Windows 10 build 14352 ‘What’s new’ list includes rulers, new UI elements and Cortana additions

[Batu69]

"Just ask Cortana to play your favorite artist, genre, playlist or song."

 

Yesterday, Windows 10 Mobile Insiders on the Fast Ring release cycle got what amounted to a cumulative update with build 14342.1004.

Windows 10 Insider Preview Build 14352 now available to #WindowsInsiders in the Fast ring! https://t.co/AUO3qefI6P

— Gabriel Aul (@GabeAul) May 26, 2016

Today, however, PC Insiders are receiving a build with much more involved, as the Windows team rolls up its sleeves to crank out a polished release of the Windows operating system for its July deadline. Windows 10 Insider preview build 14352 is bringing another laundry list of neat refinement features to the operating system, just months before its final release.

 

Cortana Improvements

Cortana, Your Personal DJ: In addition to playing songs via your local files and OneDrive, you also now have the ability to play any song from the entire Groove Music Catalog using Cortana. If you have a Groove Music Pass, just ask Cortana to play your favorite artist, genre, playlist or song. This also works with Cortana on your Lock screen.

• “Hey Cortana, play <song name>”
• “Hey Cortana, play <artist>”
• “Hey Cortana, play my <Groove playlist name>”
• “Hey Cortana, pause”

NOTE: Groove Catalog support currently for U.S. English only – other regions to come in the future.

Set a timer: You can now set a timer using Cortana to remind you to go get a snack, take a break, or while cooking. You can set a timer, query how long is left and cancel using natural language. On your PC, this works logged in or above the Lock screen. On your phone, you can use speech or text. Examples below. We are continuing to improve the overall user experience including conversation mode (“set a timer”, then specify the time), and enable turning off a ringing timer using speech. Try out:

• “Hey Cortana, set a timer for 10 minutes”
• “Hey Cortana, how much time is left?”
• “Hey Cortana, cancel my timer”

Windows Ink

Updated Sticky Notes: With the latest update, Sticky Notes are now better than ever* with the ability to create Cortana reminders from your notes that will flow with you across your Cortana enabled devices. You can also ink or type a phone number and it readies itself for calling; write an email address and launch directly to email, write a URL and launch into Microsoft Edge right from the Note. A few jotted-down bulleted items become an easy-to-manage checklist. Don’t forget that Sticky Notes is also a standalone app, just launch it from Start if you’d like to use it outside of Windows Ink Workspace.

 *Certain features are currently limited to EN-US, with more market and language support coming in future updates.

Compass on the ruler: We’ve updated the Windows Ink ruler to include a compass. If the ruler is oriented in the direction of any of the cardinal points or midpoints, the compass indicator will become bold.

Windows 10 Ink Compass and Ruler

 

General improvements to the Windows Ink experience: We have made performance and reliability improvements based on feedback including:

• Sketchpad will now dismiss if you tap Esc or Windows key combinations (for example, Win + S or Win + D).
• We’ve updated the export icon to be the more familiar floppy disk icon for saving your sketch.
• We’ve polished the experience of opening Sketchpad when many ink strokes are present on the canvas.
• We fixed an issue that resulted in Sketchpad sometimes needing to be tapped twice before it would launch from the Windows Ink Workspace flyout.
• Sketchpad and Screen Sketch will now default to touch inking ON for non-pen devices. They will also remember the state of the button when you relaunch Windows Ink Workspace.
• Going forward from Build 14252, the Windows Ink Workspace icon state (on or off) on the taskbar will be preserved after upgrading.
• We have updated Sticky Notes to show a small sticky note icon next to the app name when hovering over the app in the taskbar or in Task View.

Other items of note

 

Windows Game bar improved with full-screen support: One of the most common requests we see for the Windows 10 Game DVR feature is the ability to use the Windows Game bar with more games running in full-screen.  With this flight, we’ve added support for six additional games in full-screen mode with Windows game bar: League of Legends, World of Warcraft, DOTA 2, Battlefield 4, Counterstrike: Global Offensive, and Diablo III. With those games, you can now use Windows key + G to bring up the Windows Game bar when the game is running full-screen.

Tip: You can control this feature through the Windows Game bar settings. In the settings dialog, look for the “Show Game bar when I play full-screen games” checkbox.

