In addition to a new Windows 11 preview build for version 26H1, Microsoft released a preview of this month's non-security update for Windows 11 versions 24H2 and 25H2. KB5089573 is now available in the Release Preview Channel, offering users the opportunity to test Bluetooth shared audio, Task Manager improvements, better performance, and more.

Here is what is rolling out gradually:

• [Shared audio] New! Shared audio enables two people to listen to the same audio from a single Windows 11 PC at the same time. It uses Bluetooth® LE Audio broadcast technology to make sharing easy. For example, you can watch a movie while traveling or listen to music while studying together. To start sharing audio, open Quick settings from the taskbar, select Shared audio, choose two supported, paired, and connected devices, and then select Start sharing.
• [Magnifier in Windows]
  • New! Magnifier now provides clearer and more consistent announcements when working with a screen reader. You’ll hear helpful announcements when you zoom in or out, switch views, turn color inversion on or off, or turn Magnifier on or off. This makes it easy to stay oriented while you work.
  • New! Magnifier now supports magnification of permitted protected content.
  • This update improves smoothness when moving Magnifier in lens mode.
• [Task Manager]
  • New! Task Manager now offers improved visibility into NPU usage on PCs with an NPU. New optional NPU and NPU Engine columns are available on the Processes, Users, and Details pages, along with NPU Dedicated Memory and NPU Shared Memory optional columns on the Details page. Neural engines that are part of a GPU now appear on the Performance page, providing a more complete view of AI‑related activity. A new optional Isolation column on the Processes and Details pages shows which apps are running in an AppContainer. You can add any of the new columns by right‑clicking a column header in Task Manager and selecting them from the menu.
  • This update improves CPU speed display on the Performance page of Task Manager for VMs, so it doesn’t show higher than unexpected numbers after resuming from hibernate.
• [Camera] New! Windows 11’s Multi-App Camera feature allows multiple applications to access your camera stream at the same time. Basic Camera mode in Windows 11 enables simplified camera functionality, useful for troubleshooting or improving stability when your camera is not working correctly. Enterprise admin can now set Multi-App Camera mode or Basic Camera mode through Group Policy, under Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Camera > Configure Camera Options.
• [General Performance] This update accelerates app launch and core shell experiences such as Start menu, Search, and Action Center.
• [Windows Hello]
  • This update optimizes the WinBio service to help reduce latency when resuming after Modern Standby.
  • This update reduces Windows Hello Enhanced Sign-in Security authentication unexpected blocks by resolving missing secure enrollment metadata.
• [Storage]
  • The dialog is updated when creating a Dev Drive to now support specifying the size in GB instead of only MB. This has also been added when changing the size of volumes under Settings > System > Storage.
  • Updated Settings > System > Storage, so rather than seeing a UAC prompt immediately when you go to the page, you’ll only see it when going to view temporary files.
• [Personalization] This update improves:
  • Color selection accuracy when adjusting your accent color to match your wallpaper when the automatic accent color selection is enabled in Personalization settings.
  • Wallpaper persistence reliability across restarts and upgrades, including better support for large‑resolution wallpapers and other scenarios to prevent solid color wallpaper fallback.
• [USB]
  • This update improves reliability for displays attached to USB4 docks and hubs. These displays now light up more consistently, particularly when coming out of standby.
  • The USB3 stack is updated to have additional resiliency and recovery measures in place against certain unexpected hardware faults and conditions. Users will experience higher reliability with USB devices.
• [Sensors] This update Improves resiliency against apps that could keep the sensor hub powered on and drain power, impacting battery life.
• [HID Devices] This update improves battery life related to the HID / Input stack for failed HID devices. Power hygiene is also improved against applications that may initiate HID transfers during standby.
• [Input] The update improves:
  • Reliability of invoking the touch keyboard on the login screen, when inputting your password to sign in, or changing your password.
  • Reliability of explorer.exe when closing the input switcher.
  • Performance of invoking or navigating to clipboard history.
• [Fonts] The Times New Roman font family is updated to improve the rendering of combining diacritical marks across Greek and Cyrillic scripts. This update provides more accurate and visually consistent text by addressing mark positioning issues. As a result, readability is improved, rendering inconsistencies are reduced, and support for global language users working with Greek and Cyrillic text is strengthened.
• [Task Scheduler] Task Scheduler will now persist column width adjustments in task list view across sessions.
• [Desktop icons] This update improves reliability of loading desktop app icon shortcuts.
• [Microsoft Store]
  • This update includes underlying changes to improve download performance and bandwidth usage
  • This update improves error reporting when downloads fail because of Windows Update group policy being enabled.
• [Reliability] This update improves Windows reliability on the sign-in and lock screens, in File Explorer, when using touch gestures on touchscreen devices, and when changing themes in Settings.
• [Secure Boot] With this update, Windows quality updates include additional high confidence device targeting data, increasing coverage of devices eligible to automatically receive new Secure Boot certificates. Devices receive the new certificates only after demonstrating sufficient successful update signals, maintaining a controlled and phased rollout.

You can find the release notes in the official documentation here.

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Friday 15 May 2026 at 7:34 am AEST (my time).

News posts: 2023 5,800+ | 2024 5,700+ | 2025 5,700+ | 2026 (to end of April) 1,700

RIP Matrix

Microsoft usually releases new Windows 11 preview builds every Friday, but today, the company dropped new Release Preview builds. One for Windows 11 version 26H1, and one for Windows 11 versions 24H2/25H2. These updates are previews of this month's non-security updates that will be available outside the Insider program later this year.

For users testing Windows 11 version 26H1, Microsoft released build 28000.2173 with the following changes:

