

Google launches Shorts ads globally on YouTube TV. These ads are displayed in-between Shorts videos on the big screen.

According to Google, viewers may use their TV remotes to skip these ads, just like they can do on mobile devices.

Google’s announcement did not include additional details on the change. It is unclear how frequent ads are shown when users watch YouTube Shorts on the big screen.

There are alternatives

Most Smart TVs and media solutions, such as Amazon Fire TV devices , support the installation of third-party apps. There are several YouTube frontends that you may install on your devices that do away with ads and offer other advantages.

You can check out my guide on watching YouTube without ads on Fire TV here.

Installation is not as straightforward as using a connected ad store. It usually requires that you need to download the app from a third-party host, for instance GitHub, and install it manually.

The entire process is not overly complicated, but most may appreciate a step-by-step guide as it eliminates most issues that you may experience.

Closing Words

Google is introducing more ads on YouTube. While it tinkers around with ad formats, playtimes and number, it is clear that ads won’t go away on the site.

Google could make them less obnoxious and time-wasting, but it does not look as if this is going to happen in the near future.

Now You: do you watch videos on YouTube?

10 useful Vivaldi features that hardly anyone has heard of

Posted on December 14, 2023December 14, 2023 by Martin Brinkmann

When it comes to web browsers, Vivaldi has a special place in my heart. The browser is not my main driver, but I use it regularly. What I like most about Vivaldi is that it is feature-rich and probably the browser with the highest amount of native customization options.

Vivaldi is a Chromium-based browser. It offers the same web compatibility as Google Chrome and works really well out of the box.

Users who dive deep into the browser’s settings may find features there that hardly anyone has heard of.

You find ten of those listed below. Please let me know in the comments if you knew about them and whether they are also available in other browsers.

Themes Editor

All browsers come with a selection of themes that you can activate. Additional themes may be available in an add-ons store, but barely any browser includes a theme editor.

Vivaldi does. You may create new themes or edit existing ones. The available options range from changing colors and backgrounds to replacing icons.

Tabs at the bottom or sides

Vivaldi supports four tab bar positions. Besides the default top placement, it also supports placing the tab bar at the bottom or to the sides.

Tab Stacks

Vivaldi supports tab stacks. While the feature may look very similar to the tab grouping feature of other browsers, it is more powerful than that.

Tab stacks can use a compact, two-level or accordion design. Compact comes closest to the tab groups feature of other browsers. Two levels displays a second tab row that contains all tabs of the selected tab.

Accordion collapses and expands tab stacks either manually on activation or automatically, if desired.

Other Tab customizations

You find a wealth of tab customization options in the Settings. Here are my favorites:

Select the new tab position. When you open a new tab, define where it opens.
Select which tab gets activated when you close atab.
Enable double-click to close tabs.
Change the minimum width of the active tab.

Lazy Loading

Vivaldi uses lazy loading when restoring tabs to improve performance. Pinned tabs do get loaded automatically though. Most browsers support the feature.

Vivaldi lets you control it in the Settings. You may disable lazy loading there entirely, or prevent pinned tabs from loading automatically.

Customize what Vivaldi returns when you type in the address bar

Vivaldi has options to prioritize and customize what the browser returns when you type in the address bar. All browsers display a menu when you type. This menu may include items from the browsing history, open tabs or bookmarks.

In Vivaldi, you can enable or disable all data sources individually, and prioritize them. Don’t want search suggestions or typed history results? Want to make bookmarks the highest priority or synced tabs? All of this and more is possible.

Quick Commands

Use the keyboard shortcut F2 or Ctrl-E to display the quick commands window. This window lists most commands that the browser supports. You may select them using the mouse or keyboard. A search field is available to find a command quickly.

To name a few commands: Exit the browser, switch to the next theme, check for updates, open about page and dozens more.

Command Chains

Command Chains allow you to execute multiple actions automatically, e.g. to toggle fullscreen and reader mode, or open multiple links at once. These can be created in the Settings and may be invoked via Quick Commands, keyboard shortcuts or mouse gestures.

Impressive Keyboard shortcuts

Vivaldi’s keyboard shortcut editor gives you (almost) full control over all browser features. You can change keyboards using the keyboard shortcut editor and map shortcuts to new actions to use them.

Menu Customizations

Vivaldi gives you full control over browser menus. You can add, edit, move or remove items from menus. This includes the Vivaldi Menu, right-click context menus, address bar menus, and basically any other menu that you encounter.

Now You: do you find any of these features useful?

I barely use native Windows apps (what about you?)

Posted on December 13, 2023December 13, 2023 by Martin Brinkmann

Microsoft Windows systems come with dozens of native applications. Many of these are installed by default, others are pinned, but not installed.

A click or tap on the Start button lists the pinned apps, another on the all apps button all of them.

At least some of these apps may be third-party apps. Microsoft earns a bit of money when it includes these into Windows and users install them. Apps may vary from region to region, but it is usually an assortment of popular game or entertainment apps.

The apps that I use regularly

I have to admit that I don’t use native apps all that much. In fact, I use 5 native apps frequently and some occasional. The occasional ones include apps that do get opened when a file type association is mapped to a native app and not another app that I use instead.

Here are the apps that I use regularly:

Calculator — useful to make quick calculations.
Notepad — it is not as powerful as Notepad++ or other apps, but the plain text editor offers all the options that I need for a quick edit.
File Explorer — I use the default file browser and manager on Windows, and not an alternative that is more powerful. It is fine for basic tasks.
Microsoft Edge — Edge is not my default browser, but I have the habit of using all major browsers. If I would not write about browsers, I probably would not use Edge all that much.

And that’s it. Not a lot.

The apps that I use sometimes, usually by accident

Media Player — lots of better players out there. It may play obscure media files at times or corrupt ones that other media players don’t play, but this is such a rare occasion.
Microsoft Paint — usually only when I type Paint to load Paint.net and get Paint instead.
Microsoft Photos — usually when I try to open an image that has a format that is still associated with Microsoft Photos. To slow and cumbersome to use.
Microsoft Store — only for my weekly series at Betanews.
Microsoft OneDrive — to keep an eye on it for reviews and news.

The apps that I don’t use at all

I don’t use any of the following apps.

Games — don’t play them at all, no time for that.
Mail, Calendar, Outlook (new) and People — Use Thunderbird as my email program.
Maps, News, Weather — Prefer to access these in a browser to avoid ads.
Microsoft OneNote — no use at all for this note taking app.
Microsoft To-Do — no use for this app
Snipping Tool — it is a good screen capture tool, but PicPick and several others are better.
Sticky Notes — no need to place notes on the desktop.
Xbox (anything) and Game Bar — some may find these useful, I have no use for these apps.

How to remove apps on Windows

You can remove most apps on Windows in the following way:

Open Start > Settings > Apps > Installed Apps.
Click on the three-dots menu next to the app that you want to remove and select uninstall from the menu.
Select uninstall again when the remove prompt is displayed.

Some apps may not be installed. This is going to change soon for users in the European Union and European Economic Area. Users from these regions will be able to remove Edge and Bing Search natively, just like other apps.

Those outside need to use third-party tools for the job. My recommended tool is O &O AppBuster, but there are other tools and PowerShell options available as well.

Now You: which apps do you use and don’t use on Windows?