 

Feedback Hub will now show Microsoft responses: You’ll now see short status tags on feedback to let you know what we’re doing with it. The tags are a short-form way to give status on feedback we’re actively working on or have made changes for. The tags will often be published along with a “Microsoft response” comment that gives more context on what the team is doing. This change also replaces the “Received” tag that you’ve been seeing on all feedback with something much more useful and informative!

Feedback tags

 

Status tags for feedback

Updated File Explorer icon: Based on Insider feedback, we have updated the File Explorer icon with more color.

New File Explorer vs. old File Explorer

 

Deploying Windows Enterprise edition gets easier:

Prior to Windows 10, the upgrade from the Pro to Enterprise edition required a complete wipe and reinstallation of the OS. In Windows 10, we enabled bit-less edition upgrade from Pro to Enterprise. This means all the features are on the device already and the upgrade to Enterprise edition can be performed by changing the product key rather than having to download and deploy a new image. However, doing this required a reboot to complete. We heard a lot of feedback about having to reboot to complete the upgrade so starting with this build a reboot is no longer required when upgrading from the Pro to Enterprise edition. You can try out this out by going to “Settings -> Update & Security -> Activation” in the settings app and click the “Change product key” button and enter a valid Enterprise product key. If you find any issues, please send us feedback via the Feedback Hub!

 

Product Key dialog

 

Limited Period Scanning:

Limited Periodic Scanning is a new security setting you can choose to turn on if you use an antivirus program other than Windows Defender. This setting can provide an additional line of defense in scanning and detecting malware on your device. To enable this – go to Settings > Update & security > Windows Defender and turn “Limited Periodic Scanning” on. Each month Microsoft’s Malicious Software Removal Tool detects malware on 1 to 2 million devices, even those running other antivirus software. This setting can be turned on for unmanaged devices. You can read more about Limited Period Scanning here.

And with that, this round of new updates comes to a close. Fast Ring Insiders can head over to their Update Settings menu and grab the new build today.

 

Article source

[Karlston]

Some more from our friend Woody...

New Windows 10 beta build 14352 holds a few pleasant surprises

With a new ‘Start fresh' link and independent malware scans, Version 1607 looks nearly done

Given the significant bump in features shown by build 14342, the dearth of new features in the latest build 14352, and the long period of time since our last beta -- 16 days -- you might come to the conclusion that this new build is a release candidate. Hard to read the tea leaves, but I’d be willing to bet that 10.0.14352.1002.rs1_release.160522-1930 is a nearly feature-complete version of Build 1607, the Windows 10 Anniversary Update.

 

No, it won’t be called Win 10.2, which is my vote for naming the second major update to Windows 10. But you get the idea.

 

You can read the official story on Gabe Aul’s Windows Experience blog, which is bouncing around the tech echo chamber, copied and pasted a hundred times. The post shows a few feature updates but lots of squished bugs.

 

I had a chance to play with 14352 overnight and found a few things that aren’t well known.

 

Aul leads with a description of Cortana improvements: How Cortana can now play music by voice command (catching up finally with Siri, Alexa, and OK Google); how Cortana can set a timer under voice command (catching up finally with ... oh, nevermind); how Windows Ink improves Sticky Notes with Cortana-recognizable phone numbers, email addresses, and URLs; how the on-screen ruler has a “compass” that locks the ruler in 45-degree increments; how the Windows Game bar has support for six new games; how you can now upgrade from Pro to Enterprise without rebooting; and how (gasp!) the File Explorer icon now has different colours. He also warns that the new Cortana features may not work unless you reboot.

 

There’s an interesting new setting called Defender Reigns -- er, Limited Periodic Scanning, which allows the built-in Windows Defender to run from time to time even if you’ve turned it off by installing a third-party antivirus. It’s like getting a second opinion from the mothership if you’ve switched AV packages. If you use Windows Defender as your AV package, the setting doesn’t do anything. The results of a Limited Periodic Scan are telegraphed to you through the Action/Notification center. Microsoft says:

At this time, Windows 10 Limited Periodic Scanning is intended for consumers. We are evaluating this feature for commercial customers, but Limited Periodic Scanning only applies to unmanaged devices for the Windows 10 Anniversary Update.

I’ve seen news reports that this new feature lets you run two AV products on your computer. That isn’t true -- at least, not simultaneously. In this case, Defender does a one-time sweep. It sounds like it’s similar to, say, a Malwarebytes run. You don’t have two AV products running simultaneously.

 

Here’s what you may not know.