• [Gaming] New! Xbox mode is available on Windows 11 PCs, including laptops, desktops, and tablets. Inspired by the Xbox console experience, Xbox mode offers a streamlined, full‑screen interface that puts your games front and center while minimizing background distractions. Xbox mode is designed for those moments when you want to lean back, pick up a controller, and focus on the game. Enter Xbox mode from the Xbox app, Game Bar settings, or by pressing Windows logo key + F11. For more information, see Xbox Mode Begins Rolling Out to Players on Windows 11PCs Today.
• [File Explorer]
  • New! This update expands the list of archive formats that can be used in File Explorer to include uu, cpio, xar, and NuGet Packages (nupkg).
  • With this update, View and Sort preferences are preserved in folders such as Downloads and Documents when apps launch File Explorer directly to those locations.
  • This update removes a white flash that could appear when opening This PC or while resizing the Details pane in dark mode.
  • This update improves the reliability of relevant explorer.exe processes so they stop after closing File Explorer windows.
  • [Input]
• New! You can feel haptic feedback effects on compatible input devices when performing certain actions, such as aligning objects in PowerPoint, snapping or resizing windows. These haptic signals can be turned on or off in Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Mouse, Touchpad, or Pen > Haptic signals. This experience is supported on Surface Slim Pen 2, ASUS Pen 3.0, and MSI Pen 2 with haptic feedback. Support for additional compatible devices, including select mice such as Logitech MX Master 4, might become available as hardware partners release updates.
  • New! Voice typing on the touch keyboard now looks simpler and more intuitive. The updated design removes the full‑screen overlay and shows voice typing animations directly on the dictation key, helping you stay focused without extra visual distractions.
  • New! The Arabic 101 Legacy keyboard layout is now available. You can add it when selecting a keyboard for Arabic under Time & Language > Language & Region. This option is for those who prefer the keyboard design used before recent changes with AltGr.
  • This update improves the reliability of setting custom tools under Settings > Bluetooth & Devices > Wheel.
  • This update improves the persistence of Fluid Dictation setting in voice typing.
  • This update improves the reliability of keyboard navigation for emoji panels (Windows logo key + Period).
  • This update improves the reliability of typing when using the ADLaM keyboard.
• [Sharing] New! Drag Tray is now called Drop Tray. Its settings are now under Settings > System > Multitasking (previously Nearby sharing). Drop Tray uses a smaller peek view. This improvement helps prevent the Drop Tray from opening unintentionally and makes it easier to dismiss when you work near the top of the screen.
• [Introducing Agents on Taskbar] New! Windows is adding a new way to monitor your agents from the taskbar. This experience supports agents across first- and third-party apps, with Researcher in the Microsoft 365 Copilot app as the first adopter. When Researcher works on a report, Windows shows progress on the taskbar so you can check updates at a glance. Hover over the Microsoft 365 Copilot icon to see real-time progress. When the report is ready, Windows notifies you. Select the notification or the icon to return to the app and review and use the results.
• [Enterprise State Roaming (ESR)] New! ESR can now be managed through Windows Backup for Organizations policies. This makes setup easier for IT administrators. To learn more, see Enterprise State Roaming.
• [Policy-Based Removal of Preinstalled Microsoft Apps] New! This update adds support for a dynamic app removal list to the “Remove Default Microsoft Store packages” policy for Windows Enterprise and Education. Administrators can remove additional MSIX/APPX-packaged apps by specifying their app package family names using Group Policy. The dynamic list is not currently available in Intune Settings Catalog. Validation must be performed using Group Policy or custom OMA-URI. For more information, see Policy-based in-box app removal.
• [Printing] New! This update adds a new icon to show where a printer supports Windows Protected Print Mode in print settings.
• [Windows Driver Policy update] New! This update improves Windows security by changing how the Windows kernel trusts third‑party drivers. Default trust for cross‑signed drivers is removed, while drivers from the Windows Hardware Compatibility Program (WHCP) and an allow list of trusted legacy drivers remain allowed. Windows audits driver compatibility for at least 100 hours and three reboots before enabling enforcement. After enforcement, a small number of cross‑signed drivers might be blocked. For more information, see the Windows driver policy and the Advancing Windows driver security blog.
• [Enhanced security and performance for batch files] New! Administrators and Application Control for Business policy authors now have additional control over how the system processes batch files and Command Prompt (CMD) scripts. Starting with this release, administrators can enable a more secure processing mode for batch files. This mode prevents batch files from changing during execution.
  • To enable this setting, add the following value to the registry:
  • Registry Key: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Command Processor
  • Value name: LockBatchFilesWhenInUse
  • Type: DWORD
  • Data to be set: 0 (disabled) or 1 (enabled)
  • Policy authors can also enable this mode by using the LockBatchFilesWhenInUse application manifest control, as documented in the Application Control for Business manifest schema.
• [Microsoft Store] This update reduces unexpected errors when downloading and installing apps from the Microsoft Store, including errors 0x80070057, 0x80240008, and 0x80073d28.
• [Fonts] This update includes improvements to the Leelawadee UI font family for the Thai, Lao, Khmer, and Lontara scripts to enhance glyph sequencing, positioning, and rendering.
• [Audio] This update improves third-party driver compatibility with midisrv.exe.
• [Taskbar] This update improves the reliability of loading the system tray area of the taskbar.
• [Windows Hello] This update improves:
  • Reliability of Windows Hello Face.
  • Persistence of Windows Hello Fingerprint across upgrades.
• [Storage] This update improves:
  • Performance when viewing storage information for large volumes in Settings > System > Storage > Advanced Storage Settings > Disks & Volumes.
  • The size limit for formatting FAT32 volumes from the command line from 32GB to 2TB.
• [Delivery Optimization] This update improves memory usage, reducing likelihood it will use an unexpectedly large amount of memory.
• [Display and graphics] This update improves persistence and availability of color pro
• [Kiosk mode] This update simplifies configuration for allowed packaged apps in kiosks when Microsoft Edge is one of the allowed apps.
• [General Performance] This update improves the performance of launching startup apps after starting your device (apps listed under Settings > Apps > Startup).
• [General Reliability] This update brings underlying changes to help improve explorer.exe reliability, including at sign‑in, when interacting with taskbar menus and Task View, when unpinning items from File Explorer’s Quick Access, and more.
• [Secure Boot] With this update, Windows quality updates include additional high confidence device targeting data, increasing coverage of devices eligible to automatically receive new Secure Boot certificates. Devices receive the new certificates only after demonstrating sufficient successful update signals, maintaining a controlled and phased rollout.

You can find the release notes in the official documentation here.

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Friday 15 May 2026 at 7:33 am AEST (my time).

News posts: 2023 5,800+ | 2024 5,700+ | 2025 5,700+ | 2026 (to end of April) 1,700

RIP Matrix

The AMD driver team is back with a new update for Radeon graphics cards, making it the second driver update of the month. The AMD Software: Adrenalin Edition 26.5.2 driver brings along support for two games that are releasing this month while also fixing a couple of issues that have been plaguing RoadCraft and Satisfactory players for a while.

Playground Games' Forza Horizon 6 is landing for standard edition owners on May 19. However, those who purchased the Premium Edition can jump in tomorrow, May 15, which makes this a timely driver update for AMD Radeon graphics users. Meanwhile, Hitman developer IO Interactive's 007 First Light is slated to come out on May 27, and this driver is also adding support for that release.

The fixed issues in this release are as follows:

• Intermittent application crash or driver timeout may be observed while playing RoadCraft on Radeon RX 9000 series products.
• Corruption may appear while playing Satisfactory on Radeon RX 9000 series graphics products.

The list of known issues is slowly going down too:

• Intermittent application crash or driver timeout may be observed while playing Battlefield 6 on AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370. AMD is actively working on a resolution with the developer to be released as soon as possible.
• Texture flickering or corruption may appear while playing Battlefield 6 with AMD Record and Stream on some AMD graphics products.
• AMD FSR Upscaling and AMD FSR Frame Generation may show as inactive in AMD Software: Adrenalin Edition while playing Battlefield 6 when enabled on Radeon™ RX 9000 series graphics products.
• Intermittent application crash may be observed while running Blender on Radeon™ RX 7000 series graphics products and above. Users experiencing this issue are recommended to install AMD Software: Adrenalin Edition 26.3.1.
• Intermittent application crash may be observed while playing Subnautica 2 and Marvel Rivals on Radeon™ RX 9000 series graphics products. Users experiencing this issue are recommended to install AMD Software: Adrenalin Edition 26.3.1.