 

The Start menu tiles are loaded with garbage. On an absolutely clean machine, ISO installed from Microsoft’s build 14332, upgraded directly to 14352, I count no fewer than ten tiles with unabashed ads: Adobe Photoshop Express, Candy Crush Soda Saga, Flipboard, Minecraft/Xbox Live, World of Tanks, iHeart Radio, Duolingo, Farmville 2, USA Today, and Try Office 365. Make it eleven with Skype Preview.

 

On that same absolutely clean machine, I see Start menu items for 3D Builder, Candy Crush Soda Saga (can’t get enough Soda, I s’pose), Microsoft Solitaire Collection, Paid Wi-Fi & Cellular, Skype Preview, and Twitter’s anemic UWP app. Ka-ching, ka-ching.

 

To replicate those findings, you may need to sign up for a new Microsoft account. If you use a local account to sign on, you’ll see “loading” down arrows in all 10 of those tiles -- only Skype Preview makes it to the final tile collection. If you use a local account, the Start menu has all of the noted, uh, enhancements except Candy Crush Soda Saga and Twitter.

 

I found an undocumented entry in the Start > Settings > Update & security > Recovery menu to be particularly interesting. (Thanks, @h0x0d.) There’s a new section at the bottom that says Related Settings, and it contains a link to a Microsoft Answers forum post I’ve never seen before. It’s called Coming Soon: A Tool to Start Fresh, written by Microsoft engineer Jason, a forum moderator, and it says:

Hello Windows Insiders!

 

Want a simple and easy way to start fresh with a clean installation of Windows?  Looking for an easy way to do this?  We're working on a tool to make this possible.

 

Final testing and validation is underway and we will want your feedback once it is ready to go!  Stay tuned for additional information as we work through the finishing touches.

 

And as always, thank you for being Windows Insiders!

 

- Jason

Walking Cat (@0h0x0d) also discovered a new Office Online extension that's underwhelming. Using build 14352, go to the Windows Store Office Online page, and click Free (so much more intuitive than “download,” eh?).

 

The next time you start Edge, click the ellipses in the upper right corner, then Extensions. At the top you’ll see a new extension called Office Online. Click on it -- the version number is 1.2.0 -- move the slider to On, and click Turn on. Again click the ellipses in the upper right corner of Edge, choose where you want to put your docs (OneDrive or OneDrive for Business are the only choices), click Yes to let the app access your info, click the ellipses once more (fourth time), and you should see a list of your recently accessed documents. Click on one of the documents, and it opens in the appropriate Office Online app.

 

It’s a very lengthy way to avoid logging in to OneDrive.com. The hokey app ellipses interface doesn’t help -- it’s nowhere near as capable or visual as the OneDrive.com interface -- but it’s new, and it’s a real live app.

 

Edge gets more badly needed love in this build, but it isn’t much: A “What’s new and tips” entry in the ellipses menu, which links to the microsoftedgewelcome.microsoft.com page (not accessible to most of us) and, according to the ChangeWindows site, “You can now allow Edge to use an unrestricted amount of memory.” No details yet.

 

I see a tiny bit of additional information in the Windows Store -- a change that isn’t associated with this Win10 build, but it seems to be coincident. There’s a new System Requirements block in each app’s description that lists which version of Windows is required and also lists an “Architecture” requirement, which may be used to distinguish between ARM, 32-bit and 64-bit Windows (duplicating a less-legible “Supported processors” entry in the current Windows Store).

 

There’s a new LastPass 4.0 extension for Edge in the Store, but it doesn’t work very well. Install the app, crank up Edge, and you'll see a notification in the upper right corner that “You have a new extension.” Click Turn on, and a LastPass icon appears at the top of the ellipses pane. Click on that icon, and after you’ve logged in with a valid LastPass ID and password, you can use it to navigate to sites. Click on the My Vault entry to get a guided tour -- but be aware of the fact that it's far from ready. I couldn’t even get it to save a changed password.

 

That’s what I’ve found. If you see something new, hit me in the comments here, or over on AskWoody.com.

 

Source: New Windows 10 beta build 14352 holds a few pleasant surprises (InfoWorld - Woody Leonhard)

 

InfoWorld - Woody on Windows

 

AskWoody.com - Woody Leonhard's no-bull news, tips and help for Windows and Office

 

[pc71520]

http://www.howtogeek.com/248177/whats-new-in-windows-10s-anniversary-update/