The AMD Software: Adrenalin Edition 26.5.2 driver is now available for download from the AMD Software app. Read the official changelog of the release over here.

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Friday 15 May 2026 at 7:29 am AEST (my time).

News posts: 2023 5,800+ | 2024 5,700+ | 2025 5,700+ | 2026 (to end of April) 1,700

RIP Matrix

Intel ARC graphics users can now update their drivers to get their hands on the new performance metrics overlay for quickly accessing how games are running on their machines.

There are new Intel Arc Graphics drivers rolling out now for Intel integrated and discrete GPU owners, and they have support for new games as well as a useful feature for tracking performance.

This 32.0.101.8801 non-WHQL release is what you want if Forza Horizon 6, LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight, or Subnautica 2 are in your future gaming schedules, with official support available now.

At the same time, Intel Graphics users will see a brand-new performance overlay they can use to track in-game frame rates, GPU and CPU utilization statistics, and more with a high amount of customizability.

"This new overlay offers many customization options including automatic game/app detection, target GPU and display selection, predefined and custom styles, and appearance settings," explains Intel. "Overlay can be enabled using the "Metrics Overlay" button in Performance -> Metrics page or using Alt+Shift+O hotkey."

Here are the fixed and known issues of this release:

Fixed Issues:

Intel Core Ultra Series 2 with built-in Intel Arc GPUs:

• Battlefield 6 (DX12) may exhibit intermittent corruptions on certain maps during gameplay.

Intel Core Ultra Series 1 with built-in Intel Arc GPUs:

• Battlefield 6 (DX12) may exhibit intermittent corruptions on certain maps during gameplay.

Known Issues:

Intel Core Ultra Series 3 with built-in Intel Arc GPUs:

• Crimson Desert (DX12) may experience a crash during gameplay.
• The Finals (DX12) may experience an intermittent application crash.
• Mafia: The Old Country (DX12) may experience an application crash during gameplay.
• Marathon (DX12) may exhibit intermittent corruption on certain objects during gameplay when using Anisotropic Filtering.
• Apex Legends (DX12) may exhibit flashing corruption on certain maps during gameplay.
• Indiana Jones and the Great Circle (DX12) may experience a crash when path tracing is enabled.
• Borderlands 4 (DX12) may experience an intermittent application crash during gameplay.

Intel Arc B-Series Graphics Products:

• Marathon (DX12) may exhibit intermittent corruption on certain objects during gameplay when using Anisotropic Filtering.
• Apex Legends (DX12) may exhibit flashing corruption on certain maps during gameplay.
• Indiana Jones and the Great Circle (DX12) may experience a crash when path tracing is enabled.
• Borderlands 4 (DX12) may experience an intermittent application crash during gameplay.
• Dune: Awakening (DX12) may exhibit flickering corruptions during gameplay.
• PugetBench for Davinci Resolve Studio may experience an intermittent application crash while running the benchmark. Recommendation is to change the timeout slider to 1500 seconds or higher, to wait for each test to complete, in PugetBench benchmark settings.

Intel Arc A-Series Graphics Products:

• Crimson Desert (DX12) may exhibit corruption when using upscaling during gameplay.
• PugetBench for Davinci Resolve Studio may experience an intermittent application crash while running the benchmark. Recommendation is to change the timeout slider to 1500 seconds or higher, to wait for each test to complete, in PugetBench benchmark settings.
• Marathon (DX12) may exhibit intermittent corruption on certain objects during gameplay when using Anisotropic Filtering.
• Apex Legends (DX12) may exhibit flashing corruption on certain maps during gameplay.
• Indiana Jones and the Great Circle (DX12) may experience a crash when path tracing is enabled.
• Borderlands 4 (DX12) may experience an intermittent application crash during gameplay.

Intel Core Ultra Series 1 with built-in Intel Arc GPUs:

• Marathon (DX12) may exhibit intermittent corruption on certain objects during gameplay when using Anisotropic Filtering.
• Apex Legends (DX12) may exhibit flashing corruption on certain maps during gameplay.
• Indiana Jones and the Great Gircle (DX12) may experience a crash when path tracing is enabled.
• Borderlands 4 (DX12) may experience an intermittent application crash during gameplay.

Intel Core Ultra Series 2 with built-in Intel Arc GPUs:

• Marathon (DX12) may exhibit intermittent corruption on certain objects during gameplay when using Anisotropic Filtering.
• Apex Legends (DX12) may exhibit flashing corruption on certain maps during gameplay.
• Indiana Jones and the Great Circle (DX12) may experience a crash when path tracing is enabled.
• Borderlands 4 (DX12) may experience an intermittent application crash during gameplay.

The non-WHQL Intel graphics driver 32.0.101.8801 is now available from Intel's official download portal. Here's the official changelog (PDF).

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Friday 15 May 2026 at 7:28 am AEST (my time).

News posts: 2023 5,800+ | 2024 5,700+ | 2025 5,700+ | 2026 (to end of April) 1,700

RIP Matrix

Yesterday Microsoft released its newest Patch Tuesday updates (KB5087544 on Windows 10 and KB5089549 on Windows 11). However the latter could be having installation issues on certain PCs as reported by users. These affected users say that the update is stubborn as it just wouldn't install even after trying several times. It is slightly unfortunate considering Microsoft just announced a major Windows Update improvement regarding driver updates.

One such user describes that the Windows update page throws up the following message after failing to install: "Something didn't go as planned. No need to worry--undoing changes. Please keep your computer on." Hence the good thing is that the failure does not lead to a total system mess as it is reverting to a stable state before the update. The thread was opened on Reddit and several users chimed in stating that they were also affected by a similar bug or had recently experienced it. Interestingly, some people are saying that this has been affecting with several of the recent Patch Tuesday updates so we wonder if there is something else too at play here that's causing the serial failure on certain devices.

Hopefully Microsoft may be investigating, though the company does not seem to be aware of any issue at the moment on Windows 11 as the Windows Release health page says there are "no active known issues". Perhaps there aren't enough people complaining about it at the moment for Microsoft to bother, or at the end of the day, as Microsoft has alluded to in the recent past, it could also be user error.

Besides that, some are also reporting internet-related problems with apparent performance issues like slow internet access that started "immediately after deployment of KB5089549"; however there are no other reports about such an issue online at the moment so perhaps there is some configuration issue in this case.

Let me know in the comments below how your own installation experience of Windows 11's latest patch was.

Source: Microsoft forum, Reddit (link1, link2, link3)

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Thursday 14 May 2026 at 11:54 am AEST (my time).

News posts: 2023 5,800+ | 2024 5,700+ | 2025 5,700+ | 2026 (to end of April) 1,700

RIP Matrix

Microsoft Edge may not be the frontrunner when it comes to web browsers available on the desktop and mobile, but Microsoft regularly introduces new features in order to entice more customers. Today, the company has announced a bunch of updates for its browser, which may please many users.

For starters, Microsoft is retiring Copilot Mode in Edge. Our readers may remember that the tech firm introduced this in July 2025 as an experiment. However, Microsoft believes that the features offered by Copilot Mode are now integrated directly in Edge, so it makes sense to retire it. Existing users will continue to get priority access to upcoming AI features through Edge Preview.

However, the fact that Copilot Mode is retired does not mean that Copilot is going away at all. In fact, on Edge mobile, Copilot can now reason across multiple open tabs so you don't need to manually switch context each time. Additionally, Journeys, which were previously only available on the desktop, are now available on mobile. This AI-powered capability basically divides your browsing history into meaningful topics.

Moreover, Vision and Voice features are available to more users on desktop and mobile. They enable you to activate and interact with Copilot using your voice, enabling the AI to see what's on your screen. Similarly, the redesigned new tab page is also rolling out to Edge mobile customers.

Other highlights, some new and some old, include:

• Long-term memory regarding browsing history, allowing Copilot to contextualize conversations with your past searches
• Study and Learn mode that breaks down topics into interactive quizzes and guided study sessions
• Copilot quizzes
• Writing assistant
• Creating a podcast by prompting Copilot with a topic

As is evident, Microsoft may be retiring Copilot Mode, but it's striving to make AI an essential part of your workflows. Naturally, some customers may have concerns around privacy, but Microsoft has emphasized you can simply customize your experience and turn off features that you don't need using Edge settings. Additionally, Microsoft only collects data necessary to improve your browsing experience or the data you consented to share via personalization settings.

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Thursday 14 May 2026 at 7:19 am AEST (my time).

News posts: 2023 5,800+ | 2024 5,700+ | 2025 5,700+ | 2026 (to end of April) 1,700

RIP Matrix

Microsoft has announced an update to its graphics driver publishing policy in an effort to fix a major issue plaguing Windows for a very long time. Essentially, this promises to fix the problem of Windows Update downgrading your drivers even though you may have a better, newer driver already. To do this, the company is introducing a shift from its four-part hardware identification targeting system to a simplified two-part model. The tech giant is hoping this change will improve the accuracy of driver distribution.

According to Microsoft, this updated Windows Hardware Compatibility Program (WHCP) approach will bundle driver targeting into a combination of Hardware ID (HWID) and Computer Hardware ID (CHID). This will replace the previous, more complex four-part structure that was used for graphics driver publishing and targeting so as to reduce mismatched installations that can lead to graphics driver issues on user setups.

Microsoft has clarified that the updated policy is focused on improving how future drivers are published and distributed; existing ones will continue to follow the current framework.

In terms of when we will see this updated change in end-user devices, Microsoft has provided a timeline and it hopes to complete this between the end of 2026 and early 2027.

The announcement comes as part of its effort to improve Windows driver quality that's being delivered via the Windows Update channel. Alongside this, the company also announced another major improvement wherein Windows 11 will automatically roll back buggy drivers using the power of the cloud.

The tech giant keeps adding interesting driver improvement features from time to time (including on Windows 11 version 25H2), and the two latest initiatives are certainly very appealing. You can read the official blog post here on Microsoft's site.

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Thursday 14 May 2026 at 7:18 am AEST (my time).

News posts: 2023 5,800+ | 2024 5,700+ | 2025 5,700+ | 2026 (to end of April) 1,700

RIP Matrix

Earlier this year, Microsoft revealed its plan on how it is going to make an active effort to improve the performance of Windows 11 and its various elements. Some of these have already started landing too; in fact the company is even making progress elsewhere like in the case of PowerToys that could also indirectly help Windows perform better.

The Redmond giant has been working on a plan internally known as "K2" with the aim of bettering everything on Windows 11. And this isn't just limited to performance and usability improvements either.

The company is also making changes so that it can rely more on hardware; for example it recently introduced a new feature called "low latency profile" (LLP) that will use the processor's boost clock speed more efficiently, and the good news is it is clearly showing improvement. This will also help Windows 11 with AMD's upcoming performance-enhancing CPPC feature known as "highest frequency".

With all of this going on, Microsoft earlier today announced a series of performance improvements that it has been working on for WinUI 3, the native Windows UI framework, as the company works to further improve the snappiness of its desktop OS. Recently a senior Microsoft exec had confirmed Windows 11 is going "100% native" it looks like the company is busy doing just that.

In a discussion posted on GitHub, the WinUI team says the effort is focused on making the transition from WinUI 2 to WinUI 3 to assure the latter is a "leap forward" with a “clear win for performance.”

As such Microsoft says it has been benchmarking performance using File Explorer and Notepad to further improve launch times. The early results from File Explorer testing are showing some pretty impressive results with reductions in resource usage, including 41% fewer allocations, 63% fewer transient allocations, and 45% fewer function calls. The company also notes a 25% decrease in the time spent on WinUI code during the app's launch.

Microsoft says the changes will soon move from the development branch into the main WinUI 3 branch, with some improvements also planned for WinAppSDK 2.x releases where feasible. The company has acknowledged that certain optimizations may introduce breaking changes, though developers and users alike will initially be able to opt in selectively. With the recent criticism it faced over LLP, it is good to see Microsoft also making this active effort to further improve its software instead of just relying on faster hardware.

Source: Microsoft GitHub (spotted by WindowsCentral)

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Thursday 14 May 2026 at 7:17 am AEST (my time).

News posts: 2023 5,800+ | 2024 5,700+ | 2025 5,700+ | 2026 (to end of April) 1,700

RIP Matrix

Windows 11 is currently undergoing a massive, under-the-hood reconstruction. Internally dubbed "Project K2," this initiative is tasked with gutting "AI slop" and legacy overhead to make the OS feel native again.

But to make Windows feel fast, third-party developers need to embrace native applications and use the WinUI 3 framework.

Migrating to WinUI 3 has been a headache in the past, especially when developers use generic AI agents to code. A new specialized AI agent from Microsoft is designed to efficiently make native apps while using fewer tokens and requiring less time.

Microsoft just introduced the WinUI agent plugin for GitHub Copilot and Claude Code. Microsoft notes that many AI agents tasked with making Windows apps will mix WinUI with older stacks, which is not optimal. The new plugin pulls WinUI skills by default.

The agent has eight skills built-in that help with different parts of app development, such as UI design, reviewing code quality, testing UI, and packaging apps. Another skill helps migrate a WPF app to WinUI.

Because of the new AI agent, your favorite and most-used Windows apps could soon see the same performance boost that's on the way to core parts of Windows 11, at least in the long run. The AI agent is part of a widespread effort to increase adoption of WinUI.

Third-party developers have been able to make WinUI 3 apps for quite some time, but the new tools Microsoft has in the works, including templates that I touch on more later, make it easier for developers to embrace the framework.

Microsoft claims that the new agent skills for app development "enable your agent to take your ideas to a native Windows app in minutes." That's a bold claim, and robust applications will obviously take more than a few minutes to make, but lowering the barrier of entry to WinUI app development could be enough to convince more developers to make native Windows apps.

The specialized nature of the AI agent results in more than 70% fewer tokens being used. The winui-search and winmd-cli tools rely on a local library of documentation to find relevant answers and solutions. That decrease should streamline app development while also reducing costs.

Today, Microsoft announced a new capability to swiftly resolve problematic driver issues on Windows devices. The new Cloud-Initiated Driver Recovery feature can automatically roll back problematic drivers on affected PCs without requiring users or hardware partners to take action. This new capability will be supported for drivers distributed through Windows Update.

Until now, when a driver distributed through Windows Update causes problems, the hardware partner must submit an updated driver to Microsoft. In some cases, users may need to manually uninstall the problematic driver. This process can leave affected PCs running a low-quality driver for an extended period.

With the new Cloud-Initiated Driver Recovery feature, when Microsoft identifies a driver with quality issues during its Driver Shiproom evaluation process, it can now trigger a recovery action from the cloud and replace that driver with a previously working version. The recovery action is delivered through the existing Windows Update pipeline, so it does not require a new client agent installation on Windows or additional partner software.

Here's how this new feature works:

• The recovery process works by first identifying a previously published driver that has quality issues.
• Microsoft then creates a recovery request targeting the specific driver and its associated shipping labels.
• Windows Update delivers the rollback instruction to affected devices, checks whether an approved replacement driver is available, and then uninstalls the rejected driver.
• The replacement will be either the previously installed version or the next best approved version available through Windows Update.
• If an approved Driver Shiproom driver cannot be found, Cloud-Initiated Driver Recovery will not be attempted on that device.

Hardware partners will continue to receive notifications through existing shiproom communication channels when a driver is rejected during flighting or gradual rollout.

Microsoft is planning to manually validate and test Cloud-Initiated Driver Recovery on selected shipping labels between May and August 2026. The feature is targeted to be automatically included when a driver is rejected during flighting or gradual rollout starting in September 2026.

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Wednesday 13 May 2026 at 4:41 pm AEST (my time).

News posts: 2023 5,800+ | 2024 5,700+ | 2025 5,700+ | 2026 (to end of April) 1,700

RIP Matrix

Google has announced a new set of emoji that has been designed to add more emotion and depth to online messages and planned for release later this year. Dubbed Noto 3D, the fresh designs will first appear on Pixel phones before expanding further.

While built for clarity, these three-dimensional icons aim to reflect subtle human expressions, and their debut marks a shift toward livelier visual language across digital conversations. In the announcement, the company highlighted how, now more than ever, messages move quickly, shaped by symbols just as much as sentences. Consequently, emoji have become a part of everyday talk, and with this update, expressions gain stronger nuance and visibility online.

The company framed its idea through a lighthearted emoji; a burrito standing in for an entire prepared thought, noting that even something as simple as sending a burrito emoji can represent a fully "wrapped and ready" message in today's communication culture. Although small, such icons carry meaning just as words do, yet they travel faster, skip translation, and often land more clearly.

Jennifer Daniel, Creative Director, Emoji, stated:

I don’t send status updates to my boss, I send 🌯. In our world, a burrito means our new emoji are wrapped and ready for delivery.

From the earlier minimalist "blob" style emoji of the past decade to this new 3D-rendered collection, Google frames its latest Noto 3D set as a natural move forward. Instead of staying flat, these symbols gain volume and surface detail, aiming to echo how emotions actually show up in life. Because emotional expression has layers, reducing it to plain text sometimes strips away meaning, and so the updated designs will attempt to fill that space.

Noto 3D mirrors a growing shift across the rapidly expanding world of tech which is of humanizing digital exchanges through richer visuals. While emoji may seem like a small design detail, they act as emotional punctuation; where words fall short, these symbols step in to clarify moods others might miss.

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Wednesday 13 May 2026 at 11:49 am AEST (my time).

News posts: 2023 5,800+ | 2024 5,700+ | 2025 5,700+ | 2026 (to end of April) 1,700

RIP Matrix

It is the second Tuesday of the month, which means Windows 11 users have a new mandatory update to install. Those on Windows 11 version 24H2 can download build 26100.8457, while Windows 11 version 25H2 users can download 26200.8457, with update number KB5089549.

Besides security patches and bug fixes, KB5089549 also includes new features that Microsoft released as part of the April 2026 non-security update. Those features are the new Xbox mode, File Explorer improvements, haptic feedback for various actions across the system with compatible devices, reliability improvements, and other changes, which you can check out here.

And here are the extra changes included in KB5089549:

• [Secure Boot] With this update, Windows quality updates include additional high-confidence device targeting data, increasing coverage of devices eligible to automatically receive new Secure Boot certificates. Devices receive the new certificates only after demonstrating sufficient successful update signals, maintaining a controlled and phased rollout.
• [Boot manager servicing update]
  • This update improves startup reliability after boot file updates, so devices start normally without entering BitLocker recovery.
  • (Known issue) Fixed: This update addresses an issue where some devices might enter BitLocker Recovery after updating boot files on systems with certain Trusted Platform Module (TPM) validation settings, including invalid PCR7 (Platform Configuration Register 7) configurations. This might occur after installing the April 2026 security update (KB5083769).
• [Connectivity] This update improves the reliability of Simple Service Discovery Protocol (SSDP) notifications to help prevent the service from becoming unresponsive.

Microsoft says there are no known bugs in today's update. You can download it by heading to Settings > Windows Update. Alternatively, get it for manual installation from the Microsoft Update Catalog using this link.

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Wednesday 13 May 2026 at 7:27 am AEST (my time).

News posts: 2023 5,800+ | 2024 5,700+ | 2025 5,700+ | 2026 (to end of April) 1,700

RIP Matrix

It's the second Tuesday of the month, which means it's Patch Tuesday time again. As such, today, Microsoft is rolling out the monthly security update (also called "B release") for May 2026 on Windows 10 under the Extended Security Updates (ESU) program.

The new updates are being distributed under KB5087544, bumping up the builds to 19045.7291 and 19044.7291. You can find standalone links to download the new update on the Microsoft Update Catalog at this link.

• [Remote Desktop security warnings (known issue)] Fixed: The Remote Desktop Connection security warning dialog might render incorrectly in multi-monitor configurations with different display scaling settings. This issue might occur after installing the Windows security update released on April 14, 2026 (KB5082200).
• [Secure Boot]
  • This update enables dynamic status reporting for Secure Boot states in Windows Security App.
  • With this update, Windows quality updates include additional high confidence device targeting data, increasing coverage of devices eligible to automatically receive new Secure Boot certificates. Devices receive the new certificates only after demonstrating sufficient successful update signals, maintaining a controlled and phased rollout.
• [Daylight Savings Time] Update for Arab Republic of Egypt to support the government DST change order in 2023.

Some of the older Windows 10 versions have also received updates today, which have been listed below with their respective release notes (KB) linked as well as links to download them at Microsoft's Update Catalog:

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Wednesday 13 May 2026 at 7:25 am AEST (my time).

News posts: 2023 5,800+ | 2024 5,700+ | 2025 5,700+ | 2026 (to end of April) 1,700

RIP Matrix

Forza Horizon 6 is launching in early access on May 15, with a global launch scheduled on May 19. While we finish our review (look out for it on May 14), NVIDIA released a Game-Ready WHQL driver that brings optimizations for the upcoming racing game. Version 596.49 is now available for download with optimizations and DLSS support for Forza Horizon 6, Directive 8020, and Subnautica 2.

In the announcement post, NVIDIA claims that with the latest driver, RTX 50 Series graphics cards can achieve up to 337 FPS in 4K (with the RTX 5090), 414 FPS in 1440p, and 493 FPS in 1080p with DLSS 4.5 multi-frame generation enabled. NVIDIA is not revealing performance details in native mode without frame-gen technologies, though.

Forza Horizon 6 will be available on Friday (the Microsoft Store, Steam, Game Pass, and GeForce NOW), alongside Subnautica 2. Directive 8020 launches today, on May 12.

As for fixed bugs, driver 596.49 includes the following:

• Enhanced smoothness when DLSS Frame Generation is used with V-SYNC.
• Foundry Mari 7.0v2 viewport displays flickering.

The NVIDIA 596.49 WHQL driver is available on 64-bit Windows 10 and 11 systems with the following graphics cards:

NVIDIA recently dropped GTX 10 Series and GTX 900 Series graphics cards, and they no longer receive new Game-Ready drivers (only security fixes).

You can download driver 596.49 WHQL from the official NVIDIA website or the NVIDIA app. Release notes are available here (PDF).

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Wednesday 13 May 2026 at 7:23 am AEST (my time).

News posts: 2023 5,800+ | 2024 5,700+ | 2025 5,700+ | 2026 (to end of April) 1,700

RIP Matrix

Today, Microsoft announced that it is making Copilot easier to access across Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and other Microsoft 365 apps with a new, simplified entry point and updated keyboard shortcuts. As part of this effort, Microsoft is reducing the number of Copilot entry points and adding proactive suggestions to help users get started with Copilot more easily.

From now on, Copilot will appear in two main places:

• A Copilot icon at the bottom-right corner of the screen
• A contextual entry point when users interact with content, such as selecting text

Users can hover over the Copilot button or use keyboard shortcuts to get proactive suggestions. These suggestions will change depending on the selected content. For example, Copilot may offer broad drafting help for a full document, but more targeted rewrites, edits, or fixes when a paragraph, sentence, or word is selected.

If users find the new floating Copilot icon distracting, they can use the new docking option for the Copilot button. Users can right-click the Copilot button and select "Dock" to move it away from the content. In the future, users will also be able to drag the icon to dock it to the right side of the content, or to the left side for right-to-left locales.

Microsoft also announced today that it is changing the Copilot keyboard shortcuts across Microsoft 365 apps and platforms. Users who previously used Alt + H, F, X to open the Copilot pane can now simply use the F6 key to focus on the Copilot button and the up arrow key to move through suggested prompts.

The new Copilot button and updated shortcuts are rolling out to Word, Excel, and PowerPoint for Windows and Mac, with web support coming soon. Microsoft expects the rollout to reach general availability by early June. The feature requires the following versions:

• Windows: Build 2606, version 19822.20182 or later
• Mac: Build 16.108, version 26050324 or later

The simplified Alt + C and Cmd + Control + I shortcuts are available today in Outlook and Word for Windows and Mac in English. Microsoft says support for other apps and languages will follow shortly after the new entry point rolls out.

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Tuesday 12 May 2026 at 5:30 pm AEST (my time).

News posts: 2023 5,800+ | 2024 5,700+ | 2025 5,700+ | 2026 (to end of April) 1,700

RIP Matrix

Last week, Windows Central exclusively revealed that Microsoft is working on a new performance boost feature for Windows 11 that will speed up all launches and flyouts by a significant amount. The feature is called "Low Latency Profile," and works by briefly maxing out CPU frequency in short bursts to achieve faster response times.

This is a common practice, one that Apple and Google have adopted on their own platforms in recent years, yet the Low Latency Profile feature on Windows 11 has been met with a surprising amount of pushback. Users online are calling this a "lazy" solution to fix Windows 11's performance problems, and others are criticizing Microsoft for not optimizing the code to speed up performance instead. A lot of people are also just trolling because it's popular to dunk on Microsoft.

Now, Microsoft VP Scott Hanselman has taken to X to respond to the trolls, explaining how and why this new Low Latency Profile feature is actually standard practice and overall beneficial to end users. "All modern operating systems do this, including macOS and Linux. It's not "cheating"; this is how modern systems make apps feel fast: they temporarily boost the CPU speed and prioritize interactive tasks to reduce latency."

We are all familiar with Windows 11 updates, which bug out and lead to various issues, ones that probably anger users the most are when they find themselves greeted with a BitLocker recovery screen or when the system keeps rebooting or blue-screening.

While it is easy and tempting to quickly point fingers at Microsoft, given its track record (although this is said to be changing soon for the better), the tech giant is likely not always responsible for such issues.

One such bug has popped up on Dell systems wherein affected users are finding themselves faced with a PC that constantly reboots after hitting a blue screen of death (BSOD). The problem has been experienced by several people including one of Neowin's long-time forum members, polo69, who says they have been hitting BSODs every 30 mins or so after a new Dell software update.

Here's what the event log looks like (image below). As you can see, there are critical errors that led to kernel power outage and blue screened simultaneously after.

A smart user, MartinHBS2026, dug into these issues using WinDbg and managed to figure out that the problem is being caused by Dell's own SupportAssit software. For anyone who may not know, WinDbg is a Windows debugging tool that allows users to analyze such error dumps. The user wrote: "Analysing the minidump with Windbg, we can see that SupportAssist is causing this! i srated to uninstall support assist than eit[sic] carshed again.. then i uninstalled eveyting[sic] related to support assist: (remediation and OS recovery plugin)."

Hence the simple solution could be to uninstall the SupportAssist from your system if you are affected by this bug.

Ironically, it seems this is not the first time Dell's SupportAssist update had led to this issue as a very similar thing happened back in December 2024 as well. Thankfully for that update, the users succeeded in finding a solution. What worked back then was running the "SupportAssist Scan hardware" which, once complete, did not lead to any consequent crashes or BSODs. Hence this could also be worth a try.

Dell has not yet responded to these reports, though the likely explanation probably has to do with it being the weekend and hence the support team as well is not available.

Source: Dell forum (link1, link2, link3)

Thanks for tip, polo69 !!!

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Tuesday 12 May 2026 at 7:23 am AEST (my time).

News posts: 2023 5,800+ | 2024 5,700+ | 2025 5,700+ | 2026 (to end of April) 1,700

RIP Matrix

Apple has released version 26.5 of all of its operating systems today: iOS 26.5, iPadOS 26.5, macOS 26.5, watchOS 26.5, tvOS 26.5, visionOS 26.5, and version 26.5 of the HomePod software (whew).

None of these are particularly momentous updates, which is pretty normal this late in their lifecycle, but they add a small batch of new features alongside the pile of patches outlined on Apple’s security vulnerabilities page. This is Apple’s first release to support end-to-end encryption for the RCS messaging standard, for example, which, when enabled, can give green-bubble messages some of the same security and privacy advantages that iMessage users have long enjoyed.

Encrypted RCS messaging has a “beta” label in this release, and Apple says it’s limited to a subset of supported cellular carriers. Expanded support “will roll out over time.” Encrypted chats will show up with a padlock icon in the Messages app; if you don’t see a padlock, the message isn’t encrypted, even if you’re using RCS.

Other additions in the 26.5 releases are new Pride-themed wallpapers and some of the initial work needed to support ads in the Apple Maps app. There are also a handful of smaller platform-specific additions and bug fixes, which you can find on Apple’s release notes pages (we’ve linked each in the first paragraph). Apple has been testing several changes to third-party wearable support in the EU to comply with local regulations, but those features haven’t yet been included in the public versions of those iOS updates.

These are likely to be the last major updates we get for these versions of the operating system before the next-generation versions are unveiled at Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference next month.

It’s hard to say what to expect from the 27 releases, except that we’re still waiting on an updated AI-backed version of Siri that was first mentioned as part of the iOS 18 cycle in 2024, was very strongly implied to be part of the iOS 26 cycle last year, and still has not been demoed in any Apple presentations or in any software betas. Apple and Google announced that Apple would use Google’s Gemini language models to power the new Siri, but aside from vague promises to ship the feature this calendar year, Apple has kept mostly quiet about it.

Recent reporting from Bloomberg also suggests that users will be able to choose the AI models they want to use for Apple Intelligence’s writing and image-generation tools in iOS 27, iPadOS 27, and macOS 27.

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Tuesday 12 May 2026 at 7:22 am AEST (my time).

News posts: 2023 5,800+ | 2024 5,700+ | 2025 5,700+ | 2026 (to end of April) 1,700

RIP Matrix

Files, a popular Windows 11 third-party file manager, has received its latest update today with new version 4.1. The new release brings a range of useful customization and usability improvements aimed at enhancing the Windows file management experience.

One of the headlining additions is a redesigned customizable toolbar system that can be availed by right-clicking any toolbar item.

Users can now choose which toolbar buttons and actions appear, rearrange them according to their preferences, and it should be fairly intuitive too as it will work by simply dragging and dropping. The update also allows toolbar items to be hidden quickly through a right-click “Unpin” option. So different toolbar modes can be customized independently depending on your needs.

File tagging management has also been improved with a new Edit Tags option. If you are not familiar, tagging helps you sort files and folders.

The release also introduces a dedicated Settings page that replaces the previous dialog interface. The new layout is intended to create more room for future options and includes support for searching settings directly through the Omnibar. Alongside this redesign, users can now change the display font used across the application by selecting from fonts installed on their system. The application now also respects the default terminal configured in Windows Settings when using the “Open in Terminal” action.

Theme management also received attention in the update with new actions, allowing users to assign keyboard shortcuts for switching themes. A built-in shortcut, Ctrl + Alt + T, can now toggle between light and dark modes.

Aside from new features, the release includes a number of bug fixes and other refinements. The changelog is given below:

• The setting to opens items with a single-click now offers more flexibility. The following options are now available:
  • Folders
    • Always use single click
    • Never use single click
    • Use single click for touch
    • Use single click for mouse
  • Files
    • Always use single click
    • Never use single click
    • Use single click for touch
    • Use single click for mouse

• Video and audio files now show their duration in tooltips, and tooltips in the grid layout feel snappier overall.

• AVI files can now be previewed in the Preview Pane.

• Files now displays the access keys provided by shell extensions in the right-click menu.

• Fixed an issue where thumbnails didn’t refresh when a file was updated.

• Fixed an issue where PowerToys Peek wasn’t detected when installed in a custom location.

• Fixed an issue where importing settings could fail.

• Fixed an issue where opening programs from search results could fail.

• Fixed an issue where the tags widget displayed duplicate items.

• Fixed an issue where the operation status was reported incorrectly when moving files from protected or administrator folders.

• Fixed an issue where the window didn’t get focus when launched with Win+E.

• Fixed an issue where previewing CSS files didn’t work correctly.

Files 4.1 stable version is available for download from the official website and the Microsoft Store. The Microsoft Store listing is paid so that willing users can show monetary support to the app author for their contribution.

Source

Microsoft has acknowledged a new issue affecting Quick Steps in classic Outlook, with some users finding the feature unexpectedly grayed out after recent updates. According to a support note published by the company, the bug appears in Outlook for Microsoft 365 after updating to Version 2512 (Build 19530.20138).

The problem occurs when a Quick Step function includes actions that Outlook determines “can’t be fulfilled.” Microsoft said this commonly affects commands involving flags or categories, such as “Clear flags on message” or “Clear categories.” For instance, a Quick Step designed to move an email and clear its categories may become unavailable if the selected message has no categories assigned.

It is good to see Microsoft finally opening an issue for this as users have been complaining about this for several months, as is evident from various threads online on the company's own forum, or Reddit, among other places (link1, link2, link3).

For anyone who may not be familiar with it, Quick Steps is a very useful Outlook productivity feature that allows users to automate repetitive email tasks with a single click. In classic Outlook, they can combine multiple actions such as moving messages, forwarding emails, marking messages as read, or assigning categories, into one shortcut. Microsoft notes that the feature is intended to help users manage mailboxes more efficiently and also supports custom workflows and keyboard shortcuts.

Microsoft said its Outlook team is currently investigating the bug. Until a permanent fix is released, the company has advised that you should try assigning keyboard shortcuts to the quick steps. In order to do so, edit any of the existing Quick Steps through Manage Quick Steps > select your Quick Step > Edit. Then select your preferred key from the 'Shortcut key:' dropdown menu.

If that's not an option, you can try rolling back to Version 2511 (Build 19426.20218) or temporarily using Outlook Web App (OWA) or, of course, the New Outlook app instead. To do so,

1. Open a Command Prompt in Administrator context.
2. Type or paste the command into the Command Prompt window and press Enter:
   "%programfiles%\Common Files\Microsoft Shared\ClickToRun\officec2rclient.exe" /update user updatetoversion=16.0.19426.20218
3. To prevent Office updating back to the latest build, you can turn off updates by selecting File > Office Account > Update Options > Disable Updates.
4. Put a reminder on your calendar for July 14th to check back on this Known Issue in case it is addressed sooner. This issue has not been triaged yet, so we don’t know the status for this bug yet.

You can find the support article here on Microsoft's official website.

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Monday 11 May 2026 at 3:45 pm AEST (my time).

News posts: 2023 5,800+ | 2024 5,700+ | 2025 5,700+ | 2026 (to end of April) 1,700

RIP Matrix

Linus Torvalds has just released Linux 7.1-rc3, stating that the unusually large patch sizes, likely due to the use of AI tools in coding, wasn’t just a blip and is in fact the new normal for the kernel. This cycle saw networking patches dominate, at a third of all updates and fixes. There are also significant security and stability patches for use-after-free vulnerabilities across Bluetooth and GPU drivers and support for Apple Mac USB-C networking and high-end AlphaTheta/Pioneer DJ equipment.

In recent releases, Torvalds noted that more kernel patches had been coming in and he wondered if it was a blip, but he now thinks it's the new normal. Given that we are well past a major version jump and the fact that this release is larger than expected for this point in the cycle, it must be assumed that this regime or larger changes is how things will continue to be going forward. In the past, at this point in the release, developers would be consolidating the features they would have added, but with AI tools, they are able to be a bit more productive and submit more each week.

This release has 33% of its patches dedicated to networking core and drivers. There are also improvements for USB-C networking on Apple Macs and specialised audio handling for the AlphaTheta (Pioneer DJ) EUPHONIA. This week's release also sees some significant work being poured into the Chinese CPU architecture LoongArch, targeting KVM virtualization and interrupt handling.

What is interesting with this release is the high number of memory safety patches, alongside the greater use of Rust in the kernel. Rust has memory safety built in, so as more components are written in this language, there will be less need for so many memory safety fixes that we currently see in high volumes.

Hopefully, these larger patches will not cause any delays this cycle, so that it can be pushed out for public use and users get support for new hardware faster.

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Monday 11 May 2026 at 3:44 pm AEST (my time).

News posts: 2023 5,800+ | 2024 5,700+ | 2025 5,700+ | 2026 (to end of April) 1,700

RIP Matrix

ExplainingComputers (1.18m subscribers)

May 10, 2026

Video length: 24m 19s

Fedora Linux 44 introduction and review, in which we take a look at both the KDE Plasma desktop and Workstation (GNOME) editions.

00:00 Titles & Intro

00:40 Fedora Linux in Context

05:37 Installation

09:24 Fedora KDE Plasma Desktop

14:30 NVIDIA Support

18:16 Fedora Labs & Atomic

20:04 Fedora Workstation

23:20 Wrap

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Monday 11 May 2026 at 7:02 am AEST (my time).

News posts: 2023 5,800+ | 2024 5,700+ | 2025 5,700+ | 2026 (to end of April) 1,700

RIP Matrix

Windows Update has easily been one of the most frustrating parts of using Windows for years, and from what I'm seeing now, Microsoft finally seems to be acknowledging it. In the latest changes coming to Windows 11, it's clear the company is trying to find a better balance between keeping devices secure and giving us more say over when and how updates happen.

I've gone through what's changing, and on paper, there are some significant improvements. We're getting new pause controls, a redesigned Power menu, fewer forced restarts, and even smarter recovery features when updates fail (so you don't have to go through all these steps). All of these point to a more transparent and less disruptive experience, at least in theory.

In this guide, I'll outline the changes the software giant is building to improve how Windows 11 updates are applied on your computer.

1. Windows Update controls for pausing updates

Microsoft is making changes to give you more granular control over system updates, including the ability to pause automatic updates indefinitely.

The Windows Update system continues to use the 35-day limit, but you can reschedule the pause for as long as you want.

The catch is that you'll have to repeat the steps each time before the pause expires, and if the schedule expires, the system will automatically install updates as usual.

Windows 11 has its fair share of legacy tools still embedded within the operating system, which isn't surprising at all since the software has been evolving iteratively over the past several decades. Notable examples of this include Steps Recorder (deprecated) and WordPad (recently removed), where the software in question has just outstayed its welcome and is no longer considered useful, either by Microsoft or by the vast majority of Windows users. Another such example of ancient software that exists in Windows 11 is the Character Map.

Character Map (charmap.exe) has existed in Windows for decades, almost completely unchanged. A recent Reddit discussion has people reminiscing its existence since at least Windows NT 3.1, making it over 33 years old.

Despite its age, it's something that most of the "modern era" of Windows users don't really know about, because most don't actually need it. As the name suggests, Character Map simply presents you a "map" of characters, allowing you to switch between different fonts installed on your PC, and discovering the keyboard input code for each character. There is also an Advanced view that enables you to select a character set, a grouping, and the ability to search by the keyboard input code.

There are, or were, multiple use-cases for Character Map. These include the ability to select special characters and typography in specific fonts for designers or for people involved in creating specialized documents, and it's also helpful for developers who need the keyboard input code for their software. You can also copy a string of input characters and paste it in the software of your choice, provided that it supports them.

It's important to note that Windows already offers a modern alternative of Character Map in the form of the emoji input panel (Win + .). However, I wouldn't call this an exact alternative since it doesn't offer a lot of the special characters and is primarily for quick use while typing, in comparison to Character Map which is geared more towards specialized use-cases.

I have seen many arguments online that urge Microsoft to get rid of Character Map since it hasn't been significantly updated in over 30 years and is a legacy piece of software with very few use-cases, but interestingly, there are still a lot of proponents who claim that Character Map should continue to remain supported. This is because it has a very small memory footprint and it doesn't intrude upon workflows unless you intentionally tigger it.

As it currently stands, Character Map is in a rather interesting state. It's clearly a very legacy tool stuck in time, but still has a small but dedicated user base. Since it has existed in Windows for decades without causing any issues, Microsoft has either simply forgotten about it or thinks it's not worth the hassle to remove it altogether. Or perhaps, the company is trying to figure out a way to integrate Copilot into Character Map? I kid, I kid.

Source

Hope you enjoyed this news post. Feedback welcome.

Posted Sunday 10 May 2026 at 7:29 am AEST (my time).

News posts: 2023 5,800+ | 2024 5,700+ | 2025 5,700+ | 2026 (to end of April) 1,700

RIP Matrix